CHAD EDWARD LAKEY, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Chad Lakey appealed trial court orders denying three motions: ressentencing, correction of sentencing error, and judge disqualification. The appellate court affirmed the denial of the disqualification motion but reversed and remanded for resentencing with a corrected scoresheet because the State improperly added penetration points without a jury finding of penetration.
The court affirmed the denial of the disqualification motion but reversed and remanded for resentencing because a scoresheet error occurred when penetration points were improperly added without a specific jury finding of penetration rather than union, and the record did not conclusively show the defendant would have received the same sentence with a corrected scoresheet.
[1] A trial court is not authorized to modify sentences on convictions not disturbed by an appellate court upon remand.
[2] A sentencing error is harmless if the record conclusively shows the trial court would have imposed the same sentence using a correct scoresheet.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“When a sentencing error is challenged by ... a 3.800(b) claim ... a scoresheet error is 'harmless if the record conclusively shows that the trial court would have imposed the same sentence using a correct scoresheet.'”
Establishes the standard for harmless error in sentencing scoresheet cases
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceLakey was originally sentenced to 150 months for three counts of sexual battery upon a child, with a guideline minimum of 149.25 months. On direct app…
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Appellant, Chad Edward Lakey, seeks review of three trial court orders denying his motions requesting: 1) to be resen-tenced upon remand from this court; 2) to correct a sentencing error pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(b)(2); and 3) to disqualify the trial judge. We affirm the denial of the motion to disqualify. However, because Lakey is entitled to be sentenced under a corrected scoresheet, we reverse and remand for further proceedings.
Lakey was originally sentenced to 150 months in the Department of Corrections on three counts relating to sexual battery upon a child. The sentencing scoresheet called for a lowest permissible sentence of 149.25 months’ imprisonment. Upon direct appeal, this court affirmed Counts I and III but reversed on Count II due to an error in a jury instruction. The State subsequently entered a nolle prosequi on Count II. Because there were no pending charges at that time, the trial court did not err in denying Lakey’s motion for resen-tencing. See Pennington v. State, 120 So.3d 647, 648 (Fla. 5th DCA 2013) (“[T]rial courts are not authorized, on remand after direct appeal, to modify sentences on convictions not disturbed by the appellate court.” (citing Fasenmyer v. State, 457 So.2d 1361, 1365-66 (Fla.1984))).
Lakey then filed a motion to correct a sentencing error under rule 3.800(b)(2). He argued that the reeord did not establish that he would have received the same sentence without the victim injury points from Count II. “When a sentencing error is challenged by ... a 3.800(b) claim ... a scoresheet error is ‘harmless if the record conclusively shows that the trial court would have imposed the same sentence using a correct scoresheet.’ ” Richards v. State, 76 So.3d 29, 30 (Fla. 5th DCA 2011) (quoting Brooks v. State, 969 So.2d 238, 241 (Fla.2007)). The closeness of the 150 months’ imprisonment to the original guideline sentence of 149.25 months indicates an intention to sentence consistently with the scoresheet. See Daniels v. State, 114 So.3d 1108, 1110 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013) (“[T]he fact that the forty-two-month figure appears merely to be rounded up from the scoresheet minimum sentence of 41.85 months, evidence[s] an intention to impose a sentence consistent with the scoresheet minimum.”). The record does not conclusively show that Lakey would have received the same sentence with an amended scoresheet.
Furthermore, when the State filed an amended scoresheet without the victim injury points from Count II, it added eighty points for sex penetration on Count I. Because the jury did not make a specific finding of penetration rather than union, it was improper to include points for penetration. See Mann v. State, 974 So.2d 552, 553-54 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008) (“[W]hen the information charges penetration or union, the assessment of victim penetration points is error absent a specific finding that penetration occurred.” (citing Chat- *990 man v. State, 943 So.2d 327, 328-29 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006))). Upon remand, the State is directed to file a corrected scoresheet.
Accordingly, we reverse and remand to the trial court for resentencing on Counts I and III with a corrected scoresheet.
AFFIRMED in part; REVERSED in part; REMANDED for resentencing.
SAWAYA, TORPY and LAMBERT, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Vereen v. State, 267 So. 3d 548 (Fla. 1st DCA 2019)…g Alleyne applies to victim-injury points under Florida’s Criminal Punishment Code—but compare Bean v. State, 44 Fla. L. Weekly D219 (Fla. 4th DCA Jan. 9, 2019) (finding Alleyne inapplicable to “scoring of victim injury points”) with Lakey v. State, 172 So. 3d 989 (Fla. 5th DCA 2015) (“Because the jury did not make a specific finding of penetration rather than union, it was improper to include points for penetration.”)—this does not provide a basis for reversal here. Here, any error in assessing penetration p…
Authorities Cited
- Brooks v. State, 969 So. 2d 238 (Fla. 2007)
- Fasenmyer v. State, 457 So. 2d 1361 (Fla. 1984)
- Mann v. State, 974 So. 2d 552 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008)
- Chatman v. State, 943 So. 2d 327 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006)
- Richards v. State, 76 So. 3d 29 (Fla. 5th DCA 2011)
- Daniels v. State, 114 So. 3d 1108 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013)
- Pennington v. State, 120 So. 3d 647 (Fla. 5th DCA 2013)