Broughton v. State, BO-201
| Citation | 13 Fla. L. Weekly 1679,528 So.2d 1241 |
| Decision Date | 19 July 1988 |
| Docket Number | No. BO-201,BO-201 |
| Parties | 13 Fla. L. Weekly 1679 Dennis Lamar BROUGHTON, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee. |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Florida (US) |
Pursuant to appellant's motion for rehearing and notice of supplemental authority citing Stemm v. State, 523 So.2d 760 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988), our original opinion is withdrawn and the following is substituted.
This cause is before us on appeal from an order convicting appellant of possession of burglary tools, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony. We reverse as to all three convictions.
Appellant has raised three issues: (1) whether the trial court erred in not granting appellant's motion for judgment of acquittal for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony, in that the State failed to demonstrate appellant had knowledge of a firearm; (2) whether the trial court erred in not directing a verdict of acquittal on the charge of possession of burglary tools and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon on the State's theory that appellant was a principal to the crimes; and (3) whether the trial court erred in denying appellant's motion for judgment of acquittal for possession of burglary tools for the State's failure to show that common household items were being used to break into a structure.
Around 10:00 p.m. on February 4, 1986, Police Officer Betz observed appellant and codefendant drive a vehicle behind several commercial buildings. Because the businesses were closed and Officer Betz had worked burglaries in the area, he decided to investigate.
Officer Betz pulled in the driveway, blocked the exit, called for backup officers, turned on his vehicle spotlight, and ordered the occupants out of the car. During this time, his spotlight failed. The individuals in the car did not exit immediately. Instead, Officer Betz observed a lot of movement in the front seat. He stated there were Approximately 30 to 35 seconds later, appellant came out of the car; then the passenger exited.
Officer Warren arrived as a backup. The original purpose of the stop was to make a field interrogation of suspicious behavior. As Officer Betz approached the driver's side, he observed items he characterized as "burglary tools" and "armed robbery tools."
Officer Betz found in the car a pair of bolt cutters, two pair of gloves, a green ski mask, a flashlight, and a green jacket. As he walked around the car, he noticed the passenger door slightly ajar, and underneath the car he found a fully loaded .45 firearm. Officer Betz testified the firearm was brand new, had no scratches on it, and had no humidity built up even though the day had been a humid one. Officer Betz had driven his patrol car (backwards and forwards) over the area where the gun had been found, and he had not seen or run over the weapon before he stopped appellant. Officer Betz concluded that, because of the movement observed when he first stopped the individuals and his finding of the door ajar, the weapon had been slid out and placed under the car although he never saw who did it. Officer Betz then requested Officer Warren to put the suspects on the ground, and subsequently an arrest ensued.
Officer Betz testified that the driver of the vehicle in question (appellant) had not disobeyed any...
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Green v. State, 90-1996
...with other objects when describing the defendant's possession of burglary tools. See 33 ALR 3d 798, Sec. 14[a]. In Broughton v. State, 528 So.2d 1241 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988), this court reversed the conviction for the possession of burglary tools because it was not shown that the defendant was ......
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Williams v. State, BS-312
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