DAVID P. DEMAR, PETITIONER,
v.
LOUIE L. WAINWRIGHT, ETC., ET AL., RESPONDENTS

Fla. | 1977-11-30
No. 52035
OVERTON, C. J., and ADKINS, BOYD and ENGLAND, JJ., concur.
354 So. 2d 366 Florida Supreme Court (1977) Positive Treatment
Cited by 8 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

The Florida Supreme Court held that when a parole grant has been notified to an inmate, rescission of that unexecuted parole without prior notice and an adjudicatory hearing violates constitutional due process protections. The Court applied minimal procedural safeguards from Morrissey v. Brewer to parole rescission proceedings.


Holding

Rescission of an unexecuted parole grant without notice and an adjudicatory hearing violates due process. Once a person has been notified of a parole grant, the minimal due process requirements set forth in Morrissey v. Brewer apply to parole rescission proceedings, with the exception of the preliminary hearing requirement.


Headnotes

[1] A rescission of an unexecuted grant of parole inflicts a "grievous loss" on a petitioner, requiring procedural protections.

[2] Due process requirements for parole revocation hearings apply to parole rescission proceedings when a person has been notified of their parole grant, even if unexecuted.

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Key Quotes

“the rescission of the unexecuted grant of parole inflicted such 'grievous loss' on petitioner that he should have been accorded certain procedural protections prior to such rescission”

Establishes that rescission of an unexecuted parole grant triggers due process protections due to the significant harm imposed

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Facts & Procedural History

David DeMar was convicted of breaking and entering with intent to commit a misdemeanor and grand larceny, receiving concurrent sentences of six months…

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Opinion of the Court
KARL, Justice.

KARL, Justice.

This cause is before us on writ of habeas corpus and return thereto. Article V, Section 3(b)(6), Florida Constitution.

Petitioner was charged, by information dated November 6, 1974, with having broken and entered a building other than a dwelling with the intent to commit a misdemeanor and, by information filed December 18, 1974, with the crime of grand larceny. He entered a plea of guilty to both charges, was convicted and was sentenced to two concurrent terms of six months to two years.

On May 26, 1977, the Florida Parole and Probation Commission entered its order granting parole to petitioner. By letter dated May 30, 1977, petitioner was notified by the Parole and Probation Commission that he had been granted parole. He was scheduled to be released on parole June 21, 1977.

A disciplinary report dated June 1, 1977, was filed against petitioner by Ron Warren, a correctional counselor, charging petitioner with conspiracy or attempting to conspire with others to bring marijuana into the prison on May 29,1977. On June 2,1977, a copy of this disciplinary report was delivered to petitioner. Petitioner admitted, in a signed statement, that he assisted a resident in bringing the contraband into the prison. The disciplinary committee accepted petitioner’s plea of guilty and found him guilty as charged by his own admission.

Thereafter, the Florida Parole and Probation Commission, by order dated June 8, 1977, rescinded petitioner’s parole. By letter dated June 14,1977, petitioner was notified that the Commission had rescinded his parole.

Petitioner, in his petition for writ of ha-beas corpus, alleges that his parole was rescinded without prior notice and an adjudicatory hearing, that he was not present during any consideration of the rescission of his parole and that at no time was he offered the opportunity to present evidence, cross-examine adverse witnesses, be represented by counsel or obtain a transcript of the parole rescission determination.

This Court issued the writ, and return has been filed by respondents. In their return, respondents concede that petitioner did not have a hearing as contemplated by this Court’s decision in Means v. Wainwright, 299 So. 2d 577 (Fla.1974).

We are here confronted with the identical question that was raised in Means v. Wainwright, supra, that is whether the rescission of petitioner’s unexecuted grant of parole without notice and an adjudicatory hearing violated his constitutional rights to procedural due process and equal protection of the law. Therein, this Court determined that with the exception of the preliminary hearing, the minimal due process requirements enumerated in Morrissey v. Brewer, 408 U.S. 471, 92 S.Ct. 2593, 33 L.Ed.2d 484 (1972), are to be applied in parole rescission proceedings once a person has been notified of his grant of parole, even though such grant has been unexecuted. In Means v. Wainwright, this Court reasoned:

“Cognizant of the fact that the instant case does not concern parole revocation, we nonetheless find that the rescission of the unexecuted grant of parole inflicted such ‘grievous loss’ on petitioner that he should have been accorded certain procedural protections prior to such rescission. . .

“The Supreme Court of the United States has decided that probationers and parolees are entitled to due process at revocation hearings. In applying this principle as set forth in Gagnon v. Scarpelli, supra [411 U.S. 778, 93 S.Ct. 1756, 36 L.Ed.2d 656 (1973)], and Morrissey v. Brewer, supra, there is no difference relevant to the guarantee of due process between a revocation of parole and a rescission of parole. In the case sub judice, the Parole and Probation Commission acted without giving petitioner notice or a hearing by which he could have conveyed an excuse or an instance of mitigation which may have affected the decision for rescission.” We adhere to our decision in Means v. Wainwright, supra, and find it to be controlling sub judice.

Accordingly, the writ of habeas corpus should issue and petitioner should be placed upon parole unless he is afforded a parole rescission hearing consistent with and conforming to the due process requirements set out in Morrissey v. Brewer, supra, within thirty days of the filing of this opinion.

It is so ordered.

OVERTON, C. J., and ADKINS, BOYD and ENGLAND, JJ., concur.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • Pannier v. Louie L. Wainwright, 423 So. 2d 533 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982)
    …tion Commission, 289 So. 2d 719 (Fla.1974). Habeas corpus would be the proper remedy only after an effective parole release date established pursuant to sections 947.174(6)(b) and 947.18, Florida Statutes (1981), has passed. Cf. Demar v. Wainwright, 354 So. 2d 366 (Fla.1977), cert. denied, 436 U.S. 962, 98 S.Ct. 3082, 57 L.Ed.2d 1129 (1978). We agree with the Third District that there can be no administrative appeal from the determination of a presumptive parole release date. Roberson v. Fla. Parole & Probati…
  • Turner v. Louie L. Wainwright, 379 So. 2d 148 (Fla. 1st DCA 1980)
    …ted the Commission thirty days to correct prior defects in parole revocation proceedings, although the prisoner was imprisoned throughout the Court’s consideration of his petition. Means v. Wainwright, 299 So. 2d 577 (Fla.1974); Demar v. Wainwright, 354 So. 2d 366 (Fla.1978). It is not altogether clear whether the original sentences in those cases would have expired before the Court’s decision, had parole not been irregularly revoked. Even assuming that Means, Demar and Gibbs v. Cochran would ordinarily justi…
  • …her than a hearing examiner panel, will conduct the fact-finding interviews, usually in a prison setting, which inform the Commission in its decisions to rescind effective parole release dates previously fixed by the Commission. Demar v. Wainwright, 354 So. 2d 366 (Fla.1978) requires the Commission, when rescinding paroles previously granted prisoners who are not yet released, to comply with the due process standards specified for parole revocation in Morrissey v. Brewer, 408 U.S. 471, 92 S.Ct. 2593, 33 L.Ed.…

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