RAYMOND JOSEPH, APPELLANT,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Raymond Joseph appealed his conviction and sentence for second degree murder and use of a weapon in the commission of a felony. The court affirmed the murder conviction, finding the trial court properly managed defendant's disruptive courtroom conduct, but reversed the firearm conviction due to double jeopardy concerns.
The court affirmed the second degree murder conviction, holding that the trial court properly sanctioned Joseph's obstreperous conduct by binding, threatening to gag, and removing him from the courtroom. The court reversed the firearm conviction, holding that double jeopardy principles bar a separate conviction and sentence for use of a firearm when the same weapon use formed the basis for enhancing the underlying murder charge to a life felony.
[1] A trial court may sanction a disruptive defendant by binding, gagging, or removing them from the courtroom to prevent further disruption of the proceedings.
[2] A separate conviction and sentence for use of a firearm in the commission of a felony is barred by double jeopardy when the use of that same weapon is the basis for enhan…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“in order to prevent obstreperous defendant from disrupting trial, court may choose to bind and gag defendant, cite him for contempt, or remove him from courtroom”
Establishes the trial court's discretionary authority to manage disruptive defendants through various sanctions including physical restraint and removal from courtroom.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceJoseph was convicted of second degree murder and use of a weapon in the commission of a felony. During trial, Joseph engaged in obstreperous conduct a…
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PER CURIAM.
Defendant appeals from a conviction and sentence for second degree murder and use of a weapon in the commission of a felony.
We affirm the conviction and sentence for second degree murder. Defendant’s obstreperous conduct and repeated outbursts gave the trial court no option but to sanction the defendant, outside the presence of the jury, by binding him to a wheelchair and threatening to gag him, and then removing him from the courtroom.1 See Illinois v. Allen, 397 U.S. 337, 90 S.Ct. 1057, 25 L.Ed.2d 353 (1970) (in order to prevent obstreperous defendant from disrupting trial, court may choose to bind and gag defendant, cite him for contempt, or remove him from courtroom); Valdes v. State, 626 So. 2d 1316 (Fla.1993) (trial court justified in keeping defendant out of courtroom until satisfied that defendant would not further disrupt proceedings); Brown v. State, 540 So. 2d 924 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989) (trial court did not abuse its discretion in removing disruptive defendant from trial).2
Upon the State’s proper confession of error, we reverse the conviction and sentence for possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Where the use of a weapon is the basis for enhancing the charge of second degree murder to a life felony, double jeopardy bars a separate conviction and sentence for use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. See Cleveland v. State, 587 So. 2d 1145 (Fla.1991) (when robbery conviction enhanced for use of firearm in committing the robbery, single act involving use of same firearm in commission of same robbery cannot form basis of separate conviction and sentence for use of firearm while committing a felony). Reversal of this conviction will not require the trial court to resentence defendant; absent this conviction, defendant’s sentence would still be within the same guidelines.
Affirmed in part; reversed in part.
. All but one of the outbursts occurred outside the presence of the jury.
. The trial court gave the jury a curative instruction regarding the defendant's absence from the courtroom during voir dire, and asked whether any of the venire members had a problem with defendant's absence. The two panelists who expressed concern were not selected as jurors.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Knight v. State, 721 So. 2d 287 (Fla. 1998)…Allen in finding that the “court’s obligation to maintain safety and security in the courtroom outweighs, under proper circumstances, the risk that the security measures may impair the defendant’s presumption of innocence”); accord Joseph v. State, 625 So. 2d 109 (Fla. 3d DCA 1993). We [*296] find no error in the judge’s instruction to the jury. From the record it is apparent that Knight had every opportunity to remain in the courtroom, but chose to misbehave. Indeed, his consistently obstinate behavior, wh…
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Knight v. State, 923 So. 2d 387 (Fla. 2005)…Allen in finding that the “court’s obligation to maintain safety and security in the courtroom outweighs, under proper circumstances, the risk that the security measures may impair the defendant’s presumption of innocence”); accord Joseph v. State, 625 So. 2d 109 (Fla. 3d DCA 1993). Knight, 746 So. 2d at 432. The trial court heard the testimony of numerous witnesses regarding the in courtroom behavioral difficulties of the defendant. Based on their testimony, the court found the behavior willful. RST 204-2…
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Allen v. State, 643 So. 2d 87 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994)…ion from a second degree felony to a first degree felony, separate conviction and sentence for exhibition of a weapon violated appellant’s constitutional right against double jeopardy. Cleveland v. State, 587 So. 2d 1145 (Fla.1991); Joseph v. State, 625 So. 2d 109 (Fla. 3d DCA 1993). Therefore, we affirm the conviction and sentence for manslaughter with a firearm, but reverse the conviction and sentence for exhibition of a deadly weapon. Affirmed in part, reversed in part.…
Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Illinois v. Allen, 397 U.S. 337 (U.S. 1970)
- Quinten L. Cleveland v. State, 587 So. 2d 1145 (Fla. 1991)
- Valdes v. State, 626 So. 2d 1316 (Fla. 1993)
- Brown v. State, 540 So. 2d 924 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)