R.H., A CHILD, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Possession of a common pocketknife on school property does not violate section 790.115(2), Florida Statutes, because the statute explicitly exempts common pocketknives from the definition of a weapon.
[1] A "common pocketknife" is statutorily excluded from the definition of a "weapon" prohibited on school property.
[2] A knife with a blade measuring three and a quarter inches can be classified as a "common pocketknife" under Florida law.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceR.H. was found to possess a folding pocketknife with a three-and-a-quarter-inch blade on school property. The trial court denied R.H.'s motion for dis…
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The issue presented is whether the appellant violated section 790.115(2), Florida Statutes (2009), by possessing a common pocketknife on school property. We find that the appellant cannot be adjudicated of this crime since the statute exempts pos*157session of a “common pocketknife” from the definition of a weapon that may not be possessed on school property.
After an incident at school, R.H. was brought to the assistant principal’s office, where a search revealed a knife hidden in R.H.’s boxer shorts. The school resource officer described the knife as “a folding pocketknife with a wooden handle and blade with the tip broken off, and the blade from [his] measurement was three and a quarter inches.” The assistant principal at trial estimated the folding pocketknife as being roughly four inches long. The school resource officer measured the pocketknife in the courtroom and confirmed its size as being three-and-a-quarter inches in length.
At the end of trial, R.H. moved for judgment of dismissal under Rule 8.110(k), on the basis that possession of a pocketknife, as defined under section 790.001(13), is not a violation of section 790.115(2). The trial court denied the motion, and this appeal ensues.
The standard of review of a motion for judgment of dismissal is the same standard we apply to review a judgment of acquittal. J.P. v. State, 855 So.2d 1262, 1264 n. 1 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003). The denial of a motion for judgment of acquittal is reviewed de novo. Jones v. State, 869 So.2d 1240, 1242 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004). “If the evidence, taken in a light most favorable to the state does not support a conviction, the motion must be granted. If the state establishes the existence of each element of the crime charged, then the motion must be denied.” T.L.T. v. State, 53 So.3d 1100, (Fla. 4th DCA 2011).
R.H. was charged with violating section 790.115(2), which reads, in pertinent part, as follows:
A person shall not possess any firearm, electric weapon or device, destructive device, or other weapon as defined in s. 790.001(13), including a razor blade or box cutter, except as authorized in support of school-sanctioned activities, at a school-sponsored event or on the property of any school, school bus, or school bus stop....
§ 790.115(2)(a), Fla. Stat. In other words, section 790.115(2) specifically prohibits the possession of a weapon as defined by section 790.001(13) on school premises. A weapon is defined by section 790.001(13), as being “any dirk, knife, metallic knuckles, slungshot, billie, tear gas gun, chemical weapon or device, or other deadly weapon except a firearm or a common pocketknife, plastic knife, or blunt-bladed table knife.”1
In this case, R.H.’s adjudication is based solely on the possession of a common pocketknife on school grounds. In L.B. v. State, 700 So.2d 370, 372 (Fla.1997), the Florida Supreme Court, quoting Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, defined a common pocketknife as “[a] type of knife occurring frequently in the community which has a blade that folds into the handle and that can be carried in one’s pocket.” Further, it found that a knife that had a “3 3/4-inch blade” fell within the range of a common pocketknife. Id. at 373. The trial court, in the present case, correctly found the knife with a three-and-a-quarter inch blade was a “common pocketknife.”
The key definitional provision of section 790.001(13), referenced in section 790.115(2), exempts a common pocketknife *158from the ambit of the statute for which R.H. was adjudged to have violated. We are therefore compelled to reverse R.H.’s adjudication by the plain language of the statutes. If the legislature wanted to prohibit the possession of a common pocketknife on school premises, the legislature could and would have included the “common pocketknife” in the list of prohibited weapons found in section 790.115(2). Further, the legislature could have removed the defining reference to section 790.001(13) in section 790.115(2) and included a special definition of “weapon” for that section. Instead, the legislature relied on a definition of “weapon” explicitly excluding the device R.H. possessed on school grounds.
As the state concedes, A.B. v. State, 757 So.2d 1241 (Fla. 4th DGA 2000), is inapplicable as it was based on an earlier version of the statute which outlawed the possession on school grounds of any “firearm, electric weapon or device, destructive device, or other weapon, including a razor blade, box cutter, or knife, except as authorized in support of school-sanctioned activities, at a school-sponsored event or on the property of any school, school bus, or school bus stop.” Id. at 1241 — 42. The key difference in A.B. is that nowhere in the statute at that time was there any reference to section 790.001(13) and that section’s definition of a weapon to not include a common pocketknife.
In summary, we find that R.H. did not violate the statute in question, and as such we reverse the adjudication in this case and remand for entry of a judgment of dismissal.
Reversed and remanded.
MAY and DAMOORGIAN, JJ., concur.
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A.S.F. v. State, 70 So. 3d 754 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011)…nd the inconsistent order of fees by the court. “The standard of review for judgment of dismissal is the same standard we apply to review a judgment of acquittal. The denial of a motion for judgment of acquittal is reviewed de novo.” R.H. v. State, 56 So. 3d 156, 157 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011) (citing J.P. v. State, 855 So. 2d 1262, 1264 n. 1 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003)). The court views the evidence in a light most favorable to the State, but if the evidence does not support a conviction, the motion is granted. Id. If th…
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R.R. v. State, 137 So. 3d 535 (Fla. 4th DCA 2014)…position. Subsequently, the circuit court withheld adjudication of delinquency and placed R.R. on probation. R.R. argues on appeal that his motion for judgment of dismissal should have been granted. The standard of review is de novo. R.H. v. State, 56 So. 3d 156, 157 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011). To prove the crime of resisting an officer without violence, “the State must prove: (1) the officer was engaged in the lawful execution of a legal duty; and (2) the defendant’s action, by his words, conduct, or a combinati…
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T.S.W. v. State, 82 So. 3d 1021 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011)…oncluding that the knife was not a common poeketknife. The standard of review for a motion for judgment of dismissal in juvenile cases is the same de novo standard we apply to review a judgment of acquittal in an adult criminal case. R.H. v. State, 56 So. 3d 156,157 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011); A.L.J. v. State, 12 So. 3d 873, 874 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009). Our supreme court has defined a common poeketknife as “ ‘[a] type of knife occurring frequently in the community which has a blade that folds into the handle and that…
Previewing 3 of 10 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- L.B. v. State, 700 So. 2d 370 (Fla. 1997)
- J.P. v. State, 855 So. 2d 1262 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003)
- Jones v. State, 869 So. 2d 1240 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004)
- T.L.T. v. State, 53 So. 3d 1100 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011)
- A.B. v. State, 757 So. 2d 1241 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000)