STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
ROBIN BROWN, APPELLEE
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A downward departure sentence from the sentencing guidelines requires written reasons from the trial court, even when negotiated in exchange for a guilty plea and over the state's objection.
[1] A downward departure from sentencing guidelines requires clear and convincing written reasons from the trial court, even when negotiated as part of a plea bargain over th…
[2] A trial court's oral pronouncements are insufficient to justify a downward departure from sentencing guidelines.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe trial court negotiated a downward departure sentence for the appellee, imposing community control with jail time, despite the state's objection. T…
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PER CURIAM.
As alleged by the state, the sentence under review must be reversed and remanded as it constitutes a downward departure from the sentencing guidelines without the trial court’s furnishing of any written reasons for said departure. State v. Jackson, 478 So. 2d 1054 (Fla.1985); State v. Richardson, 536 So. 2d 1193 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989); State v. Smith, 541 So. 2d 1224 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989); State v. Bledsoe, 538 So. 2d 94 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989).
The trial court, in exchange for a guilty plea, negotiated with appellee to sentence her to two years of community control with a special condition of sixty days in jail. Over the state’s objection, the trial court entered the downward departure sentence and made the following oral pronouncements in support thereof:
I’m departing downward from the guidelines. I feel under the circumstances that under this particular statute, and that it’s a reverse sting, and the Defendant has no preexisting record of having committed any criminal offenses, and the quantity of the rocks in question are minimal, in this instance one rock, that to sentence the Defendant within the guidelines of three-and-a-half to four-and-a-half years would be excessive punishment that is not merited for the offense that she’s charged with.
A trial court is not free to offer a plea bargain which is below the sentencing guidelines and over the state’s objection unless the court provides clear and convincing written reasons for the departure. State v. Johnson, 512 So. 2d 1116 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987).
We vacate the sentence imposed in this cause and remand for the trial court to enter written reasons for the downward departure. State v. Chaney, 514 So. 2d 436 (Fla. 4th DCA 1987); State v. Sims, 530 So. 2d 1089 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988). If on remand it should appear that the plea negotiated and the sentence imposed by the court are not viable, the defendant shall be given the opportunity to withdraw her plea. State v. Nichols, 536 So. 2d 1052 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988).
GLICKSTEIN, GUNTHER, JJ., and ROBINSON, STEVEN D., Associate Judge, concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- State v. Jackson, 478 So. 2d 1054 (Fla. 1985)
- State v. Johnson, 512 So. 2d 1116 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987)
- State v. Freddy Sims, 530 So. 2d 1089 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988)
- State v. Bledsoe, 538 So. 2d 94 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)
- State v. Dirk Deon Smith, 541 So. 2d 1224 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)
- Mahterian v. State, 514 So. 2d 436 (Fla. 4th DCA 1987)
- State v. Richardson, 536 So. 2d 1193 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989)
- Vasco Dagama Thompson v. State, 536 So. 2d 1193 (Fla. 5th DCA 1989)
- State v. Nichols, 536 So. 2d 1052 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988)