CHARLES OSBORN, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Fla. 1st DCA | 2015-11-03
No. 1D14-2947
RAY, SWANSON, and MAKAR, JJ., concur.
177 So. 3d 1034 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (2015) Positive Treatment
Cited by 2 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

The Florida First District Court of Appeal held that a prior conviction for sexual battery can serve as a qualifying predicate offense for enhancement of simple battery to felony battery under Florida Statute § 784.03(2), because sexual battery necessarily includes battery as a lesser-included offense. The court distinguished this case from precedent holding that lewd and lascivious battery does not qualify, since battery is a necessary rather than merely permissive lesser-included offense of sexual battery.


Holding

A prior conviction for sexual battery is a qualifying predicate offense under § 784.03(2) because sexual battery necessarily includes the essential elements of battery. Unlike lewd and lascivious battery, which does not necessarily require touching against the victim's will, sexual battery by definition requires non-consensual penetration that necessarily constitutes a battery, making simple battery a necessary lesser-included offense of sexual battery.


Headnotes

[1] A prior conviction for sexual battery can serve as a predicate offense for felony battery under Florida Statutes section 784.03(2) if the elements of sexual battery neces…

[2] A conviction for sexual battery necessarily includes a conviction for battery because lack of consent is an element of sexual battery, and battery is defined as intention…

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Key Quotes

“Because the Mississippi sexual battery at issue necessarily meets the statutory definition of a battery under Florida law, it is a qualifying offense.”

The court's holding that sexual battery qualifies as a predicate battery conviction because it necessarily includes all elements of battery.

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Facts & Procedural History

Charles Osborn was charged with sexual battery and felony battery for an incident occurring in Florida on March 10, 2013. The trial court severed the …

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

In this case, we address whether a prior conviction for the offense of sexual battery, in this case one committed in Mississippi, is a proper predicate to prove felony battery under section 784.03(2), *1035Florida Statutes (2001). The State charged Appellant Charles Osborn with a sexual battery and felony battery occurring in Florida. The trial court severed the sexual battery count and the jury found Mr. Osborn not guilty. Regarding the felony battery count, the amended information alleged that Mr. Osborn:

On or about March 10, 2013, did unlawfully actually and intentionally touch or strike another person, C.M., against the will of the other; or did intentionally cause bodily harm to that person, and the defendant has a prior conviction for a battery including Mississippi case # 2008-78-MP-2 (Sexual Battery),[1] contrary to Section 784.03(2), Florida Statutes.

Defense counsel filed a motion to dismiss the felony battery count pursuant to Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure 3.190(b) on the basis that the prior sexual battery in Mississippi was not a proper predicate conviction under section 784.03(2) which includes only battery, aggravated battery, and felony battery. Counsel argued that the statute, a penal one, should be strictly construed. The trial court denied the motion and the jury found Mr. Osborn guilty of battery. In a bifurcated proceeding, the jury found that the Mississippi sexual battery was a battery conviction for purposes of section 784.03(2). Consequently, Mr. Osborn was adjudicated guilty of felony battery. He now appeals the denial of the motion to dismiss.

Section 784.03(2) provides that a misdemeanor battery is reclassified as a felony battery if the offender “has one prior conviction for battery, aggravated battery, or felony battery.” § 784.03(2), Fla. Stat. The statute does not expressly reference sexual battery as a qualifying offense, so the question is whether it can be considered a battery for purposes of reclassification. The decision in Aldacosta v. State, 41 So.3d 1096 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010), which addressed whether a lewd and lascivious battery is a qualifying offense, is instructive. Because section 784.03(2) did not explicitly include lewd and lascivious battery, the Second District reasoned that “if lewd or lascivious battery is to be treated as a qualifying offense, it must obtain this status under the general references in section 784.03(2) to ‘battery’ or ‘felony battery.’ ” Id. at 1098. It compared the elements of a lewd and lascivious battery to the elements of a battery and a felony battery, and held that Aldacosta’s “prior conviction for lewd or lascivious battery does not meet the statutory definition of either battery or felony battery.” Id. The court, referencing the supreme court’s seminal decision in State v. Warren, 796 So.2d 489 (Fla.2001), stated:

*1036The Legislature responded to Warren[ 2 ] by adding the terms “aggravated battery” and “felony battery” to section 784.03(2). See ch. 2001-50, § 4, at 320, Laws of Fla. The Legislature did not include lewd or lascivious battery in the list of qualifying prior offenses. “Battery” is specifically defined by statute, and section 784.03(2) does not refer to a prior conviction for “any battery.” Additionally, unlike the offense of aggravated battery at issue in Warren, lewd or lascivious battery can be committed without touching or striking another person against his or her will. See § 800.04(l)(b), (4)(a)-(b). Given the elements of the offense of lewd or lascivious battery, we conclude that Warren is not controlling and is distinguishable.

Aldacosta, 41 So.3d at 1099. As such, the court concluded that “[b]attery is not a necessarily lesser-included offense of lewd or lascivious battery.” Id.

In contrast to Aldacosta, the State points out that a battery is a lesser-included offense to sexual battery, meaning that a person necessarily commits a battery if he commits a sexual battery. A “battery” occurs when a person “actually and intentionally touches or strikes another person against the will of the other; or intentionally causes bodily harm to another person.” § 784.03(1)-(2), Fla. Stat. A “sexual battery” is the “oral, anal, or vaginal penetration by, or union with, the sexual organ of another or the anal or vaginal penetration of another by any other object” without consent. ' § 794.011(l)(h), (5)(a)-(c), Fla. Stat. (2002). Furthermore, a lewd and lascivious battery is a permissive lesser-included offense to sexual battery, while simple battery is a necessary lesser-included offense. Compare Williams v. State; 957 So.2d 595 (Fla.2007) (lewd and lascivious battery is a permissive lesser-included offense to sexual battery), with Khianthalat v. State, 974 So.2d 359, 362 (Fla.2008) (concluding “because lack of consent is an element of sexual battery under subsection (2)(a), the offense always includes a charge of simple battery as a necessarily lesser-included offense, just as it does under subsections (3), (4) and (5). Fla. Std. Jury Instr. (Crim.) Schedule of Lesser Included Offenses, § 794.011.”). Because the Mississippi sexual battery at issue necessarily meets the statutory definition of a battery under Florida law, it is a qualifying offense.

AFFIRMED.

RAY, SWANSON, and MAKAR, JJ., concur.


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Cited By

  • Nixon v. State (Fla. 1st DCA 2022)
    …ents fail. Petitioner was charged with sexual battery on a person less than twelve years old under section 794.011(2)(a), Florida Statutes. “[A] lewd and lascivious battery is a permissive lesser-included offense to sexual battery.” Osborn v. State, 177 So. 3d 1034, 1036 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015). An instruction on a permissive lesser-included offense is permitted and appropriate if the allegations of the greater offense contain all the elements of the lesser offense and the evidence at trial would support a verdict…
  • Woods v. Fla. Dep't of Corr. (S.D. Fla. 2021)
    …ded). (DE 17, p. 15). In adopting this Report, this court referenced other state law and another section of the Williams decision in supporting that lewd and lascivious molestation can be an included offense of sexual battery. See Osborn v. State, 177 So. 3d 1034, 1036 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2015) (“a lewd and lascivious battery is a permissive lesser-included offense to sexual battery”)(emphasis in original); Williams v. State, 922 So. 2d 418 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2006), approved, 957 So. 2d 595 (Fla. 2007)(“L…

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