STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
STEPHEN DAVID MCCALL, APPELLEE

Fla. | 1974-10-09
No. 44863
.McCAIN, DEKLE and OVERTON, JJ., concur., ERVIN, J., concurs to conclusion only of order dismissing the criminal charges against Appellee., ADKINS, C. J., and ROBERTS, J., dissent.
301 So. 2d 774 Florida Supreme Court (1974) Positive Treatment
Cited by 4 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

Florida appeals the dismissal of DUI and drug possession charges against McCall on speedy trial grounds. The trial court invalidated traffic court rules as unconstitutional for excluding criminal procedure protections, but the Supreme Court held that while the trial court lacked authority to declare the rules unconstitutional, the dismissal itself was proper under the speedy trial rule.


Holding

The trial court lacked authority to declare the traffic court rules unconstitutional, and that portion of its order is quashed. However, the dismissal of the criminal charges was proper and is affirmed, as the speedy trial deadline had been exceeded.


Headnotes

[1] A trial court's declaration that a rule of procedure is unconstitutional may be improperly entered.

[2] A dismissal of criminal charges may be affirmed even if the trial court's reasoning regarding the unconstitutionality of a procedural rule is quashed.

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Key Quotes

“It is our view that, based on Ser-Nestler, supra that portion of the lower court order dealing with the unconstitutionality of the rule was improperly entered, and it is therefore the ruling of this Court that that portion be quashed.”

Establishes that trial courts lack authority to declare Supreme Court rules unconstitutional.

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Facts & Procedural History

McCall was arrested on July 17, 1973, and charged on September 14, 1973, with four misdemeanors: DUI, careless driving, marijuana possession, and poss…

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Opinion of the Court
BOYD, Justice.

BOYD, Justice.

This cause is before us on appeal from the County Court of Polk County, Florida. We have jurisdiction1 because in its amended order of dismissal, the trial court declared that Rule 3.010, Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure, is unconstitutional insofar ,as it seeks to exclude vehicular and pedestrian traffic and that Florida Rules of Practice and Procedure for Traffic Courts is unconstitutional with regard to that portion which seeks to exclude the full application of the Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure from vehicular and pedestrian traffic offenses.

The facts of this case are as follows: On July 17, 1973, appellee-defendant was arrested, jailed, and had a first appearance hearing. On September 14, 1973, appellee was charged in a single information with the following four offenses, each denominated a misdemeanor: (1) driving while under the influence of alcoholic' beverages, etc. (violating Section 316.028, Florida Statutes); (2) careless driving (violating Section 316.030, Florida Statutes); (3) possession of marijuana (violating Section 893.13(1) (f), Florida Statutes); and (4) possession of paraphernalia (violating Section 893.13(3) (a) (4), Florida Statutes). On November 7, 1973, a motion to dismiss all counts was filed under the speedy trial rule, alleging the date of the arrest, that the offenses charged were misdemeanors, and more than ninety (90) days had elapsed since defendant was taken into custody. As to Counts 3 and 4, appellant-state offered no argument to dismissal; however, appellant argued that the speedy trial rule did not apply to Counts 1 and 2. Subsequently, the trial court entered its amended order to dismiss, which is the order presently appealed.

It is appellant’s position that, since appellee was taken into custody prior to February 15, 1974, the State had until May 15, 1974, in which to begin his trial, there being no demand for a speedy trial in the record.2 Further, Appellant asserts that the trial court had no authority to construe the constitutional provisions so as to invalidate the various rules.3 On the other hand, Appellee, admitting that a trial court cannot alter the general constitutional effect of an existing rule of this Court, submits that the trial court did not attempt to “make” a rule but merely attempted to select from conflicting rules one which would achieve a constitutional result.

It is our view that, based on Ser-Nestler, supra

that portion of the lower court order dealing with the unconstitutionality of the rule was improperly entered, and it is therefore the ruling of this Court that that portion be quashed. However, our review of the record convinces us that the resulting dismissal was the proper decision, and, accordingly, that portion of the order dismissing the criminal charges against Appellant is affirmed.

Therefore, the order of the County Court of Polk County is quashed in part and affirmed in part.

It is so ordered.

.McCAIN, DEKLE and OVERTON, JJ., concur. ERVIN, J., concurs to conclusion only of order dismissing the criminal charges against Appellee.

ADKINS, C. J., and ROBERTS, J., dissent.

. Article V, Section 3(b)(3), Florida Constitution.

. In re: Rules 6.13, Florida Traffic Court Rules, 287 So. 2d 677 (Fla.1974).

. Ser-Nestler, Inc. v. General Finance Loan Co., 167 So. 2d 230 (Fla.App.1964), appeal dismissed 174 So. 2d 35 (Fla.1965).

. Id.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Reinhardt v. Bono, 564 So. 2d 1233 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990)
    …r, it is very clear in this state that only the Florida Supreme Court has the authority to declare a rule adopted by it unconstitutional or a nullity. Ser-Nestler, Inc. v. General Finance Loan Co., 167 So. 2d 230 (Fla. 3d DCA 1964); State v. McCall, 301 So. 2d 774 (Fla.1974). The Florida Supreme Court is vested with the sole authority to promulgate, rescind, and modify the rules adopted by it. Only the source of the rules5 — the Florida Supreme Court — can change or nullify a rule it has promulgated. State v.…
  • Schwarz v. Kogan, 132 F.3d 1387 (11th Cir. 1998)
    …Appel-lees take the position that the Florida Supreme Court is the only Florida tribunal that might have jurisdiction to consider a facial constitutional attack on a rule propounded by that body, see Appellees’ Brief, at 17 (citing State v. McCall, 301 So. 2d 774, 775 (Fla.1974)), they insist that Schwarz could have sought to invoke the court's authority to issue writs. They observe that section 3(b)(7) of Article V of the Florida Constitution gives the court jurisdiction over petitions for "all writs necess…

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