A.L.M., A CHILD, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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The court held that a trial court must obtain a recommendation from the Department of Juvenile Justice regarding the appropriate restrictiveness level before committing a delinquent child.
A juvenile was adjudicated delinquent and committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice. The juvenile appealed, arguing the court erred by not obtai…
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A.L.M. appeals a final disposition order adjudicating him delinquent, following his guilty plea to breach of the peace, and committing him to the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice (“Department”) for placement in a non-secure residential program. He argues the trial court reversibly erred when it decided on a commitment restrictiveness level without first obtaining a recommendation from the Department. We agree.
Under section 985.433(7)(a), Florida Statutes (2014), if a court determines that a child should be adjudicated delinquent and committed to the Department’s custody, the Department “shall recommend to the court the most appropriate placement and treatment plan, specifically identifying the restrictiveness level most appropriate for the chüd[.]” In B.K.A. v. State, 122 So.3d 928, 929-31 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013), we held that where, as in this case, the Department’s initial predisposition report recommends probation in lieu of commitment; but the court determines adjudication and commitment are justified, the court must obtain a supplemental recommendation from the Department on the appropriate restrictiveness level if the initial report does not address commitment placement alternatives. See J.B.S. v. State, 90 So.3d 961 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012) (discussing and approving trial court’s request for restrictiveness level recommendation after rejecting initial recommendation of probation in lieu of commitment).
Accordingly, we affirm the disposition order on appeal as to the adjudication of delinquency, but reverse the non-secure residential commitment placement and remand for further proceedings consistent with B.KA. and section 985.4S3(7)(a).
AFFIRMED, in part; REVERSED, in part; and REMANDED.
ROBERTS, C;j., MARSTILLER, and MAKAR, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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M.J. v. State, 212 So. 3d 534 (Fla. 1st DCA 2017)…trial court’s initial decision to reject probation in favor of commitment, but error occurred when the trial court committed the juvenile before obtaining the Department’s recommendation as to the appropriate restrictiveness level); A.L.M. v. State, 176 So. 3d 1025 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015) (affirming the disposition order that adjudicated the juvenile delinquent and found probation not appropriate, but reversing the trial court’s nonsecure placement and remanding to first get a recommendation of a restrictiveness l…
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K.L.L. v. State, 224 So. 3d 918 (Fla. 1st DCA 2017)…vidence. However, we agree with the appellant that the trial court erred in committing her without first requesting a commitment level recommendation from the Department. See B.K.A. v. State, 122 So. 3d 928, 930 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013); A.L.M. v. State, 176 So. 3d 1025 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015). Accordingly, we AFFIRM the portion of the disposition order adjudicating the appellant delinquent, but we REVERSE the non-secure residential commitment and REMAND to the trial court for further proceedings consistent with the…
Authorities Cited
- B.K.A. v. State, 122 So. 3d 928 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013)
- Dowdell v. State, 90 So. 3d 961 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012)