JERRY SMITH, 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.
Jerry Smith appealed his sentences for multiple felonies, challenging whether the trial court imposed sentences in excess of statutory maximums. The Fourth District Court of Appeal held that Florida law permitted the sentences imposed and affirmed them, but remanded for the sentencing orders to be amended to reflect that the sentences were to run concurrently as orally pronounced.
The court held that both the 17-year sentence on Count II and the 17-year sentence on Count III were legal under Florida law as established in State v. Myers, Wilkins v. State, and Mays v. State. The court further held that the sentencing orders must be amended to reflect that the sentences run concurrently in accordance with the court's oral pronouncement at sentencing.
[1] A sentence imposed for a felony is not illegal if it does not exceed the statutory maximum punishment for that felony, even if it exceeds the recommended sentencing guide…
[2] A sentence imposed for a felony is not illegal if it does not exceed the statutory maximum punishment for that felony, even if it exceeds the recommended sentencing guide…
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“we hold that the 17 year sentence on Count II and the 17 year sentence on Count III were each legal”
The court's holding that both challenged sentences were valid under Florida law as clarified by recent Supreme Court decisions.
Previewing 1 of 2 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceSmith was adjudicated guilty of multiple crimes including aggravated battery with a deadly weapon (Count II, a second-degree felony with a 15-year max…
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 Statutory Maximum Sentence cases and more on FLexlaw
OWEN, WILLIAM C., Jr., Senior Judge.
Appellant, adjudicated guilty of and sentenced for multiple crimes, on this direct appeal raises only two issues, both related to the sentences he received. The first is that the sentences imposed on Counts II and III of Case Number 97-484CF were in excess of that permitted by law. We hold they were not. The second is that the sentencing orders fail to show the several sentences were to run concurrently as orally pronounced by the court at the time of sentencing. The state concedes that issue.
The court scored the five crimes. The sentencing guidelines called for a recommended sentence of 175.6 months (14.63 years) imprisonment and a range of 131.7 months to 219.5 months. On Count II, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, a second-degree felony punishable by a term not to exceed fifteen (15) years, appellant was sentenced to 17 years. On Count III, grand theft, a third-degree felony punishable by a term not to exceed five (5) years, appellant was also sentenced to 17 years. Relying on this court’s opinion in Myers v. State, 696 So. 2d 893 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997),1 appellant contended that (a) as to Count II it was error to sentence him beyond the statutory maximum of 15 years, and (b) as to Count III, since the recommended sentence exceeded the statutory maximum of 5 years, it was error to sentence him beyond the recommended guidelines sentence of 14.63 years.
This court’s decision and opinion in Myers was quashed in State v. Myers, 713 So. 2d 1013 (Fla.1998). On the authority of the latter case, as well as Wilkins v. State, 713 So. 2d 1014 (Fla.1998), and Mays v. State, 717 So. 2d 515, 23 Fla. L. Weekly S387 (Fla.1998), we hold that the 17 year sentence on Count II and the 17 year sentence on Count III were each legal. Each of those sentences is therefore affirmed.
Appellant asserts, and the state concedes, that the sentences should reflect that they are to run concurrently with each other as the court orally pronounced. Upon remand the trial court is directed to amend the sentencing orders to reflect that the several sentences imposed at sentencing are to run concurrently with each other in accordance with the court’s oral pronouncement at the time of sentencing. See Martindale v. State, 678 So. 2d 883 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996). The appellant need not be present for that purpose.
AFFIRMED, AND REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS.
STONE, C.J., and GROSS, J„ concur. . At the time briefs were filed and the case submitted for disposition, Myers v. State was pending review in the Supreme Court.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Mays v. State, 717 So. 2d 515 (Fla. 1998)
- Myers v. State, 696 So. 2d 893 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997)
- State v. Myers, 713 So. 2d 1013 (Fla. 1998)
- Martindale v. State, 678 So. 2d 883 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996)
- Wilkins v. State, 713 So. 2d 1014 (Fla. 1998)