CHANTZ HARPER, 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.
Chantz Harper appealed the summary denial of his Rule 3.800(a) motion challenging his sentence as a habitual felony offender for cocaine trafficking. The court reversed, holding that Harper's sentence was illegal because the statute mandated sentencing guidelines application rather than habitual offender enhancement for his quantity of cocaine.
Harper's sentence was illegal and the denial of his Rule 3.800(a) motion was reversed. On remand, if Harper entered an open plea, he must be resentenced under the sentencing guidelines. If he entered a negotiated plea, the State must choose either to agree to resentencing under guidelines or to withdraw from the plea agreement and proceed to trial.
[1] A defendant charged with trafficking in cocaine, 28 grams or more but less than 200 grams, must be sentenced pursuant to the sentencing guidelines, not as a habitual felo…
[2] A sentence imposed as a habitual felony offender for trafficking in cocaine, 28 grams or more but less than 200 grams, is illegal.
Previewing 2 of 5 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“Section 893.135(l)(b)(l)(a) provides that if the quantity of cocaine involved in the trafficking offense is 28 grams or more but less than 200 grams, the defendant shall be sentenced pursuant to the sentencing guidelines.”
Establishes the controlling statutory requirement that mandated guideline sentencing rather than habitual offender enhancement
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceOn January 31, 1996, Harper pleaded no contest as a habitual felony offender to trafficking in cocaine (28 grams or more but less than 200 grams) in v…
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 Open Plea cases and more on FLexlaw
[*900] NORTHCUTT, Judge.
Chantz Harper challenges the summary-denial of his motion filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a). We affirm without comment as to two claims. We reverse as to the third.
On January 31,1996, in case number 95-15645 Harper pleaded no contest as a habitual felony offender to one count of trafficking in cocaine, 28 grams or more but less than 200 grams, in violation of section 893.135(l)(b)(l)(a), Florida Statutes (1995). The court sentenced him to ten years in prison as a habitual felony offender and imposed a $50,000 fine.
Section 893.135(l)(b)(l)(a) provides that if the quantity of cocaine involved in the trafficking offense is 28 grams or more but less than 200 grams, the defendant shall be sentenced pursuant to the sentencing guidelines. See Virgil v. State, 884 So. 2d 373, 29 Fla. L. Weekly D2060 (Fla. 2d DCA Sept.10, 2004); Wright v. State, 743 So. 2d 103 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999). Therefore, Harper should not have been sentenced as a habitual felony offender in case number 95-15645. See Fortner v. State, 779 So. 2d 462 (Fla. 2d DCA 2000); Clay v. State, 750 So. 2d 153 (Fla. 1st DCA 2000). In this appeal the State has conceded that Harper’s sentence is illegal. Accordingly, we reverse the denial of Harper’s rule 3.800(a) motion and remand for proceedings in accordance with this opinion. See Higgins v. State, 799 So. 2d 344 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001); Wilhelm v. State, 543 So. 2d 434 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989).1
It is not clear from the record before this court whether Harper’s plea to the trafficking offense was open or was for a negotiated sentence. If he entered an open plea, on remand he must be resen-tenced under the sentencing guidelines in effect at the time of the offense. However, if he entered into a negotiated plea, the circuit court must permit the State either to agree to resentencing under the guidelines or to withdraw from the plea agreement and proceed to trial. See Hughes v. State, 850 So. 2d 664 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003).
Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded.
CANADY and VILLANTI, JJ., Concur. . We note that Harper also contends that imposing a fine in addition to a habitual offender sentence exceeds the maximum allowed by statute. He is correct. See Floyd v. State, 739 So. 2d 1241 (Fla. 2d DCA 1999); Webster v. State, 705 So. 2d 970 (Fla. 2d DCA 1998). However, because he will be resen-tenced according to the sentencing guidelines, his habitual offender designation will be stricken, rendering the fine permissible.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Baker v. State, 941 So. 2d 419 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)…ct held that in light of the language of the trafficking statute, a habitual offender sentence could not be imposed for the crime of trafficking. See Wright v. State, 743 So. 2d 103 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999). This court followed Wright in Harper v. State, 889 So. 2d 899 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004), and Virgil v. State, 884 So. 2d 373 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004). The holding in Wright, however, only applied to section 893.135 as amended by chapter 93-406, section 24, Laws of Florida. From January 1, 1994, until September 30, 2000, th…
-
Wright v. State, 992 So. 2d 911 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008)…mandatory sense, such that guidelines sentencing is required and enhanced sentencing is precluded. See S.R. v. State, 346 So. 2d 1018, 1019 (Fla.1977) (noting that the word “shall” is “normally meant to be mandatory in nature”). In Harper v. State, 889 So. 2d 899 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004), we construed section 893.135(l)(b)(l)(a), Florida Statutes (1995), which, using language identical to that at issue here, states that a defendant convicted of trafficking in cocaine at the level of twenty-eight or more but less t…
-
Hayes v. State, 19 So. 3d 435 (Fla. 3d DCA 2009)…er where, as here, the quantity of cocaine involved in the trafficking offense is twenty-eight grams or more, but less than two-hundred grams. The case law he relies on was based on an earlier version of the trafficking statute. See Harper v. State, 889 So. 2d 899, 900 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004). The statute has since been amended, and the habitual offender sentence is permissible in the defendant’s case. Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded for further proceedings consistent herewith. * The crime…
Authorities Cited
- Elmario Clay v. State, 750 So. 2d 153 (Fla. 1st DCA 2000)
- Neilsen Arelen Wilhelm v. State, 543 So. 2d 434 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989)
- Wautara Wright v. State, 743 So. 2d 103 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999)
- Webster v. State, 705 So. 2d 970 (Fla. 2d DCA 1998)
- Rosalind Virgil v. State, 884 So. 2d 373 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004)
- Floyd v. State, 739 So. 2d 1241 (Fla. 2d DCA 1999)
- Blending Hughes v. State, 850 So. 2d 664 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003)
- Fortner v. State, 779 So. 2d 462 (Fla. 2d DCA 2000)
- Higgins v. State, 799 So. 2d 344 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001)