KENNETH E. FOSTER
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA
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A juvenile offender's term-of-years sentence violates Graham and Miller only if it is a life sentence or the functional equivalent of a life sentence, and concurrent sentences of 50 and 36.175 years are not the functional equivalent of life imprisonment.
[1] A juvenile offender's term-of-years sentence is subject to Graham v. …
Previewing 1 of 1 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“a juvenile offender's sentence does not implicate Graham, and therefore Miller, unless it meets the threshold requirement of being a life sentence or the functional equivalent of a life sentence.”
Statement of law regarding applicability of Graham and Miller to juvenile sentences, citing Pedroza v. State.
Kenneth E. Foster was sentenced as a juvenile to concurrent sentences of 50 and 36.175 years for crimes he committed. Foster sought resentencing on th…
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RAY, C.J.
Kenneth E. Foster appeals the denial of his motion to correct illegal sentence in which he argued that he is entitled to resentencing under chapter 2014-220, Laws of Florida, because his term-of-years sentences for the crimes he committed as a juvenile violate Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (2012), and Graham v. Florida, 560 U.S. 48 (2010). As the Florida Supreme Court recently made clear, “a juvenile offender’s sentence does not implicate Graham, and therefore Miller, unless it meets the threshold requirement of being a life sentence or the functional equivalent of a life sentence.” Pedroza v. State, 45 Fla. L. Weekly S93a (Fla. March 12, 2020). Foster’s concurrent sentences of 50 and 36.175 years afford him a meaningful opportunity for release during his natural life. Even if he serves his entire 50-year sentence, he will be in his sixties when released. Because Foster has not shown that any of his sentences is the functional equivalent of a life sentence, we affirm. See id. (upholding 40-year sentence for second-degree murder committed by juvenile defendant); see also Hart v. State, 255 So. 3d 921, 927 (Fla. 1st DCA 2018) (upholding 50-year aggregate sentence for nonhomicide crimes committed by juvenile defendant).
AFFIRMED. ROWE and TANENBAUM, JJ., concur. _____________________________
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Citator
Authorities Cited
- Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (U.S. 2012)
- Kadeem Quaishawn Hart v. State, 255 So. 3d 921 (Fla. 1st DCA 2018)