LARRY WILLIAMS, DOC# 747444, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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.
Larry Williams appealed the dismissal of his mandamus petition seeking access to records allegedly containing exculpatory evidence in his sexual battery conviction. The court affirmed the dismissal on the narrow ground that the petition was facially insufficient but allowed him to refile.
The court affirmed the dismissal because the petition was facially insufficient—Williams failed to acknowledge his obligation to pay copying costs, a requirement under Florida law. The court also noted the trial court overlooked that Williams' records request was directed to the Department, not just the clerk, but allowed Williams to file an amended petition complying with the procedural requirements.
[1] A trial court must assess a petition for a writ of mandamus for facial sufficiency.
[2] A petition for a writ of mandamus may be dismissed if it is not facially sufficient.
Previewing 2 of 5 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“When a trial court receives a petition for a writ of mandamus, its initial task is assessing the petition to determine whether it is facially sufficient. If it is not facially sufficient, the court may dismiss the petition.”
Establishes the standard for reviewing mandamus petitions and the trial court's role in assessing facial sufficiency.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceWilliams was convicted by jury of sexual battery on a child. He filed a petition for mandamus alleging the Department of Children and Families possess…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Copying Costs cases and more on FLexlaw
Larry Williams appeals the dismissal of his petition for writ of mandamus. We affirm without prejudice to Mr. Williams’ filing of a facially sufficient petition.
A jury convicted Mr. Williams of sexual battery on a child. In his petition, Mr. Williams alleged the existence of three reports containing exculpatory evidence that the Department of Children and Families, formerly the Department of Children' and Family Services, prepared in a related dependency action. Mr. Williams contended that the Department possessed the reports and that the Department failed to respond to his December 2012 request for these documents. He attached to his petition a copy of his previous records request, addressed to the circuit court clerk and to the'Assistant State Attorney who represented- the Department in the dependency proceedings. •
*910“When a trial court receives a petition for a writ of mandamus, its initial task is assessing the petition to determine whether it is facially sufficient. If it is not facially sufficient, the court may dismiss the petition.” Davis v. State, 861 So.2d 1214, 1215 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003) (citations omitted). The court correctly dismissed Mr. Williams’ petition as facially insufficient because he did not acknowledge his obligation to pay for copying costs. Cf. Farmer v. State, 927 So.2d 1075, 1076 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006) (holding that a motion to compel production of documents from the State Attorney’s Office satisfied the requirements for a petition for writ of mandamus where - the movant set forth the statute, under which he was seeking production of public records, attached a copy of a letter that he had previously sent to the State Attorney’s Office requesting records and acknowledging his obligation to pay the copying costs, and alleged that he received 'no response thereto); Radford v. Brock, 914 So.2d 1066, 1068-69 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005) (holding that the petitioner stated a facially sufficient claim for mandamus relief where he alleged that the clerk and reporter were legal custodians of public records, that he requested such records and offered to pay for them, but the clerk and reporter failed to provide the record's).
In its order of .dismissal, the circuit court stated that even if the petition were facially sufficient, it would have been dismissed because Mr. Williams “fail[ed] to show that the Clerk is the proper agency in. possession of these records.” However, the court overlooked that his records request was also directed to the Department.
Therefore, we affirm the dismissal of his facially insufficient petition without prejudice to Mr. Williams’ filing of an amended petition that complies with Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.630. Upon , receipt of a facially sufficient petition, the lower court “must issue an alternative writ of mandamus requiring the respondent to show cause why the writ should not be issued.” Radford, 914 So.2d at 1068 (citing Moore v. Ake, 693 So.2d 697, 698 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997); Conner v. Mid-Florida Growers, Inc., 541 So.2d 1252, 1256 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989)).
Affirmed.
WALLACE, LaROSE, and CRENSHAW, JJ., Concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Braun v. State, 253 So. 3d 778 (Fla. 5th DCA 2018)…PER CURIAM. AFFIRMED, without prejudice to Appellant filing a legally sufficient petition for writ of mandamus. See Williams v. State , 189 So. 3d 909 (Fla. 2d DCA 2016) ; Farmer v. State , 927 So. 2d 1075 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006). ORFINGER, EVANDER and EISNAUGLE, JJ., concur.…
-
Braun v. State (Fla. 5th DCA 2018)
Authorities Cited
- Radford v. Brock, 914 So. 2d 1066 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005)
- Doyle Conner v. Mid-Florida Growers, Inc., 541 So. 2d 1252 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989)
- Zamora v. State, 861 So. 2d 1214 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003)
- Clark v. State, 693 So. 2d 697 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997)
- Farmer v. State, 927 So. 2d 1075 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)