FREDDIE LEE HOLMES, APPELLANT,

v.

STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Citator

Cited By

• Osorio v. State, 186 So. 3d 601 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016)
  …permissible in argument to comment on a party’s failure to call a witness where it is shown ‘that the witness is peculiarly within the party’s power to' produce and the testimony of the witness would elucidate the transaction.’” Jean-Marie v. State, 993 So. 2d 1160, 1161 (Fla, 4th DCA 2008) (quoting Haliburton, 561 So. 2d at 250). A witness is “peculiarly within the party’s power to produce” when “the witness was an informer associated with the government in developing the case against the defendant and there…
• Fede Datilus v. State, 128 So. 3d 122 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013)
  …permissible in argument to comment on a party’s failure to call a witness where it is shown ‘that the witness is peculiarly within the party’s power to produce and the testimony of the witness would elucidate the transaction.’ ” Jean-Mane v. State, 993 So. 2d 1160, 1161 (Fla. [*125] 4th DCA 2008) (quoting Haliburton, 561 So. 2d at 250). The opinion in Martinez v. State, 478 So. 2d 871 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985) compiled the following examples of relationships that would place a witness “peculiarly within the party’s…
• Reyes Herrera Molina v. State, 71 So. 3d 234 (Fla. 2d DCA 2011)
  …l and none whatsoever with the defendant himself’). Accordingly, the defense should have been able to comment on the State’s failure to call the Cl as a witness, and the trial court abused its discretion in ruling otherwise. See Jean-Marie v. State, 993 So. 2d 1160, 1162 (Fla. 4th DCA 2008) (recognizing that “trial courts have discretion in regulating comments to be made in closing arguments”). We conclude that the State has not shown that the error was harmless. See State v. DiGuilio, 491 So. 2d 1129, 1135 (…

Authorities Cited

• Scott v. State, 909 So. 2d 965 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005)
• Freeman v. State, 909 So. 2d 965 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005)