ALVIN MOJICA, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Fla. 2d DCA | 2016-06-10
No. 2D14-855
SILBERMAN and BADALAMENTI, JJ., Concur.
192 So. 3d 1271 Florida District Court of Appeal, Second District (2016) Caution
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

Alvin Mojica appealed his robbery conviction and sentence. The court affirmed his conviction but reversed in part due to scrivener's errors in the judgment and improper imposition of costs and assessments without proper notice and procedure.


Holding

The court affirmed Mojica's conviction without comment but reversed and remanded regarding sentencing errors. The judgment must be corrected to reflect a second-degree felony conviction, the scoresheet must show jury conviction rather than plea bargain, the $125.72 fine and $6.28 surcharge must be stricken, and the $200 indigent legal assistant assessment must be reconsidered with proper notice to the defendant.


Headnotes

[1] A trial court must orally announce its intent to impose a fine and surcharge, identify the statutory authority, and notify the defendant of their right to a hearing to co…

[2] An indigent legal assistant assessment exceeding the mandatory minimum fee is discretionary and requires the trial court to notify the defendant of their right to contest…

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Key Quotes

“Before imposing a fine and surcharge under these statutes, a trial court must orally announce its intent to do so and identify the statutory authority underlying the fine and surcharge.”

Establishes the procedural requirement for imposing fines and surcharges that the trial court failed to follow.

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Facts & Procedural History

Mr. Mojica was convicted of robbery. His judgment incorrectly stated he was convicted of a first-degree felony when he was actually convicted of a sec…

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Opinion of the Court
LUCAS, Judge.

LUCAS, Judge.

Mr. Alvin Mojica appeals his conviction and sentence for robbery. We affirm Mr. Mojica’s conviction without comment. However, Mr. Mojica’s judgment and sentencing‘scoresheet contain scrivener’s errors. Additionally, Mr. Mojica’s judgment includes three improperly imposed costs. Accordingly, we must reverse and remand *1272for the circuit court to correct these errors.

The State concedes that Mr. Mojica’s judgment contains a scrivener’s error in that his judgment states he was convicted of a first-degree felony. On remand, the trial court shall enter an amended judgment showing that Mr. Mojica was convicted of a second-degree felony. See Balmori v. State, 924 So.2d 7, 7-8 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005). The State also concedes that Mr. Mojica’s scoresheet incorrectly indicates that his case was resolved through a plea bargain. On remand, the State shall submit an amended scoresheet showing that Mr. Mojica was tried and convicted by a jury. See Drayton v. State, 89 So.3d 287, 287-88 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012).

The State also concedes that the trial court erred when it imposed a $125.72 fine and $6.28 surcharge under sections 775.083(1) and 938.04, Florida Statutes (2012). Before imposing a fine and surcharge under these statutes, a trial court must orally announce its intent to do so and identify the statutory authority underlying the fine and surcharge. See Reyes v. State, 655 So.2d 111 (Fla. 2d DCA 1995). The court must also notify the defendant of his or her right to a hearing to contest the amount. Id. Here, the trial court failed to follow this procedure, and so the fine and surcharge from Mr. Mojica’s judgment must be stricken. See Cruz v. State, 830 So.2d 892, 892-93 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002); Nix v. State, 84 So.3d 424, 425-26 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012).

Finally, with respect to the imposition of the indigent legal assistant assessment, the State argues that the $200 assessed against Mr. Mojica was proper under section 938.29. However, as set forth in that statute, any indigent legal assistant assessment over the mandatory minimum fee of $100 is discretionary. See Harmon v. State, 160 So.3d 939, 939-40 (Fla. 5th DCA 2015). A trial court must, therefore, notify a defendant of his or her right to contest the imposition of an assessment above $100. Id. Here, the trial court improperly imposed this assessment in an amount over $100 without first providing Mr. Mojica notice of his right to contest the amount. That was error. See Nash v. State, 958 So.2d 471, 471-72 (Fla. 2d DCA 2007).

On remand, the trial court shall enter a new judgment and sentence and may, if it so decides, reimpose the fine, surcharge, and assessment after providing notice to Mr. Mojica and following the appropriate procedure. See Harmon, 160 So.3d at 940; Nix, 84 So.3d at 426. Alternatively, if the trial court decides not to reimpose the fine, surcharge, or assessment, it may enter a corrected judgment and sentence striking the fine and surcharge and imposing a $100 minimum assessment,1 consistent with this opinion. See Mills v. State, 177 So.3d 984, 986-87 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015); Harmon, 160 So.3d at 940; Nix, 84 So.3d at 426 n. 2.

Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded with instructions.

SILBERMAN and BADALAMENTI, JJ., Concur.


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