JESSIE JAMES COVINGTON, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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The court held that the state failed to prove the alleged ownership of the property burglarized, which is an essential element of the crime.
The defendant was convicted of burglary of a school alleged to be owned by Indian River County. The vice-principal testified the school was 'run' by t…
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MOORE, Judge.
This is an appeal from a judgment and sentence for the crime of burglary wherein the defendant was alleged to have committed a burglary at the Middle Six School located at Gifford in Indian River County, Florida. The information alleged that the school was the property of Indian River County. At trial, the vice-principal of the school testified that the school was “run” by the Board of Public Instruction of Indian River County.
In burglary prosecutions, it has been repeatedly held that the allegation of ownership of a building alleged to have been burglarized must be proved as alleged. Smith v. State, 96 Fla. 30, 117 So. 377 (1928); Salerno v. State, 347 So. 2d 659, 662 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977). Proof of ownership is an essential element of the offense of burglary.
In the instant case, the proof of ownership of the property was insufficient to sustain the conviction. While the Board of Public Institution “ran” the school, this does not indicate that Indian River County “owned” the school. Thus, the probata does not sustain the allegata and the state failed to produce any evidence of the actual ownership of the school property.
Appellant’s conviction for burglary must be, and is, REVERSED and REMANDED for a new trial. Salerno, supra; Mitchell v. State, 317 So. 2d 465 (Fla. 4th DCA 1975). See also, State v. Ward, 354 So. 2d 125 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978).
DOWNEY, C. J., and LETTS, J., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
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Anderson v. State, 504 So. 2d 1270 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986)…dduction of the facts outlined above, Anderson contends that his motion should have been granted as to the burglary charge in that the State failed to prove the allegation of ownership made in the charging information, relying on Covington v. State, 359 So. 2d 563 (Fla. 4th DCA 1978). In Covington, the information alleged that the building was owned by the county, but the proof at trial showed only that it was “run” by the school board. The court found that the proof did not sustain the allegations and revers…
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R. A. v. State, 400 So. 2d 1059 (Fla. 3d DCA 1981)…Park Elementary, where appellant was apprehended, testified that the school was part of the Dade County School System. [*1060] Appellants’s first point on appeal is that the state failed to prove ownership of the building, citing Covington v. State, 359 So. 2d 563 (Fla. 4th DCA 1978). In Covington, the Fourth District held that testimony that a burglarized school was run by the Board of Public Instruction was insufficient to sustain a conviction where the information alleged that the school was owned by India…
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D.S.S. v. State, 850 So. 2d 459 (Fla. 2003)…WELLS, J. We have for review D.S.S. v. State, 806 So. 2d 554 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002), which expressly and directly conflicts with the decision in Covington v. State, 359 So. 2d 563 (Fla. 4th DCA 1978). We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 3(b)(3), Fla. Const. We approve the decision below and disapprove Covington. On the evening of May 6, 2002, D.S.S. and three other juveniles broke into Plant City High School. They committed…1 / 3
Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Roy Smith alias Tom Green v. State, 96 Fla. 30 (Fla. 1928)
- Mitchell v. State, 317 So. 2d 465 (Fla. 4th DCA 1975)
- Kaplan v. State, 347 So. 2d 659 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977)
- State v. Ward, 354 So. 2d 125 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978)