CHRISTOPHER BRIEN SHARPE, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Florida appellate court affirmed first-degree murder conviction, holding that although the trial court erred in giving a forcible felony exception to the self-defense instruction where no independent forcible felony was charged, the error was not fundamental because the defendant's self-defense claim was extremely weak and thoroughly refuted by medical evidence.
The trial court's error in instructing the jury on the forcible felony exception to self-defense, where no independent forcible felony was charged, was not fundamental error where the defendant's self-defense claim was extremely weak and completely refuted by medical evidence.
[1] A trial court's erroneous instruction on the forcible felony exception to self-defense, given where no independent forcible felony was charged, does not constitute fundam…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAppellant was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder. He claimed self-defense, but medical examiner testimony completely refuted his explanatio…
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Appellant challenges his conviction for first degree premeditated murder, arguing that the court fundamentally erred when it gave the forcible felony exception to the self-defense instruction, where no independent forcible felony was charged. While the giving of the instruction was error, we conclude that it was not fundamental error, as appellant’s self-defense claim was “extremely weak.” Martinez v. State, 981 So.2d 449, 456 (Fla.2008). The prosecutor did not even mention the exception in closing and simply addressed the self-defense claim head on, showing that the evidence, including the medical examiner’s testimony, completely refuted appellant’s explanation of his self-defense claim.
In addition, appellant argues that the failure to object to the instruction consti*541tuted ineffective assistance of counsel on the face of the record. Even if that were true, appellant has failed to show that the ineffective assistance prejudiced his defense to such an extent that he was deprived of a fair trial or that the result was unreliable. See Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). As noted above, appellant’s self-defense claim was thoroughly-refuted by the medical testimony. He has not shown that there would be a reasonable probability of a different result had the instruction not been read. Id.
Affirmed.
CONNER and FORST, JJ„ concur.
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Citator
Authorities Cited
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (U.S. 1984)
- Martinez v. State, 981 So. 2d 449 (Fla. 2008)