STEVEN WAYNE CARR, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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An indigent prisoner is not entitled to free transcripts to prepare a motion for post-conviction relief if the motion does not contain sufficient allegations to warrant the relief requested.
Steven Carr, an indigent prisoner, sought free transcripts and documents to prepare a motion for post-conviction relief. The trial court summarily den…
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LEHAN, Judge.
Steven Carr appeals the summary denial of his “motion for transcripts.” Carr, an indigent prisoner, sought free copies of transcripts and other documents relative to his felony convictions to assist him in preparation of a motion for post-conviction relief. The trial court found that the motion “does not contain sufficient allegations to entitle movant [to the] relief requested.” We affirm.
Indigents who wish to appeal their convictions are not required to pay the costs of preparing the record on appeal. However, “[a] transcript of record need not be provided just for perusal or curiosity, nor for the purpose of merely enabling the prisoner to comb the record in hope of discovering some flaw.” Cassoday v. State, 237 So. 2d 146, 147 (Fla.1970). Rather, a prisoner seeking post-conviction relief must first prepare and file his motion before he may secure those portions of the record relevant to that motion. Dorch v. State, 483 So. 2d 851 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986); Griffith v. State, 363 So. 2d 622 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978). In preparing the motion “[h]e must simply do the best he can from his recollection of the trial.” Dorch, 483 So. 2d at 852.
Availability of a transcript is, accordingly, not necessary for the preparation of a legally sufficient motion for post-conviction relief. And Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 and the forms at Rule 3.987, are designed to assist pro se filings without the requirement of legally precise pleadings or detailed legal memoranda. Allegations which constitute a prima facie showing of entitlement to relief generally, will require an evidentiary hearing unless refuted by the record; the burden of combing the record in that regard is, of course, not on the defendant.
Affirmed.
RYDER, A.C.J., and CAMPBELL, J., concur,
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Roesch v. State, 633 So. 2d 1 (Fla. 1993)…118 L.Ed.2d 309 (1992), the Second District Court of Appeal stated: The question remains as to whether Yanke is entitled to the documents free of charge under applicable principles of due process relating to a criminal proceeding. In Carr v. State, 495 So. 2d 282 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986), we held that, although an indigent defendant has a right to transcripts without payment of costs for a direct appeal, there is no right to free transcripts for use in preparation of a post-conviction motion. The rationale of Carr…
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Kurtis J. Smith v. State, 696 So. 2d 814 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997)…iction relief. The trial courts were correct in their understanding that prisoners may not be entitled to portions of their trial transcripts to prepare pro se post-conviction motions. See Cassoday v. State, 237 So. 2d 146 (Fla.1970); Carr v. State, 495 So. 2d 282 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986). A prisoner may, however, also request records under the public records law. A chapter 119 records request may be made to prepare a motion for post-conviction relief. See Kokal, 562 So. 2d at 326 (pendency of post-conviction motio…
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Woodfaulk v. State, 935 So. 2d 1225 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006)…and services for a plenary appeal, but there is no provision to obtain them thereafter. Ridge v. Adams, 643 So. 2d 116, 117 (Fla. 5th DCA 1994). There is no right to free transcripts for use in preparation of a postconviction motion. Carr v. State, 495 So. 2d 282, 282 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986). Rather, a prisoner seeking postconviction relief must first prepare and file his motion before he may secure those portions of the record relevant to the motion. Id. A prisoner seeking copies of the state attorney’s criminal…
Previewing 3 of 28 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Cassoday v. State, 237 So. 2d 146 (Fla. 1970)
- Norvel L. Dorch v. State, 483 So. 2d 851 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986)
- Griffith v. State, 363 So. 2d 622 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978)