JOHNNY A. EASTERLING, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Fla. 1st DCA | 2008-09-15
No. 1D07-4191
BROWNING, C.J., and WEBSTER, J, concur.
989 So. 2d 1285 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (2008) Positive Treatment
Cited by 2 cases

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.

Synopsis

Johnny Easterling appeals the revocation of his community control and imposition of a life sentence. The court reversed two of four violation findings, determining that Easterling made a good faith effort to comply with sex offender registration requirements despite lacking $10, and remanded for resentencing.


Holding

The court reversed the finding of violations as to two charges (failure to register and failure to follow instructions) because Easterling made a good faith effort to comply, and the failure to register was not willful and substantial merely because he did not take the wisest course of action. The court affirmed violations as to the two remaining conditions but reversed and remanded for resentencing because it was unclear whether the trial court would have imposed the same sentence based only on the remaining violations.


Headnotes

[1] A trial court errs in finding a willful and substantial violation of community control when the evidence demonstrates a good faith effort to comply with the condition, ev…

[2] A violation of a lawful instruction from a probation officer cannot be deemed willful and substantial if the probationer made a good faith effort to comply with the under…

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Key Quotes

“The uncontradicted evidence demonstrates appellant made a good faith effort to register and obtain a license in accordance with section 944.607, Florida Statutes. The only reason he did not complete the registration was because he lacked $10 to obtain a new license.”

Establishes that Easterling made good faith efforts to comply and the sole obstacle was financial, not willfulness

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Facts & Procedural History

Easterling was convicted of three counts of sexual battery on children under age 12 and sentenced to two years' community control and sex offender pro…

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Opinion of the Court
WOLF, J.

WOLF, J.

Appellant seeks review of an order revoking his community control and imposing a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Appellant was found to have violated four conditions of his community control. Because we hold that the trial court erred in finding appellant wilfully and substantially violated serval conditions of his community control and cannot determine if the trial court would have imposed the same sentence, we reverse the finding of violation as to two of the charges, vacate the sentence, and remand for resentencing.

Appellant, pursuant to a plea, was convicted of three counts of sexual battery on children under the age of 12 and sentenced to two years’ community control and sex offender probation. Appellant was charged with violating his community control in four respects by: (1) failing to remain at liberty without violating the law by failing to register and obtain an identification card denoting his sex offender sta tus from the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) within 48 hours of his release from prison as required by section 944.607, Florida Statutes (2007); (2) failing to follow the lawful instructions of his probation officer directing appellant to register as a sex offender with the DHSMV within 48 hours of his probation; (8) failing to be truthful with his probation officer by omitting necessary facts regarding his failure to obtain the required identification card from the DHSMV; and (4) leaving his home and visiting the DHSMV without his probation officer’s permission.

The uncontradicted evidence demonstrates appellant made a good faith effort to register and obtain a license in accordance with section 944.607, Florida Statutes. The only reason he did not complete the registration was because he lacked $10 to obtain a new license. In fact, appellant obtained the license after attempting to comply with the requirement three days later, as soon as he had obtained the necessary funds. While the trial court found that appellant could have asked the probation officer for the money, merely because he did not take the wisest course of action, we cannot say the failure to register was willful and substantial. Van Wagner v. State, 677 So. 2d 314, 317 (Fla. 1st DCA 1996) (holding where a probationer makes reasonable efforts to comply with a condition of probation, the violation cannot be deemed willful).

Because we determine that appellant made a good faith effort to comply, we must also reverse the violation relating to failing to follow the lawful instructions of his community control officer. Based on the foregoing, we affirm the finding of violations as to two conditions of community control, but we reverse as to the two charges concerning appellant’s failure to register. Because it is not clear from the record whether the trial court would have imposed the same sentence based on the remaining violations, we reverse and remand for reconsideration of the revocation and sentencing decisions.

AFFIRMED in part, REVERSED in part, and REMANDED with directions.

BROWNING, C.J., and WEBSTER, J, concur.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Washington v. State, 84 So. 3d 1061 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011)
    …In addition, because appellant’s un-rebutted testimony established he made a good faith effort to comply with the conditions of his probation, the trial court abused its discretion in finding he willfully violated his probation. Easterling v. State, 989 So. 2d 1285, 1287 (Fla. 1st DCA 2008) (“Because we determine that appellant made a good faith effort to comply, we must also reverse the violation relating to failing to follow the lawful instructions of his community control officer.”). For these reasons, we R…

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