PATTERSON
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA
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Ace Robert Patterson, convicted in 1998 of serious crimes including capital sexual battery and sentenced to life imprisonment, appealed the trial court's denial of his 3.850 postconviction motion challenging his jury composition and prosecutorial comments. The court affirmed the denial and imposed sanctions on Patterson for abuse of process, warning him against further frivolous filings after he had filed at least ten previous appeals in the same case over 25 years.
The court affirmed the trial court's denial of the postconviction motion as untimely and successive. The court also found Patterson had abused the legal process through repeated frivolous filings and imposed sanctions, requiring him to show cause within twenty days why sanctions should not be imposed, including a potential prohibition on further pro se filings.
[1] A postconviction motion filed over twenty-five years after a conviction and sentence is untimely.
[2] A court may deny a postconviction motion as successive and not cognizable when the claims raised have been previously litigated or could have been raised on direct appeal…
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“His filings, like all papers filed in this Court, require the Court to expend scarce judicial resources. See May v. Barthet, 934 So. 2d 1184, 1187 (Fla. 2006). Part of our responsibility is "to see that these resources are allocated in a way that promotes the interests of justice."”
Establishes the court's rationale for sanctioning Patterson based on wasteful use of judicial resources and the court's duty to manage such resources efficiently.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligencePatterson was convicted in 1998 of burglary of a dwelling with a battery, aggravated kidnapping of a child, and two counts of capital sexual battery, …
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
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FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL
STATE OF FLORIDA _____________________________
No. 1D2023-2192 _____________________________
ACE ROBERT PATTERSON,
Appellant,
v. STATE OF FLORIDA,
Appellee.
_____________________________
On appeal from the Circuit Court for Madison County. Melissa G. Olin, Judge.
May 29, 2024 PER CURIAM.
Over twenty-five years ago, Ace Robert Patterson was convicted of burglary of a dwelling with a battery, aggravated kidnapping of a child, and two counts of capital sexual battery. He received a sentence that included two life terms of imprisonment. This Court per curiam affirmed the judgment and sentence. See Patterson v. State, 736 So. 2d 1185 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999).
In April 2022, Patterson filed a postconviction motion under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850, arguing that he was denied his right to a twelve-person jury and that the prosecutor made improper comments in front of the jury. The postconviction court denied the motion as untimely, successive, and not cognizable. The circuit court properly denied the motion, and we affirm the order below without further comment.
We also write to address Patterson’s abuse of process in this Court. Our records reflect that he has filed at least ten appeals or petitions here related to his 1998 judgment and sentence in Madison County Circuit Court Case Number 1997-CF-0171. See First District Case Numbers 1D00-4379, 1D00-4998, 1D01-0610, 1D01-1837, 1D01-3364, 1D08-5127, 1D09-0003, 1D09-0693, 1D10- 1755, and 1D16-3372. Patterson has not obtained relief in any of these cases, and his current appeal is frivolous.
We have warned Patterson about pursuing frivolous claims. See Patterson v. State, 788 So. 2d 397 (Fla. 1st DCA 2001). His filings, like all papers filed in this Court, require the Court to expend scarce judicial resources. See May v. Barthet, 934 So. 2d 1184, 1187 (Fla. 2006). Part of our responsibility is “to see that these resources are allocated in a way that promotes the interests of justice.” Id. (quoting In re McDonald, 489 U.S. 180, 184 (1989)). This Court is imbued with the inherent power to sanction litigants who abuse the legal system. See id. We find that Patterson has reached the point of deserving to be sanctioned. See Ferris v. State, 100 So. 3d 142, 144 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012) (Wetherell, J., concurring) (“The postconviction process and the appellate courts do not exist simply to give prisoners something to do while they serve their sentences, and there comes a point in every criminal case that the defendant needs to accept the finality of his judgment and sentence and just do his time.”).
Accordingly, Patterson shall show cause within twenty days why sanctions should not be imposed on him, including a prohibition on further pro se filings in this Court. See State v. Spencer, 751 So. 2d 47 (Fla. 1999). We also refer this matter to the Department of Corrections for disciplinary procedures under section 944.279, Florida Statutes.
AFFIRMED. ROBERTS, RAY, and KELSEY, JJ., concur.
_____________________________ Not final until disposition of any timely and authorized motion under Fla. R. App. P. 9.330 or 9.331.
_____________________________
Ace Robert Patterson, pro se, Appellant. Ashley Moody, Attorney General, Tallahassee, for Appellee.
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Citator
Cited By
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Ace Patterson v. Sec'y, Fla. Dep't OF Corr., 849 F.3d 1321 (11th Cir. 2017)…[Patterson] to the custody of the Department of Corrections” and directed the Department to “keep and safely imprison” Patterson for the remainder of his life. A state appellate court later affirmed his convictions and sentences. Patterson v. State, 736 So. 2d 1185 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1999). Patterson then initiated a flurry of collateral attacks against his convictions, including four petitions for writs of habeas corpus in state court and an ethics complaint against the prosecutor who tried his case. His ef…
Authorities Cited
- State v. Spencer, 751 So. 2d 47 (Fla. 1999)
- In re McDONALD, 489 U.S. 180 (U.S. 1989)
- Percival Charles Ferris, Jr. v. State, 100 So. 3d 142 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012)
- Ace Patterson v. State, 788 So. 2d 397 (Fla. 1st DCA 2001)