D. C. KIMMONS,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA
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D. C. Kimmons was convicted of breaking and entering a motor vehicle with intent to commit a crime under Florida law and sentenced to four years in prison. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the conviction and sentence, holding that the legislature's explicit classification of the offense as a felony controls regardless of the amount stolen or the punishment imposed.
The sentence was authorized and valid. The offense is made a felony by statute, and when the legislature explicitly designates a crime as a felony, that legislative classification controls without regard to the amount of the loss or other punishment considerations, within constitutional limitations.
“It is only where a crime is not specifically designated by the statute which creates it either as a felony or a misdemeanor that Section 775.08 Florida Statutes 1941 is applicable as fixing the grade of the offense; a crime punishable by statute by death or imprisonment in the state prison being deemed a felony in such case and all other crimes being deemed misdemeanors.”
Establishes the rule that explicit legislative classification of a crime as felony or misdemeanor controls over other considerations
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceKimmons broke into an automobile and stole money not exceeding $15.00. He was charged with violating Chapter 22004 of the Laws of 1943 (Section 860.12…
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The information in this case charged a violation of Chapter 22004 of the Laws of 1943, now appearing as Section 860.12 of the Cumulative Supplement of Florida Statutes 1941, which reads as follows:
“860.12 Breaking and Entering Motor Vehicles. Whoever breaks and enters any automobile, truck, trailer, semi-trailer, or house-car with intent to commit any crime, shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punished by a fine of not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than one thousand dollars or imprisonment for not less than thirty days or more than one year in the county jail, or not more than ten years in the state prison, or by both such fine and imprisonment.” Ch. 22004, 1943.
There was sufficient evidence to sustain the verdict of guilt, but the appellant contends that the sentence of four *449years in the penitentiary was unauthorized, as the evidence shows that the amount of money stolen from the automobile which was broken into did not exceed $15.00, and that the statute is so ambiguous as to the punishment in a case of this kind, that the trial court was not justified in imposing a penitentiary sentence which was only appropriate in felony cases. But this offense is made a felony by the statute above quoted.
This question is settled contrary to appellant’s contention by the recent case of Nation v. State, 154 Fla. 337, 17 So, (2nd) 521, where this court, speaking through Mr. Justice SEBRING, said:
“It is only where a crime is not specifically designated by the statute which creates it either as a felony or a misdemeanor that Section 775.08 Florida Statutes 1941 is applicable as fixing the grade of the offense; a crime punishable by statute by death or imprisonment in the state prison being deemed a felony in such case and all other crimes being deemed misdemeanors. But where the Legislature has enacted a statute specifically designating a crime as being either a felony or a misdemeanor the legislative classification will control without regard to the punishment imposed as, within constitutional limitations, the legislature has the power to denounce any act as a crime and to fix the grade of the offense and prescribe the punishment therefor. Chapman v. Lake, 112 Fla. 746, 151 So. 399.”
Judgment affirmed.
CHAPMAN, C. J., THOMAS and SEBRING, JJ., concur.
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State of Fla. ex rel. B. "Babe" Shargaa v. Culver, 113 So. 2d 383 (Fla. 1959)…rts that under these circumstances, inasmuch as the crime for which he was convicted cannot be described as a felony it necessarily follows that it is a misdemeanor in view of the statutes above quoted and in view of our opinion in Kimmons v. State, 156 Fla. 448, 23 So. 2d 523. We have the view that the analysis of the situation submitted by the petitioner is sound. We are compelled to conclude that the offense proscribed by Section 832.-05 (2) must be classed as a misdemeanor inasmuch as it is not otherwi…
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City OF Fort Lauderdale v. Mattlin, 566 So. 2d 1330 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990)…r within 175 days if the crime charged is a felony.” Appellant asserts that the rule is inapplicable because an ordinance violation is not a crime, by definition, regardless of the extent of punishment for its violation. See, e.g., Kimmons v. State, 156 Fla. 448, 23 So. 2d 523 (Fla.1945); Roe v. State, 96 Fla. 723, 119 So. 118 (Fla.1928). Florida Statutes Section 775.08(3) provides: The term “noncriminal violation” shall mean any offense that is punishable under the laws of this state, or that would be pu…
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State v. Bailey, 360 So. 2d 772 (Fla. 1978)…te due process clauses as well. Within constitutional limits, the legislature may prohibit any act, determine the grade or class of the offense, and prescribe the punishment. United States v. Wilson, 506 F. 2d 521 (9th Cir. 1974); Kimmons v. State, 156 Fla. 448, 23 So. 2d 523 (1945). While statutes which restrict constitutionally protected rights or mere passivity may be facially overbroad and, therefore, exceed this legislative authority, the mere reclassification of an already prohibited act from a misde…
Authorities Cited
- Chapman v. Forrest Lake, 112 Fla. 746 (Fla. 1932)
- Littlefield v. Veino, 154 Fla. 337 (Fla. 1944)
- Nation v. State, 154 Fla. 337 (Fla. 1944)