CHRISTOPHER LEON MOORE, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Florida appellate court reversed cocaine sale and possession convictions because the trial court failed to conduct a sufficiently thorough Faretta inquiry before allowing the defendant to represent himself at trial.
A trial court's failure to conduct a sufficiently thorough inquiry into a defendant's decision to waive counsel, as required by Faretta v. California and Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.111(d), mandates reversal of convictions.
[1] A trial court must conduct a thorough inquiry satisfying Faretta v. …
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceChristopher Leon Moore was convicted of sale of cocaine and possession with intent to sell cocaine. The trial court allowed Moore to represent himself…
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JORGENSON, Associate Judge.
The appellant challenges multiple judgments of conviction and sentences for the sale of cocaine, and possession with intent to sell. Because the court failed to conduct a sufficiently thorough inquiry in connection with the appellant’s decision to represent himself at trial, the convictions must be reversed.
The necessity for a thorough inquiry when a defendant waives the right to counsel derives from Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806, 95 S.Ct. 2525, 45 L.Ed.2d 562 (1975), and Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.111(d). As Faretta indicates, a defendant’s decision in this regard must be knowingly and intelligently made, and the defendant should be made aware of the dangers and disadvantages of self-representation. Numerous cases applying Faretta and rule 3.111(d) have described the necessary parameters of the required inquiry. See e.g., Taylor v. State, 610 So. 2d 576 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992); Hayes v. State, 566 So. 2d 340 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990); Smith v. State, 444 So. 2d 542 (Fla. 1st DCA 1984). Although the court made some inquiry in the present case; and cautioned the appellant against self-representation, the inquiry fell short of that which is mandated by cases such as Taylor. Because the appellant’s convictions must be reversed due to the absence of a sufficient Faretta inquiry, it is unnecessary to address his remaining assertions of error. The convictions are reversed, and the cause is remanded.
WIGGINTON and MICKLE, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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J.B. v. State, 647 So. 2d 849 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994)…resentation before accepting his waiver of counsel at the disposition hearing and the possible disposition alternatives the court could impose including the fact that he could be adjudicated delinquent and placed in secure detention. Moore v. State, 615 So. 2d 874 (Fla. 1st DCA 1993); Taylor v. State, 610 So. 2d 576 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992); Smith v. State, 549 So. 2d 1147 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989); see also K.M. v. State, 448 So. 2d 1124, 1125 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984). Failure to conduct a proper inquiry is not subject to har…
Authorities Cited
- Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806 (U.S. 1975)
- State v. Thompson, 444 So. 2d 542 (Fla. 3d DCA 1984)
- Taylor v. State, 610 So. 2d 576 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992)
- Hayes v. State, 566 So. 2d 340 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990)