ROBERTO MARTINEZ
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA
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A sentence of life imprisonment is sufficiently definite and constitutionally valid under Florida law.
[1] A sentence of life imprisonment is sufficiently definite under Florida law and does not violate constitutional requirements of definiteness.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“the Legislature, by prescribing a sentence of life imprisonment, intends that the defendant remain in prison for the rest of his life. The term 'life' is sufficiently definite so that it can be understood and applied.”
Court's reasoning citing Ratliff v. State regarding the validity of life sentences
Roberto Martinez appealed from a judgment in Miami-Dade County Circuit Court imposing a life sentence.…
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Third District Court of Appeal State of Florida
Opinion filed January 14, 2026. Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.
________________
No. 3D25-1564 Lower Tribunal No. F86-23726B ________________
Roberto Martinez, Appellant,
vs.
State of Florida, Appellee.
An Appeal under Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.141(b)(2) from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Tanya Brinkley, Judge.
Roberto Martinez, in proper person.
James Uthmeier, Attorney General, and David Llanes, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.
Before MILLER, LOBREE, and BOKOR, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
2
Affirmed. See Ratliff v. State, 914 So. 2d 938, 940 (Fla. 2005) (“[T]he Legislature, by prescribing a sentence of life imprisonment, intends that the defendant remain in prison for the rest of his life. The term ‘life’ is sufficiently definite so that it can be understood and applied. See State v. Wershow, 343 So. 2d 605 (Fla. 1977). There is nothing indefinite about such a sentence.”).