LUIS LEAL, APPELLANT,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
The court held that the adjudication of guilt could not stand because it was not a term of the negotiated plea agreement.
Louis Leal pleaded nolo contendere to aggravated battery and was sentenced to probation, restitution, and costs. After violating probation by failing …
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Adjudication Of Guilt cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
In March 1990, Louis Leal entered a plea of nolo contendere to an aggravated battery charge. In accordance with a negotiated plea agreement, the court approved a sentence consisting of one year probation, the payment of $380 in restitution, and costs of supervision.
In November 1990, an affidavit of violation of probation was filed alleging that Leal failed to make the required payments for restitution and costs. After Leal entered a plea of denial to the charge of violation of probation, the hearing date was reset to allow him an extra sixty days to make the required payments. No payments were made.
In February 1991, Leal, the probation officer, and the State agreed that the probation should be unsuccessfully terminated. Accordingly, the probation was terminated and a civil judgment was entered against Leal for the $380 owed as restitution. Although it was not part of the agreement, the trial court adjudicated Leal guilty of the felony charge.
In this appeal, Leal challenges the adjudication. We agree that it cannot stand because it was not a term of the plea agreement. Stranigan v. State, 457 So. 2d 546, 547 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984); Overman v. State, 368 So. 2d 434 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979).
We reverse the judgment of conviction and remand with instructions to either strike the adjudication or to vacate the order on the unsuccessful termination and allow Leal to present a defense to the allegations of a technical violation of probation.
Reversed and remanded.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
United States v. Drayton, 113 F.3d 1191 (11th Cir. 1997)…e Florida decisions indicate that sentencing and adjudication of guilt may, nonetheless, be controlled by a plea agreement even where the probation contemplated by that agreement has been revoked due to the defendant’s violation, see Leal v. State, 595 So. 2d 274 (Fla.3d D.C.A.1992); Brown v. State, 463 So. 2d 1230 (Fla. 1st D.C.A.1985), no such agreement has been suggested in this case. Further, Drayton’s prison sentences upon revocation could not have been imposed absent an adjudication. Finch v. Mayo,…
Authorities Cited
- Stranigan v. State, 457 So. 2d 546 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984)
- Overman v. State, 368 So. 2d 434 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979)