RUBEN DANYON MCCLOUD, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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A successor judge who did not preside over the trial cannot competently rule on a motion for a new trial that requires weighing witness credibility and resolving conflicting evidence.
Appellant was convicted based on victim identification, but presented an alibi defense with multiple witnesses. The motion for a new trial required th…
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Appellant Ruben McCloud challenges his conviction and sentence on two counts of attempted second-degree murder and one count of shooting or throwing a deadly missile. We find merit to one of his claims and reverse for a new trial.
We agree with Appellant that after the motion to disqualify the trial judge was granted (see Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.330), the successor judge who did not conduct the trial could not competently rule on Appellant’s motion for a new trial because it required weighing the credibility of witnesses and competing witness testimony to resolve conflicts in the evidence. See Colson v. State, 75 So.3d 306, 307 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011). “Defendants have the right to have the trial judge evaluate and weigh the evidence independently of the jury’s findings to determine whether the jury verdict was contrary to the weight of the evidence.” Kelley v. State, 16 So.3d 196, 197 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).
In this case, the State’s evidence identifying Appellant as the shooter was based solely on the identification made by the two victims. But Appellant put on an alibi defense with multiple witnesses claiming that he was at home miles away at the time of the shooting and could not have been the shooter. Appellant’s conviction depended entirely upon the jury’s resolution of conflicts in the evidence and the relative credibility of the witnesses. Under these circumstances, a successor judge, who was not present at trial, could not competently assess the weight of the evidence as required to resolve Appellant’s motion for new trial. Accordingly, we reverse and remand for a new trial.
REVERSED and REMANDED.
ROBERTS, WETHERELL, and OSTERHAUS, JJ., concur.
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McCloud v. State, 249 So. 3d 739 (Fla. 1st DCA 2018)…on. He was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment on the original charge of engaging in an organized scheme to defraud. On October 9, 2014, McCloud’s Duval County convictions were reversed and the case was remanded for a new trial. McCloud v. State, 150 So. 3d 822 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014). Because the Leon County court revoked probation solely on grounds of the overturned convictions, we granted McCloud a belated appeal and reversed the revocation order. McCloud v. State, 213 So. 3d 971 (Fla. 1st DCA 2016). We r…
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McCLOUD v. State, 213 So. 3d 971 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009)…sonment. On October 9, 2014, approximately one year after the revocation hearing, this court reversed the judgment and sentence that served as the basis of Appellant’s revocation of probation and remanded the case for a new trial. McCloud v. State, 150 So. 3d 822 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014). Appellant was subsequently granted this belated appeal. Appellant now argues that the trial court’s order of revocation of probation and subsequent sentence should also be reversed. A criminal conviction is clearly a sufficient…
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Kline v. State, 274 So. 3d 525 (Fla. 1st DCA 2019)…ght of the evidence. “Defendants have the right to have the trial judge evaluate and weigh the evidence independently of the jury’s findings to determine whether the jury verdict was contrary to the weight of the evidence.” McCloud v. State, 150 So. 3d 822, 823 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014) (quoting Kelley v. State, 16 So. 3d 196, 197 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009)). This court has reversed where “the trial court’s findings indicate that the court may have applied the sufficiency of the evidence standard instead of…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Kelley v. State, 16 So. 3d 196 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009)
- Colson v. State, 75 So. 3d 306 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011)