JOSEPH GONSALVES, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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The court held that the trial court erred in assessing victim injury points for two deaths when the charging information alleged only one, and in improperly scoring a prior out-of-state conviction.
[1] A trial court's supplementation of the record on appeal can cure an initial deficiency in demonstrating compliance with the rule requiring prospective jurors to be sworn.
[2] A defendant is entitled to relief when victim injury points are assessed for a number of deaths greater than that alleged in the charging information, absent a jury findi…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceDefendant was convicted of leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death and driving with a revoked license causing death. The sentencing scores…
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BLUE, Chief Judge.
Joseph Gonsalves appeals his convictions and sentences for leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death and driving with a revoked license and causing a death. We affirm the convictions, reverse the sentences, and remand for resentencing.
The first issue presented in this appeal contends that fundamental error requires a reversal of Mr. Gonsalves’ convictions because the record on appeal failed to reflect that the prospective jurors were sworn prior to questioning as required by Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.300(a). The purpose of this oath is to ensure that prospective jurors truthfully answer questions about their qualifications to serve as part of a particular jury.
The record on appeal initially lacked any record of this important component of a criminal jury trial. The State subsequently supplemented the record, and we are satisfied that there was compliance with rule 3.300(a).
However, difficult problems were presented by this issue because of an apparently common practice in the trial courts to comply with rule 3.300(a) in a common jury pool room but then fail to recite the compliance for the record in each case. In order to make a record on appeal that reflects compliance with rule 3.300(a), we encourage trial judges to include on the record either the swearing of the prospective jurors or to recite that the prospective jurors were properly sworn prior to questioning. See Pena v. State, 829 So. 2d 289 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002) (holding that fundamental error is not established by record that fails to demonstrate whether the venire received the required oath).
We have considered each of Mr. Gon-salves’ remaining issues addressed to his convictions and reject them without discussion. Mr. Gonsalves also presented several issues related to his sentences; two of his points warrant discussion and relief.
In the charging information, the State alleged that Mr. Gonsalves drove a motor vehicle with a revoked driver’s license and caused “the death of another human being, to wit: J.R. Brown or Ruth Ann Brown.” Significantly for Mr. Gon-salves’ argument, the information alleged the death of a single human being. Driving with a revoked license and causing the death of another human being is a violation of section 322.35(6), Florida Statutes (1997), a third-degree felony. In preparing the sentencing guidelines scoresheet, victim injury points were included for two deaths. Mr. Gonsalves contends that because the information only charged one death, victim injury points could be included for only one death, not two.
In Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466, 490, 120 S.Ct. 2348, 147 L.Ed.2d 435 (2000), the United States Supreme Court held: “Other than the fact of a prior conviction, any fact that increases the penalty for a crime beyond the prescribed statuto ry maximum must be submitted to a jury, and proved beyond a reasonable doubt.” Pursuant to Apprendi, the trial court erred in assessing victim injury points for two victims without a jury finding of two deaths. The statutory maximum sentence for a third-degree felony is five years in prison. § 775.082, Fla. Stat. (1997); see, e.g., Caraballo v. State, 805 So. 2d 882 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001) (statutory maximum for sexual battery for purposes of Apprendi analysis is that contained in section 775.081).
Because the victim injury points for the second victim resulted in a sentence beyond the statutory maximum and the fact of two deaths was not decided beyond a reasonable doubt by the jury, Mr. Gon-salves is entitled to relief.
Accordingly, we reverse the sentences on both counts and remand for resentencing with a corrected scoresheet reflecting victim injury points for only one victim.
Mr. Gonsalves also correctly contends that his prior North Carolina conviction was improperly scored as a felony conviction because the State failed to meet its burden of proving the level of the conviction. In order to score a prior conviction from a foreign jurisdiction as prior record, the trial court must determine “whether the conviction is analogous to a Florida statute.” Dautel v. State, 658 So. 2d 88, 91 (Fla.1995). “nly the elements of the out-of-state crime, and not the underlying facts, should be considered in determining whether the conviction is analogous to a Florida statute for the purpose of calculating points for a sentencing guidelines scoresheet.” Id. Here, the State failed to establish that Mr. Gon-salves’ prior North Carolina conviction was analogous to a Florida felony.
Accordingly, on remand, the North Carolina prior conviction shall be scored as a misdemean-or. See Dautel.
We affirm the convictions, reverse both sentences, and remand for resentencing with the scoresheet corrected in accordance with this opinion.
FULMER, J., and THREADGILL, EDWARD F., Senior Judge, Concur.
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Davis v. State, 848 So. 2d 418 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003)…inistered in the jury assembly room or at some other location when all of the prospective jurors for the several trials to be held in the courthouse on that day are assembled. See Pena v. State, 829 So. 2d 289 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002); Gonsalves v. State, 830 So. 2d 265 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002). As such, we agree with Judge Padovano’s conclusion in Lott: It may well be that the defendant’s counsel said nothing about the oath before the questioning on voir dire in the courtroom, because she knew that it had been given al…
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Brandall Kendric Allen v. State, 916 So. 2d 67 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005)…ored “at the severity level at which the analogous or parallel Florida crime is located.” Determining which Florida crime is analogous to the out of state conviction requires a comparison of the elements of the crimes. See, e.g., Gonsalves v. State, 830 So. 2d 265, 267 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002). The burden of proof on this issue lies with the State. Id. Here, the “prior record” section of Allen’s scoresheet included four convictions for dealing in stolen property, listed as second degree felonies and level five o…
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Ansel Wre Johnson v. State, 137 So. 3d 518 (Fla. 4th DCA 2014)…merely a misdemeanor in Florida.1 Appellant is correct that our “substantial similarity” analysis must focus solely on the statutory elements of the offenses and not on the underlying facts or conduct which are not elements. See Gonsalves v. State, 830 So. 2d 265, 267 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002); see also Dautel v. State, 658 So. 2d 88, 90 (Fla.1995) (“A conviction establishes only the elements of the crime, and does not include underlying facts or conduct which are not elements of the offense.”). In Robinson v. Sta…
Authorities Cited
- Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466 (U.S. 2000)
- Dautel v. State, 658 So. 2d 88 (Fla. 1995)
- Caraballo v. State, 805 So. 2d 882 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001)
- Pena v. State, 829 So. 2d 289 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002)