PATRICK REYNOLDS, A/K/A ROBERT C. JOHNSON, A/K/A TODD PAUL STACEY (DOC # 253733), APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Patrick Reynolds (also known as Robert C. Johnson and Todd Paul Stacey) appealed an order denying his motion to correct illegal sentences. The court reversed and remanded, finding numerous sentencing errors occurred during a 1997 sentencing hearing on violation of probation charges, including improper habitual offender enhancements and sentences imposed after probation terms had expired.
The court reversed and remanded because habitual offender sentences were improper in five cases where Mr. Johnson was not originally sentenced as a habitual offender, and probation violation sentences were improper in three cases where probation had expired prior to 1997. The trial court must resentence Mr. Johnson on remand to correct these errors and effectuate the negotiated plea.
[1] A sentence imposed as a habitual offender is improper if the defendant was not originally sentenced as a habitual offender in the underlying case.
[2] A sentence is inappropriate when the term of probation has expired prior to the violation.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“the habitual offender sentences in case numbers 88-18228, 89-15323, 90-10719, 90-10720, and 90-14444 are all improper because Mr. Johnson was not originally sentenced as a habitual offender in those cases”
Establishes the basis for finding illegal habitual offender enhancements
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceMr. Johnson was sentenced on April 23, 1997, in six cases (88-18228, 89-15323, 90-10719, 90-10720, 90-14444, and 91-11307) pursuant to a negotiated pl…
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ALTENBERND, Acting Chief Judge.
Patrick Reynolds, a/k/a Robert Chris Johnson, a/k/a Todd Paul Stacey (Mr. Johnson),1 appeals an order denying his motion to correct illegal sentences. We reverse and remand for further proceedings because numerous errors occurred during his sentencing on April 23, 1997. Whether those errors will ultimately shorten his total sentence is unclear from our record.
Mr. Johnson has numerous aliases and an extensive criminal record. This caused some complexity at his sentencing hearing, which involved sentences imposed upon violation of probation. At that hearing, he was sentenced in case numbers 88-18228, 89-15323, 90-10719, 90-10720, 90-14444, and 91-11307. Pursuant to a negotiated plea, he received concurrent 15-year sentences of imprisonment as a habitual offender with varying awards of jail and prison credit. These terms of imprisonment were all followed by 5 years’ probation.
The State has filed a helpful brief in this case, which points out that the habitual offender sentences in case numbers 88-18228, 89-15323, 90-10719, 90-10720, and 90-14444 are all improper because Mr. Johnson was not originally sentenced as a habitual offender in those cases. Moreover, the terms of probation in case numbers 88-18228, 89-15323, and 90-14444 had expired prior to the 1997 violation so that no sentence was appropriate in those cases. See State v. Summers, 642 So. 2d 742 (Fla.1994).
All of these illegal sentences may have little effect on Mr. Johnson’s total term of imprisonment because it does not appear that his sentence is illegal in case number 91-11307. In that case, he originally received a 60-year habitual offender sentence, with 55 years suspended and replaced by 15 years’ probation. Apparently, he agreed to the 1997 plea primarily because of the risk this longer sentence created. However, our record suggests that the trial court intended to give Mr. Johnson 5 years of prison credit for all counts contained in case number 91-11307, and he may not be receiving that credit on all counts.
On remand, the trial court shall carefully review Mr. Johnson’s sentencing. In light of the complexity of these errors, we do not mandate any specific relief on remand. It would appear likely, however, that the trial court will need to resentence Mr. Johnson in order to achieve the negotiated plea described in the transcript of the sentencing hearing that took place on April 23,1997.
Reversed and remanded.
NORTHCUTT and CASANUEVA, JJ., concur. . We refer to the appellant as Mr. Johnson because the Department of Corrections uses this name as his primary name.
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Reynolds v. State, 28 So. 3d 979 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010)…mand for the postconviction court to address the claims on the merits. Reynolds alleged that he was sentenced to fifteen years in prison followed by five years’ probation in 1997. In 2001, after [*980] remand from this court, see Reynolds v. State, 784 So. 2d 1237 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001), he was resentenced to serve fifteen years in prison followed by five years’ probation for counts one, two, and three and five years in prison concurrent with no probation for counts four and five. After he was released from priso…
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