ANTONIO DETEMERE JACKSON, 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.
Antonio Jackson appeals the denial of his motion to correct an allegedly illegal sentence as a habitual felony offender. The Florida appellate court affirmed the sentence, holding that Jackson was properly classified and sentenced as a habitual felony offender under Florida law.
The court held that Jackson was properly sentenced as a habitual felony offender because: (1) his conviction for burglary of a dwelling while masked is a first-degree felony, not a life felony, and habitual felony offender sanctions are available for first-degree felonies; (2) his prior convictions were properly spaced and his release from prison in September 1999 was within five years of the current offense; and (3) his prior felonies were sentenced separately as required by statute.
[1] A person who commits a first-degree or life felony can be sentenced as a habitual felony offender.
[2] To impose habitual felony offender sanctions, the prior qualifying felony must have resulted in a conviction sentenced separately from any other felony conviction that is…
Previewing 2 of 3 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“A person who commits a first-degree or life felony can be sentenced as a habitual felony offender.”
Establishes that habitual felony offender sanctions are available for first-degree felonies, rejecting Jackson's first argument.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceJackson pled nolo contendere to burglary of a dwelling while masked and resisting an officer without violence. The trial court sentenced him to fiftee…
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 Life Felony cases and more on FLexlaw
Antonio Detemere Jackson appeals the denial of his Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a) postconviction motion to correct illegal sentence. We affirm.
Jackson pled nolo contendere to burglary of a dwelling while masked and resisting an officer without violence. The trial court found he qualified as a habitual felony offender and sentenced him to fifteen years’ imprisonment. As he did below, Jackson asserts that being sentenced as a habitual felony offender was illegal because (1) habitual felony offender sanctions are not available for a life felon; (2) his prior felonies were not within five years of the instant offense; and (3) his prior felonies were sentenced at the same proceeding. These arguments are unpersuasive.
Jackson’s assertion that a defendant convicted of a life felony may not be sentenced as a habitual felony offender is inapplicable to him and incorrect as a matter of law. The most serious charge for which Jackson was convicted was burglary of a dwelling while masked, a first-degree felony. A person who commits a first-degree or life felony can be sentenced as a habitual felony offender. See § 775.084(4)(a)1., Fla. Stat. (2004); Nathan v. State, 689 So.2d 1150, 1152 n. 4 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997).
To impose habitual felony offender sanctions, the defendant must have committed two or more previous felonies within this state. § 775.084(l)(a)l. The felony for which a defendant is to be sentenced must have occurred “[w]ithin 5 years of the date of the conviction of the defendant’s last prior felony or other qualified offense, or within 5 years of the defendant’s release from a prison sentence ... whichever is later.” § 775.084(l)(a)2.b. The prior qualifying “felony must [also] have resulted in a conviction ... sentenced separately from any other felony conviction that is to be counted as a prior felony.” § 775.084(5).
Jackson was previously convicted of a third-degree felony for attempted robbery on August 20, 1997, and a second-degree felony for robbery on March 4, 1998. He was released from prison on the robbery conviction on September 3, 1999. As the record reflects, these prior convictions were sentenced separately and his September 1999 release was within five years of his current offense. Consequently, Jackson was properly classified and sentenced as a habitual felony offender.
AFFIRMED.
PALMER, TORPY and COHEN, JJ, concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Glisson v. State, 689 So. 2d 1150 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997)
- Nathan v. State, 689 So. 2d 1150 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997)