JAMES F. LONGWELL, IV, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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James Longwell was convicted of tampering with a victim or witness stemming from an altercation with his ex-wife, but on appeal the court reversed the conviction, finding insufficient evidence that the victim was attempting to contact law enforcement during the incident, which is an essential element of the crime.
The conviction for tampering with a victim or witness was reversed because the State failed to present sufficient evidence establishing an essential element of the crime—that Ms. Longwell was attempting to contact law enforcement during the altercation.
[1] A conviction for tampering with a victim or witness requires evidence that the victim was attempting to contact law enforcement during the incident.
[2] A motion for judgment of acquittal should be granted if the State fails to present competent evidence to establish every element of the charged crime.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“A judgment of acquittal is not proper if the State has produced competent, substantial evidence to support every element of the crime.”
Establishes the legal standard for reviewing a trial court's denial of a motion for judgment of acquittal
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceOn November 28, 2011, Longwell met with his ex-wife Jessica to discuss child support and visitation. An argument ensued resulting in a physical alterc…
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James Franklin Longwell, IV, appellant, was convicted on several charges stemming from an altercation with his former wife, Jessica A. Longwell. On appeal, Mr. Longwell challenges his conviction for tampering with a victim or witness, arguing that the trial court erred by not granting his motion for judgment of acquittal as to that charge. As explained below, we agree and reverse.
At trial, Ms. Longwell testified that on November 28, 2011, she and Mr. Longwell had communicated with each other and arranged a meeting, both to discuss child support payments and to allow Mr. Long-well to visit his daughter, who was in Ms. Longwell’s custody. Ms. Longwell testified that when she and Mr. Longwell met on that date, an argument ensued that resulted in a physical altercation. Ms. Longwell stated that her cellular phone had been broken during the altercation, but that she believed it was because she had dropped it. Ms. Longwell testified that she was aware that her current testimony regarding her cellular phone was contrary to the initial written statement she gave to the police, and which was entered in evidence, where she said that Mr. Longwell took her cell phone and smashed it on the ground. Ms. Longwell testified that she did not call 911.
At the close of the State’s case-in-chief, defense counsel moved for judgment of acquittal, asserting that there was insuffi-*1198dent evidence to show that Mr. Longwell tampered with the victim. The trial court denied the motion and Mr. Longwell was ultimately found guilty of all three charges, including tampering with a victim or witness. This appeal followed.
A judgment of acquittal is not proper if the State has produced competent, substantial evidence to support every element of the crime. Bussell v. State, 66 So.3d 1059, 1061 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011); Gay v. State, 607 So.2d 454, 457 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992). Furthermore, “[i]t is the trial judge’s proper task to review the evidence to determine the presence or absence of competent evidence from which the jury could infer guilt to the exclusion of all other inferences.” Beasley v. State, 774 So.2d 649, 658 (Fla.2000), (emphasis in original), reh’g denied, (quoting State v. Law, 559 So.2d 187, 189 (Fla.1989)).
Under Florida law, tampering with a witness, victim, or informant occurs when:
(1) A person who knowingly uses intimidation or physical force, or threatens another person, or attempts to do so, or engages in misleading conduct toward another person, or offers pecuniary benefit or gain to another person, with intent to cause or induce any person to:
(e) Hinder, delay, or prevent the communication to a law enforcement officer or judge of information relating to the commission or possible commission of an offense or a violation of a condition of probation, parole, or release pending a judicial proceeding....
§ 914.22(l)(e), Fla. Stat. (2011).
Based on our review of the record, we conclude that no evidence was presented establishing that Ms. Longwell was attempting to contact law enforcement during the altercation with Mr. Longwell. The State accurately and candidly indicated that the evidence presented did not establish a prima facie case of guilt as to the tampering charge. Because Ms. Long-well denies calling 911, and because no witness testified that Ms. Longwell was attempting to contact law enforcement during the altercation, there is insufficient evidence as to an essential element of the crime.
Accordingly, we REVERSE the adjudication as to the tampering with a victim or witness violation, and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
VAN NORTWTCK, ROWE, and MARSTILLER, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Antoine E. McCloud v. State, 224 So. 3d 842 (Fla. 2d DCA 2017)…ct law enforcement during the commission or possible commission of the criminal offense. Mr. McCloud observes that the First District’s decision in McCray, which relied on Thompson v. State, 153 So. 3d 996 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015), and Longwell v. State, 123 So. 3d 1197 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013), is squarely on point. In all three cases, the First District held that to support a conviction for witness tampering under section 922.14(l)(e), the State was required “to present evidence that the victim [or witness] was attemp…
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Antoine E. McCloud v. State, 260 So. 3d 911 (Fla. 2018)…ing of the statute, the district court reversed the witness tampering conviction. Id. at 833. Likewise, Thompson -which formed the basis of the First District's interpretation in McCray -followed the same format, except it cited Longwell v. State , 123 So. 3d 1197, 1198 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013), as support. Thompson , 153 So. 3d at 997. Longwell represented the first interpretation of the statute to include a witness's attempt to contact law enforcement as an element of the crime. 123 So. 3d at 1198. The First Dis…
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Ned Carmer Thompson v. State, 153 So. 3d 996 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015)…13). There is no evidence in the record establishing that the victim was attempting to contact law enforcement during the time of the incident. As such, there was insufficient evidence as to an essential element of the crime. See Longwell v. State, 123 So. 3d 1197, 1198 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013). Accordingly, the Appellant’s conviction for witness tampering under count three must be REVERSED. THOMAS and ROWE, JJ., concur.…
Previewing 3 of 9 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- State v. Ronnie S. LAW, 559 So. 2d 187 (Fla. 1989)
- Beasley v. State, 774 So. 2d 649 (Fla. 2000)
- GAY v. State, 607 So. 2d 454 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992)
- Bussell v. State, 66 So. 3d 1059 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011)