CHARLES EDWARD FLAHERTY
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA
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Charles Edward Flaherty appealed the revocation of his probation and subsequent sentencing, arguing that insufficient evidence identified him as the person who committed the crimes alleged in the violation of probation affidavit. The Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal agreed with Flaherty and the State's confession of error, reversing the probation revocation and remanding for dismissal of the violation proceeding.
The evidence was insufficient to identify Appellant as the person who committed the crimes alleged in the violation of probation affidavit. The trial court erred in revoking probation and imposing a sentence based on insufficient identification evidence.
[1] Evidence of identification must be sufficient to support a finding that a probationer committed the acts alleged in a violation of probation proceeding.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“the evidence was insufficient to identify Appellant as the person who committed the crimes alleged in the violation of probation affidavit”
States the core legal error that formed the basis for reversal
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceFlaherty was on probation and faced a violation of probation affidavit alleging he committed certain crimes. The trial court revoked his probation and…
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Appeal from the Circuit Court for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward County; Andrew L. Siegel, Judge; L.T. Case No. 19-011062-CF- 10A.
Antony P. Ryan, Regional Counsel, and Paul O’Neil, Assistant Regional Counsel, Office of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel, West Palm Beach, for appellant.
Ashley Moody, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Zi Jin Peter Chan, Assistant Attorney General, West Palm Beach, for appellee.
ON CONFESSION OF ERROR PER CURIAM.
Appellant, Charles Edward Flaherty, appeals the revocation of his probation and subsequent sentencing. Appellant contends the trial court erred because the evidence was insufficient to identify Appellant as the person who committed the crimes alleged in the violation of probation affidavit. The State agrees and confesses error. After reviewing the record, we agree the trial court erred. We reverse the order revoking probation and the sentence imposed thereafter, and remand the case for the trial court to vacate those orders and to dismiss the violation proceeding. On remand, the State may attempt to prove a violation based on the same circumstances upon the filing of a new violation of probation affidavit, if the probationary period has not expired. See Scott v. State, 937 So. 2d 746, 749 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006); Boyd v. State, 1 So. 3d 1186, 1188 (Fla. 2d
2
DCA 2009).
Reversed. KLINGENSMITH, C.J., DAMOORGIAN and CONNER, JJ., concur.
* * * Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.