ROBERT ARMSTRONG, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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The court reversed the dismissal of Armstrong's postconviction relief motion, holding that the postconviction court incorrectly calculated the filing deadline by using a memorandum of sentencing date rather than the judgment and sentence rendition date to trigger the two-year filing period.
The time for filing a postconviction motion under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 is triggered by the date the judgment and sentence become final, which occurs thirty days after rendition when no appeal is filed, not by the date of a memorandum of sentencing.
[1] The time for filing a postconviction motion under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 is triggered by the date the judgment and sentence become final, which is thirt…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceRobert Armstrong filed a postconviction relief motion on February 29, 2012. The postconviction court dismissed it as untimely, incorrectly using a Feb…
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Robert Armstrong filed a motion for postconviction relief under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 on February 29, 2012. The postconviction court dismissed the motion as untimely, erroneously relying on the February 24, 2010, date of a memorandum of sentencing for the filing date of Armstrong’s judgment and sentence and concluding that Armstrong’s motion should have been filed by February 23, 2012. In addition to relying upon the wrong document for determining the date on which Armstrong’s rule 3.850 filing time *128began to run, the postconviction court overlooked the rule that the time for filing a postconviction motion is triggered by the date on which the judgment and sentence become final. See Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.850(b). When no appeal is filed, finality occurs thirty days after rendition of the judgment and sentence, which is the date on which the time for filing the notice of appeal expires. Westley v. State, 903 So.2d 312, 313 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005); Davis v. State, 687 So.2d 292, 293 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997).
Armstrong’s judgment and sentence were rendered on March 3, 2010. Because Armstrong did not file a notice of appeal, his judgment and sentence were final on April 2, 2010, and Armstrong’s February 29, 2012, motion was filed well within the two-year time limit. Accordingly, we reverse the postconviction court’s order dismissing Armstrong’s motion as untimely and remand for consideration on the merits.
Reversed and remanded.
ALTENBERND, LaROSE, and MORRIS, JJ., Concur.
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Annatone v. State, 198 So. 3d 1031 (Fla. 5th DCA 2016)…on a mistake or faulty information.” (citing Ely v. State, 855 So. 2d 90, 91 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003))), . The conviction and sentence do not become "final” until the. thirty-day appeal period has passed, at the earliest. ■ See, e,g. Armstrong v. State, 148 So. 3d 127, 128 (Fla. 2d DCA 2014) ("When no appeal is filed, finality occurs thirly days after rendition of the judgment and sentence....”). If no correction were made within that thirty-day window, the defendant might then gain an expectation of finality. Cf…
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Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Davis v. State, 687 So. 2d 292 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997)
- Westley v. State, 903 So. 2d 312 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005)