THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
JAMES STANLEY HARRIS, APPELLEE
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Florida's Third District Court of Appeal reversed a 25-year sentence imposed on a violent career criminal defendant, holding that when a trial court elects to sentence under the violent career criminal statute for a first-degree felony, a mandatory life sentence must be imposed unless the court finds it unnecessary for public protection.
When a trial court sentences a defendant as a violent career criminal for a first-degree felony, a mandatory life sentence must be imposed unless the court finds such a sentence unnecessary for public protection.
[1] When a trial court sentences a defendant as a violent career criminal under Florida law for a first-degree felony, a mandatory life sentence must be imposed unless the co…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“If a trial court elects to sentence a defendant as a violent career criminal for a first-degree felony, a life sentence must be imposed.”
Court's statement of the controlling legal rule established in State v. Meyers
James Harris was sentenced as a violent career criminal to 25 years for a first-degree felony, but the applicable statute required either a mandatory …
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COPE, Judge.
The State appeals an order imposing sentence on defendant-appellee James Hams as a violent career criminal. The State contends that the trial court erred in imposing a twenty-five-year mandatory sentence on defendant for a first-degree felony, when the applicable statute calls for a mandatory life term. See § 775.084(4)(c)l., Fla. Stat. (1995). Although the trial eoui't did not have the benefit of it at the time of the sentencing hearing in this ease, during the pendency of this appeal this court announced State v. Meyers, 708 So. 2d 661 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998), which resolves this issue favorably to the State. If a trial court elects to sentence a defendant as a violent career criminal for a first-degree felony, a life sentence must be imposed. See id. at 663-64. Accordingly, we must reverse the sentencing order and re mand for a new sentencing hearing in light of State v. Meyers.
The State contends that on remand the trial court must increase the sentence to the mandatory life term. We disagree. The statute calls for the trial court to impose sentence as a violent career criminal unless “the court finds ... that it is not necessary for the protection of the public .... ” § 775.084(4)(d), Fla. Stat. (1995). The transcript strongly suggests that the trial court believed a life sentence as a violent career criminal was not necessary for the protection of the public. If on remand that is the court’s finding, then the trial court may consider all other available sentencing options.
Reversed and remanded for a new sentencing hearing.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Harris v. State, 849 So. 2d 449 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003)…So. 2d 535, 536 (Fla. 3d DCA 1999) we ordered a similar remand, and stated, in language applicable here: The record shows that the trial court mistakenly believed that a violent career criminal sentence was mandatory. As stated in State v. Harris, 718 So. 2d 933, 934 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998), “[t]he statute calls for the trial court to impose sentence as a violent career criminal unless ‘the court finds ... that it is not necessary for the protection of the public ... ’” See State v. Meyers, 708 So. 2d 661 (Fla.…
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Calderon v. State, 745 So. 2d 535 (Fla. 3d DCA 1999)…So. 2d 804 (Fla.1982). However, the state properly concedes that the trial court must resentence Calderon. The record shows that the trial court mistakenly believed that a violent career criminal sentence was mandatory. As stated in State v. Harris, 718 So. 2d 933, 934 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998), “[t]he statute calls for the trial court to impose sentence as a violent career criminal unless ‘the court finds ... that it is not necessary for the protection of the public ...’” See State v. Meyers, 708 So. 2d 661 (Fla. 3…
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Jackson v. State (Fla. 3d DCA 2008)…um; and on count two, to credit for time served. As in Calderon v. State, 745 So. 2d 535, 536 (Fla. 3d DCA 1999), the record shows that the trial court mistakenly believed that a violent career criminal sentence was mandatory. See State v. Harris, 718 So. 2d 933, 934 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998) (stating that “[t]he statute calls for the trial court to impose sentence as a violent career criminal unless ‘the court finds ... that it is not necessary for the protection of the public ... ’ ”). The quoted language from t…
Authorities Cited
- State v. Meyers, 708 So. 2d 661 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998)