CHARLIE HELTON
v.
NATHAN MAYO, CUSTODIAN, FLORIDA STATE PRISON
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Charlie Helton sought habeas corpus relief after conviction and sentencing for removing and concealing moonshine whiskey with intent to defraud state tax. The Florida Supreme Court held that the information for the first offense charged no crime under state law, voiding that sentence, but upheld a valid second sentence for larceny of a hog that should run independently rather than consecutively to the void sentence.
The September 8, 1942 sentence is void and Helton must be discharged from custody under that commitment. However, the September 22, 1942 sentence for larceny of a hog is valid and must be served, but should be construed to run independently rather than consecutively to the void sentence, as a consecutive sentence cannot run from a nonexistent sentence.
“the information charged no offense, and the petitioner must be discharged from custody under the commitment issued pursuant to said judgment and sentence”
Establishes that the first conviction's information failed to state a crime under state law, requiring discharge from that sentence
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceHelton was convicted on an information charging removal and concealment of several gallons of moonshine whiskey with intent to defraud the state of ta…
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Petitioner was convicted, and judgment and sentence of three years imposed, on an information charging the removing and concealing of several gallons of “moonshine whiskey” with intent to defraud the State of the tax imposed on shch whiskey. The original sentence of five years was suspended and later, on September 8, 1942, the Court of Record of Escambia County held the original sentence void and resentenced the defendant to three years in the State Prison, and commitment issued.
This Court granted writ of habeas corpus on October 4, 1943. On the facts admitted in the return, the above judgment, sentence and resentence are all void, as the information charged no offense, and the petitioner must be discharged from custody under the commitment issued pursuant to said judgment and sentence.
Respondent admits that under the recent decision of this Court in Brown v. State, 13 So. (2nd) 458, 142 Fla. 852, the information upon which the above judgment and sentence were imposed fails to charge.an offense against the laws of this State, but respondent alleges that petitioner is also held in custody in the State Prison under a commitment issued by the same court pursuant to a subsequent judgment and sentence rendered on September 22,1942, whereby petitioner was .sentenced to five years for larceny of a hog, “said sentence. *618to begin and run from expiration of sentence imposed in this Court on September 8, 1942,” evidently referring to the void judgment and sentence above referred to. Apparently, this was a valid judgment, but inasmuch as the sentence of September 8, 1942 was legally unauthorized and non-existent at the time the second judgment and sentence of five years was rendered on September 22, 1942, the five year sentence imposed by the second judgment and sentence should be construed to run just as if the above quoted words, to the effect that said sentence should begin to run at the expiration of the (void) sentence of September 8, 1942, had not been included therein. Otherwise petitioner would be done a grave injustice. As we have construed the legal effect of the judgment and sentence of September 22, 1942, no good purpose could be served by ordering thé petitioner returned to Escambia County for the imposition of a new sentence with the words above referred to eliminated.
Respondent calls our attention to Section 921.16, Florida Statutes 1941, which provides that “Sentences for imprisonment for offenses not charged in the same indictment or information shall be served consecutively unless the court expressly directs that they or some of them shall be served concurrently.” The first sentence being void, we see nothing in that section of the statute which changes our views as to the effect which should appropriately be given to the second sentence above referred to, which was imposed under an entirely different and apparently valid judgment and information, which sentence could not run consecutively to a void sentence.
Order of discharge will be entered in so far as the sentence of September 8, 1942 is concerned, as above indicated, but petitioner must'be remanded to custody under the commitment issued on the sentence of September 22, 1942, as herein above construed.
It is so ordered.
BUFORD, C. J., THOMAS and SEBRING, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
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Cited By (15 total)
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Ishmael Washington v. Mayo, 91 So. 2d 621 (Fla. 1956)…we do no useful purpose would be served by ordering the petitioner returned to Duval County for the formal vacating of the six-year sentence and imposition of the life sentence as of the date of its original imposition. Helton v. Mayo, 153 Fla. 616, 15 So. 2d 416. The petition raises an additional point to the effect that preliminary to a conviction under the habitual criminal statute it is required that the accused be “duly cautioned as to his rights”. Section 775.11, Florida Statutes, F.S.A. The petition…
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ROY v. State, 207 So. 2d 52 (Fla. 2d DCA 1967)…p.1957, 97 So. 2d 631. If the probation period had not expired, he was subject to the Court’s probation process. Roy’s contention is that, when the Lake County sentences were vacated by C.P.R. No. 1, they became “voided” under Helton v. Mayo, 1943, 153 Fla. 616, 15 So. 2d 416, and that therefore the 2-year probationary period should be construed to run retroactively from November 20, 1961, the date the probation order was entered. The Attorney General, of course, takes the contrary view. In our opinion Hel…
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Falagan v. Louie L. Wainwright, 195 So. 2d 562 (Fla. 1967)…0. Then, on February 24, 1965, the original Orange County sentence No. 003950 was vacated. [*563] At this time, the Leon County escape sentence was automatically deemed to have begun on February 18, 1964, the date it was imposed. See Helton v. Mayo, 153 Fla. 616, 15 So. 2d 416 (1943). This escape sentence expired on January 2, 1965, at which time the Madison County escape sentence was computed to have begun. Falagan was retried under the original Orange County information on February 24, 1965. He was convic…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Brown v. State, 152 Fla. 853 (Fla. 1943)