JUAN CINTRON, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Juan Cintron appeals the summary denial of his motion for postconviction relief alleging ineffective assistance of counsel for failure to suppress his murder confession made without Miranda warnings. The appellate court reverses because the trial court relied on an unidentified Spanish-language rights waiver not properly incorporated into the court record to summarily deny the motion.
A trial court cannot summarily deny a postconviction motion under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 by relying on matters outside the official court record, including documents not properly identified and certified as court file exhibits. The case must be remanded for the trial court to either properly identify and contextualize the document, locate other supporting record attachments, or show other good cause; otherwise, an evidentiary hearing must be held on the ineffective counsel claim.
[1] A trial court may summarily deny a motion for postconviction relief only if the files and records of the case conclusively show the prisoner is entitled to no relief.
[2] The phrase "files and records" as used in rule governing postconviction relief excludes matters dehors the official court record.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“the files and records of the case conclusively show that the prisoner is entitled to no relief”
States the legal standard for summary denial of postconviction motions under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceCintron was convicted of murder based on a confession allegedly made without being informed of his right to have an attorney present. On remand from a…
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[*796] PER CURIAM.
Juan Cintron appeals from the summary denial of a motion for postconviction relief.
In Cintron v. State, 495 So. 2d 248 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986), this court considered the sufficiency of Cintron’s motion in its entirety and found possible merit in only one of the several points raised. Cintron alleged that his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to move to suppress his murder confession, which had been made without his having been apprised of his right to have an attorney present.
Following our remand the circuit court again denied Cintron’s motion, attaching a document which appears to be a Spanish-language rights waiver. We find this attachment insufficient to refute conclusively the allegation of ineffective assistance of counsel. Although it bears the signature “Juan Cintron,” the word “homicidia,” and a handwritten notation (in English) that the waiver was “read to him and explained,” it is neither identified as being connected with the instant case nor certified as an exhibit from the court files.
Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 states that a trial court may summarily deny a motion for postconviction relief if “the files and records of the case conclusively show that the prisoner is entitled to no relief.” The phrase “files and records,” as employed in the rule, has been interpreted as excluding matters dehors the official court record. See, e.g., Youngblood v. State, 261 So. 2d 867 (Fla. 2d DCA 1972); Williams v. State, 163 So. 2d 767 (Fla. 2d DCA 1964). In Sampson v. State, 158 So. 2d 771 (Fla. 2d DCA 1963), the trial court attached to its order certain items apparently submitted ex parte in response to the motion but which were never made a part of the court record prior to the ruling on the motion. This procedure was found by this court to have created, at best, an issue of fact requiring an evidentiary hearing. Such procedure, this court stated, had the effect of “permit[ting] a hearing without all of the attendant requisites of such hearing.” Sampson, 158 So. 2d at 773.
Upon remand the trial court may again deny the motion if the document in question can be properly identified and placed in the context of this case, if other record attachments can be located which support denial of the motion, or if other good cause is shown. Otherwise, the court should set Cintron’s motion for a hearing on the issue of ineffective counsel. Either party aggrieved by the subsequent action of the trial court must file a notice of appeal within thirty days in order to obtain further appellate review.
Reversed and remanded for further proceedings consistent herewith.
SCHOONOVER, A.C.J., and LEHAN and SANDERLIN, JJ., concur.
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Cintron v. State, 508 So. 2d 1315 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987)…248 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986). After remand the trial court again denied the motion, this time attaching what appeared to be a rights waiver form. Because the material relied upon was dehors the official record we reversed a second time. Cintron v. State, 504 So. 2d 795 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987). Now the trial court has furnished us with the affidavit of one George L. Montesino, a Lee County deputy sheriff. In his affidavit, which was executed April 7, 1987, Montesino declared that he had been involved in the criminal [*1…
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Johnson v. State, 736 So. 2d 713 (Fla. 2d DCA 1999)…rs sent by Johnson’s counsel to him. These letters were obtained by the state attorney in response to Johnson’s motion. As such, these documents are outside of the official record and may not be used to refute Johnson’s claims. See Cintron v. State, 504 So. 2d 795 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987). Nonetheless, we find that Johnson’s claim that he was promised a guidelines sentence was adequately refuted by the transcript of the plea colloquy which the court also attached to its order. During the plea colloquy, the court e…
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Ciambrone v. State, 128 So. 3d 227 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013)…t of the official court record in Heather Ciambrone’s case. Based on the limited record before us, it appears that the postconviction court could not rely on the transcript of Joseph Ciam-brone’s trial to summarily deny relief. See Cintron v. State, 504 So. 2d 795, 796 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987) (holding the phrase “files and records” used in rule 3.850 excludes matters outside the official court record). Accordingly, we must reverse summary denial and remand the case for the post-conviction court to attach documents…
Previewing 3 of 8 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Arthur v. Sampson, 158 So. 2d 771 (Fla. 2d DCA 1963)
- Cintron v. State, 495 So. 2d 248 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986)
- Cleveland Williams v. State, 163 So. 2d 767 (Fla. 2d DCA 1964)
- PAN Am. Life Ins. Co. v. Botana, 163 So. 2d 767 (Fla. 3d DCA 1964)
- Maxwell v. State, 261 So. 2d 867 (Fla. 2d DCA 1972)
- Youngblood v. State, 261 So. 2d 867 (Fla. 2d DCA 1972)