WILLIE ARTHUR JONES, APPELLANT,
v.
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 officer's comment on the defendant's right to remain silent was harmless error, but the public defender's lien was improperly imposed.
During a trial for introducing contraband, an officer testified that the defendant invoked his right to remain silent. The defendant moved for a mistr…
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 Public Defender'S Lien cases and more on FLexlaw
[*750] HARRIS, Judge.
Willie Arthur Jones was convicted of the introduction of contraband into a county detention facility. During Jones’ trial, the officer that observed the violation testified:
Q. And was that your only involvement in the ease?
A. Primarily. Brief interview with the defendant. He invoked his rights.
Jones moved for mistrial based on the officer’s comment on his right to remain silent. The court denied his motion. We affirm.
While we agree that the statement by the officer was indeed improper (the court offered a curative instruction which was declined), we nevertheless conclude that the statement is subject to the harmless error rule. See Stephens v. State, 559 So. 2d 687 (Fla. 1st DCA 1990). We do not believe that the result of the trial would have been any different had the statement not been made. State v. DiGuilio, 491 So. 2d 1129 (Fla.1986).
Since Jones was not advised that he could contest the amount of the Public Defender’s lien, we reverse the lien and remand for further consideration after compliance with Rule 3.720(d)(1). See Bright v. State, 675 So. 2d 260 (Fla. 5th DCA 1996).
AFFIRMED in part, REVERSED in part and REMANDED.
COBB and THOMPSON, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Rubano v. Dep't OF Transp., 656 So. 2d 1264 (Fla. 1995)…ANSTEAD, Justice. We have for review State Department of Transportation v. Rubano, 686 So. 2d 749 (Fla. 4th DCA 1994), which certified to us, as a question of great public importance, whether the Florida Department of Transportation (DOT) effectuated a temporary but compen-sable taking of access of petitioners’ property during a highway improvem…
-
Kiner v. State, 824 So. 2d 271 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002)…fused. See id. The third district held that the detective’s statement that the defendant refused to provide a statement was an impermissible comment on his right to remain silent. See id. We find further support for this position in Jones v. State, 686 So. 2d 749, 750 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997). In Jones, the fifth district examined a similar factual situation. See id. In Jones the defendant began answering questions; however, he subsequently invoked his right to counsel. See id. During direct testimony, the office…
-
Guiseppe Lucio Scorpio v. State, 717 So. 2d 1122 (Fla. 5th DCA 1998)…mulla v. State, 677 So. 2d 987 (Fla. 5th DCA 1996). We find that the issue raised by appellant regarding the prosecutor’s comment to be disposed of by the harmless error analysis of State v. DiGuilio, 491 So. 2d 1129 (Fla.1986) and Jones v. State, 686 So. 2d 749 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997). The evidence of guilt was overwhelming. The convictions and sentences are affirmed with the exception of the conviction and sentence for the grand theft, which we vacate. AFFIRMED IN PART; REVERSED IN PART. W. SHARP, PETER…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- State v. DiGUILIO, 491 So. 2d 1129 (Fla. 1986)
- Waldon v. State, 559 So. 2d 687 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990)
- Metevier v. State, 675 So. 2d 260 (Fla. 5th DCA 1996)
- Bright v. State, 675 So. 2d 260 (Fla. 5th DCA 1996)