LAMAR ORANGE, JR. A/K/A "JUICE", APPELLANT,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Trial court properly departed upward from sentencing guidelines based on victim vulnerability and brutal manner of offense, which are not inherent factors in second-degree murder conviction.
A trial court may depart upward from sentencing guidelines based on the victim's particular vulnerability and the especially brutal manner of the offense, even though these factors relate to the crime of conviction.
[1] Sentencing guidelines departure based on victim vulnerability and brutal manner of offense is permissible where such factors are not inherent in the offense of conviction…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAppellant was convicted of second-degree murder in the beating death of Marcia Bethel, a 5-foot-tall, 85-pound woman who was intoxicated at the time. …
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BARKDULL, Judge.
Appellant was charged with first degree murder in the beating death of one Marcia Bethel. He was found guilty of second degree murder. The sentencing guidelines recommended a sentence of 12-17 years imprisonment. The trial court imposed a 30-year sentence giving as grounds for exceeding the guidelines the following: (1) The crime was committed against a victim who was particularly vulnerable and defenseless. The evidence showed the victim was 5 feet tall, weighed 85 pounds, and was intoxicated from alcohol and cocaine at the time of her death. The defendant was a large well muscled man. (2) The offense was committed in a particularly outrageous or brutal manner as shown by the victim’s injuries which included bruises and abrasions, 6 broken ribs, and a ruptured heart and a liver split in half by the force of the blows against her. The appellant contends the trial court erred in departing from the guidelines in reliance on reasons which are inherent in the offense convicted of, and which cannot support said departure. We disagree and affirm the trial court on the authority of: State v. McCall, 524 So. 2d 663 (Fla.1988); Coleman v. State, 515 So. 2d 313 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987); Moore v. State, 468 So. 2d 1081 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985); Compare Mayo v. State, 518 So. 2d 458 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988).
The judgment of conviction under review, together with the sentence, be and the same are hereby affirmed.
AFFIRMED.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
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Carter v. State, 550 So. 2d 1130 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)…m the sentencing guidelines, the trial court stated that the vulnerability of the victim supported enhancement of the sentence. The particular vulnerability of a victim is a valid reason for departing from the sentencing guidelines. Orange v. State, 535 So. 2d 691 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988). Here, the record supports the trial court’s finding that Carter’s victim was particularly vulnerable to the series of vicious attacks she suffered. Carter’s victim was significantly smaller than her assailant and was, thus, espec…
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Bryant Wright v. State, 538 So. 2d 497 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)…constitutes grounds for departure from the recommended sentence. State v. McCall, 524 So. 2d 663 (Fla.1988); Roberts v. State, 510 So. 2d 885 (Fla.1987), cert. denied, — U.S. -, 108 S.Ct. 1123, 99 L.Ed.2d 284 (1988); Hansbrough; see Orange v. State, 535 So. 2d 691 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988). Of course, the trial court may not use both victim injury and excessive force as grounds for departure from sentencing guidelines because excessive force will “virtually always ... result in victim injury,” and its use as a predi…
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Darcy Delorme v. State, 562 So. 2d 398 (Fla. 3d DCA 1990)…in appellant’s last contention that the sentence imposed was improper. In Lerma v. State, 497 So. 2d 736 (Fla.1986), the Florida Supreme Court recognized excessive brutality as the basis to support a departure sentence. Further, in Orange v. State, 535 So. 2d 691 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988), this court upheld a departure sentence based on the commission of a second degree murder in a particularly outrageous or brutal manner. Without detailing the injuries sustained by this victim, suffice it to say that the record i…
Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- State v. McCALL, 524 So. 2d 663 (Fla. 1988)
- Elvin Lee Moore v. State, 468 So. 2d 1081 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985)
- Coleman v. State, 515 So. 2d 313 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987)
- Crancy Scrivens v. State, 518 So. 2d 458 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988)