ALAN MACKERLEY, PETITIONER,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, RESPONDENT
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.
A general verdict conviction for first-degree murder is improper if based on dual theories, one of which is legally unsupportable, even if evidence supports the other theory.
Defendant was convicted of first-degree murder on theories of premeditation and felony murder. The felony underlying the felony murder charge was lega…
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 General Verdict cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
We have for review a decision which the district court certified as having passed upon the following question of great public importance:
Is it harmless error when a defendant is convicted by general verdict for first degree murder on the dual theories of premeditation and felony murder where the felony underlying the felony murder charge is based on a legally unsupportable theory of which the defendant is nevertheless convicted, and there is evidence in the record to support the jury’s finding of premeditation?
Mackerley v. State, 754 So. 2d 132 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000). We have jurisdiction pursuant to article V, section 3(b)(4) of the Florida Constitution.
The district court certified the question in this case in response to this Court’s initial opinion in Delgado v. State, 25 Fla. L. Weekly S79 (Fla. Feb. 3, 2000), wherein this Court determined that one of the State’s theories of first-degree murder (felony murder based on a burglary) was legally unsupportable. Despite this conclusion, we held that the error in sending the felony murder charge to the jury was harmless since the evidence supported the conviction for premeditated murder. On rehearing in Delgado, this Court acknowledged that the United States Supreme Court has determined that a conviction under a general verdict is improper when it rests on multiple bases, one of which is legally inadequate. See Delgado v. State, 776 So. 2d 233 (Fla.2000) (citing Yates v. United States, 354 U.S. 298, 77 S.Ct. 1064, 1 L.Ed.2d 1356 (1957)). Ultimately, we reversed Delgado’s convictions. Accordingly, we answer the certified question in the negative, quash the decision of the District Court of Appeal, and remand with directions that petitioner’s conviction be reversed.
It is so ordered.
SHAW, HARDING, ANSTEAD, PARIENTE and LEWIS, JJ., concur. WELLS, C.J., and QUINCE, J., dissent.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (16 total)
-
Brooks v. State, 918 So. 2d 181 (Fla. 2005)…n that a single stabbing blow cannot constitutionally, as a matter of law, constitute an underlying felony for the purpose of application of the felony murder doctrine requires this Court to reverse Brooks’s convictions. See also Mackerley v. State, 777 So. 2d 969 (Fla.2001) (holding that it is reversible error to sustain a conviction based on a general jury verdict for first degree-murder on dual theories of premeditation and felony murder where the felony underlying the felony murder charge is based on a le…
-
Perley v. State, 947 So. 2d 672 (Fla. 4th DCA 2007)…While the presentation of dual theories of a crime is allowable, this occurs when a defendant is charged with the commission of one crime, and the State presents two scenarios or bases supporting the commission of the crime. See Mackerley v. State, 777 So. 2d 969 (Fla.2001). In this case, the State charged Perley with one count of escape, but presented evidence of two entirely separate incidents, separated by both time and place. By allowing the State to tell the jury it could convict Perley for either insta…
-
Fitzpatrick v. State, 859 So. 2d 486 (Fla. 2003)…d first-degree premeditated murder and attempted first-degree felony murder where this Court subsequently held that attempted first-degree felony murder does not exist in Florida). This Court recently reiterated this principle in Mackerley v. State, 777 So. 2d 969 (Fla.2001), where the Fourth District Court of Appeal certified the following question of great public importance: Is it harmless error when a defendant is convicted by general verdict for first degree murder on the dual theories of premeditation a…
Previewing 3 of 16 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Yates v. United States, 354 U.S. 298 (U.S. 1957)
- Delgado v. State, 776 So. 2d 233 (Fla. 2000)
- MacKerley v. State, 754 So. 2d 132 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000)