Jones v. State

• Decision Date: 05 March 2010
• Docket Number: No. 2D09-1715.,2D09-1715.
• Citation: 28 So.3d 981
• Parties: Alexander JONES, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
• Court: Florida District Court of Appeals

28 So.3d 981

Alexander JONES, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.

No. 2D09-1715.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District.

March 5, 2010.

James Marion Moorman, Public Defender, and Richard J. Sanders, Assistant Public Defender, Bartow, for Appellant.

Bill McCollum, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Elba C. Martin-Schomaker, Assistant Attorney General, Tampa, for Appellee.

ALTENBERND, Judge.

Alexander Jones appeals his judgments and sentences. We affirm the judgments but remand for resentencing. The trial court's attempt at a streamlined procedure to resolve a scoresheet dispute was well-intended, but unfortunately it failed in its implementation.

Mr. Jones was charged with possession of cocaine, one count of obstructing an officer with violence, and two counts of battery on a law enforcement officer for events that occurred in April 2008. He entered a written negotiated plea in March 2009. Although the written plea indicates that he agreed to a sentence of 36.45 months' imprisonment, from the record it is undisputed that he was actually agreeing to a sentence at the bottom of the guidelines.

Mr. Jones's scoresheet included eighteen points for two prior convictions for aggravated assault. These convictions were based on information received from Palm Beach County. When Mr. Jones appeared for the plea hearing on March 16, 2009, he objected to the scoresheet, claiming that he had only one prior conviction for aggravated assault emanating from Palm Beach County. This discrepancy would remove nine points from the scoresheet. Obviously, Mr. Jones has a common name.

The trial court immediately turned to the State and correctly required that it prove the second aggravated assault conviction by obtaining a certified copy of the conviction. The court finished the plea colloquy, but it delayed sentencing to allow the State to attempt to obtain a certified copy of the conviction.

The case returned to court on March 19, 2009. The State had been unable to obtain records from Palm Beach County, and the court continued the hearing until March 30. On that day, the State still had not received the records. Accordingly, the court informed the State that it had sixty days to get the records. The court explained that it intended to sentence Mr. Jones to the bottom of the guidelines as it appeared on the existing scoresheet, but if the State did not obtain the certified copy of the judgment, the court was going to "mitigate the sentence" to a sentence equal to the bottom of the guidelines on a scoresheet with a nine point reduction. The court proceeded with sentencing, concluding with the statement: "The State has 60 days from today's date to prove that there is, in fact, two as opposed to one. If not, I will mitigate the sentence based upon your motion, which would be timely filed. Does he waive his appearance here for a reduction?"

Although Mr....