VICTOR JEROME BELL
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA
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The appellate court barred an appellant from filing pro se motions in a specific criminal case after finding he had repeatedly and frivolously attacked his conviction and sentence, abusing the legal process. Following notice and an opportunity to respond as required by State v. Spencer, the court imposed sanctions restricting future filings to those by Florida Bar members.
The court barred the appellant from filing future pro se motions in the subject case, requiring all future filings to be submitted by a member in good standing of The Florida Bar. The court warned that violations could result in referral for disciplinary procedures under Florida Statutes section 944.279.
[1] A court may prohibit a pro se litigant from filing future pro se appeals in a specific case based on abuse of process through repeated, frivolous attacks on conviction an…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAppellant Victor Jerome Bell filed repeated pro se motions attacking his judgment and sentence in Escambia County Circuit Court case number 2012-CF-18…
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Due to Appellant’s apparent abuse of the legal process by his repeated pro se filings attacking his judgment and sentence, the Court issued an order directing Appellant to show cause why he should not be prohibited from future pro se filings. See State v. Spencer, 751 So. 2d 47, 48 (Fla. 1999) (requiring that courts “first provide notice and an opportunity to respond before preventing [a] litigant from bringing further attacks on his or her conviction and sentence”). Appellant’s response to the show cause order does not provide a legal basis to prohibit the imposition of sanctions.
Because Appellant’s continued and repeated attacks on his judgment and sentence have become an abuse of the legal process, we hold that he is barred from future pro se filings in this Court concerning Escambia County Circuit Court case number 2012-CF-1842. The Clerk of the Court is directed not to accept any future filings concerning this case unless they are filed by a member in good standing of The Florida Bar. Appellant is warned that any filings that violate the terms of this opinion may result in a referral to the appropriate institution for disciplinary procedures as provided in section 944.279, Florida Statutes. See Fla. R. App. P. 9.410.
ROWE, RAY, and MAKAR, JJ., concur. _____________________________ Not final until disposition of any timely and authorized motion under Fla. R. App. P. 9.330 or 9.331.
_____________________________ Victor Jerome Bell, pro se, Appellant. Pamela Jo Bondi, Attorney General, and Thomas H. Duffy, Assistant Attorney General, Tallahassee, for Appellee.