Martin v. State

• Decision Date: 04 May 2018
• Docket Number: Case No. 2D16–4468
• Citation: 313 So.3d 658
• Parties: Tymothy Ray MARTIN, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
• Court: Florida District Court of Appeals

313 So.3d 658

Tymothy Ray MARTIN, Appellant,

v.STATE of Florida, Appellee.

Case No. 2D16–4468

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District.

Opinion filed May 4, 2018

Howard L. Dimmig, II, Public Defender and Kevin Briggs, Assistant Public Defender, Bartow, for Appellant.

Pamela Jo Bondi, Attorney General, Tallahassee and Jonathan A. Hurley, Assistant Attorney General, Tampa, for Appellee.

LUCAS, Judge.

Tymothy Martin appeals his judgment and sentence for one count of felony battery. Mr. Martin raises several issues on appeal. Because we hold that section 776.032, Florida Statutes (2016), applies retroactively to his case, we reverse and remand for the circuit court to convene a new "Stand Your Ground" hearing under the statute as amended. Mr. Martin's remaining issues are without merit.

I.

One evening in February of 2016, Mr. Martin and his girlfriend, Kathryn Lawson, went out for a night on the town that ended in an altercation in a McDonald's parking lot over who should drive to their next destination. According to Ms. Lawson, Mr. Martin punched her twice in the face after she refused to get into the vehicle. According to Mr. Martin, it was he who refused to get in the car, which prompted Ms. Lawson to threaten him with a firearm; he attempted to disarm her, and in the ensuing scuffle, elbowed her in the face (and, at some point, somehow got himself shot in the arm).

The State charged Mr. Martin with one count of felony battery causing great bodily harm, permanent disability, or permanent disfigurement under section 784.041(1), Florida Statutes (2016). Mr. Martin filed a motion to establish immunity under section 776.032. The trial court held a hearing on the motion and ultimately denied it, ruling that "[a]fter hearing the testimony of the witnesses, the review of the evidence that has been offered as exhibits, the court finds that the defense has not met their burden and I'll deny the motion." (Emphasis added.) Mr. Martin's case proceeded to a jury trial, and he was convicted as charged.

Mr. Martin filed the present appeal, but while this appeal was pending, the Florida Legislature amended section 776.032 to modify which party bears the burden of proof in a self-defense immunity hearing. See ch. 2017–72, § 1, at 898–99, Laws of Fla. (2017).¹ The Florida Legislature's amendment to section 776.032 added the following provision:

(4) In a criminal prosecution, once a prima facie claim of self-defense immunity from criminal prosecution has been raised by the defendant at a pretrial immunity hearing, the burden of proof by clear and convincing evidence is on the party seeking to overcome the immunity from criminal prosecution provided in subsection (1).

Thus, as it now stands, the State bears the burden of disproving, by clear and convincing evidence, a facially sufficient claim of self-defense immunity in a criminal prosecution. On appeal, Mr. Martin argues that this amendment is retroactive in its application, that it applies to his case, and that he is entitled to a new immunity hearing. We agree.

II.

A.

We begin with some basic postulates about the application of statutory amendments. Statutory amendments may take one of three forms: substantive, which are usually applied prospectively, or procedural or remedial, either of which may apply retroactively to pending proceedings. See Orlando v. Desjardins, 493 So.2d 1027, 1028 (Fla. 1986). Whether a statutory amendment is characterized as substantive versus procedural in nature becomes a critical determination for purposes of an amendment's temporal application.² See R.A.M. of S. Fla., Inc. v. WCI Cmtys., Inc., 869 So.2d 1210, 1216 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004) (describing rule of statutory construction "which establishes a presumption against the retroactive application of substantive law—as distinct from procedural or remedial law—in the absence of a clear expression of legislative intent that the statute be given retroactive effect"); Merrill Lynch Tr. Co. v. Alzheimer's Lifeliners Ass'n, 832 So.2d 948, 952 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002) ("It is well-settled that statutory provisions that are substantive in nature may not be applied retroactively, while procedural provisions may be applied retroactively."); Webb v. Webb, 765 So.2d 220, 221 (Fla. 2d DCA 2000) ("The general rule [of statutory construction] is that a substantive statute will not operate retrospectively absent clear legislative intent to the contrary, but that a procedural or remedial statute is to operate retrospectively." (alteration in original) (quoting State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Laforet, 658 So.2d 55, 61 (Fla. 1995) ) ); Basel v. McFarland & Sons, Inc., 815 So.2d 687, 692 (Fla. 5th DCA 2002) ("In the absence of clear legislative intent, a law affecting substantive rights is presumed to apply prospectively only while procedural or remedial statutes are presumed to operate retrospectively." (citing Young v. Altenhaus, 472 So.2d 1152 (Fla. 1985) ) ). Broadly speaking, substantive law is that which "prescribes duties and rights," while "procedural law concerns the means and methods to apply and enforce those duties and rights." Alamo Rent–A–Car, Inc. v. Mancusi, 632 So.2d 1352, 1358 (Fla. 1994). Amendments are procedural in nature if they "do not create new or take away vested rights, but only operate in furtherance of the remedy or confirmation of rights already existing." Smiley v. State, 966 So.2d 330, 334 (Fla. 2007) (quoting City of Lakeland v. Catinella, 129 So.2d 133, 136 (Fla. 1961) ). In the context of criminal cases specifically, "substantive law is that which declares what acts are crimes and prescribes the punishment therefor, while procedural law is that which provides or regulates the steps by which one who violates a criminal statute is punished." State v. Garcia, 229 So.2d 236, 238 (Fla. 1969). Discerning the precise contours between these distinctions can occasionally pose a challenge. Cf. Hanna v. Plumer, 380 U.S. 460, 471, 85 S.Ct. 1136, 14 L.Ed.2d 8 (1965) ("The line between ‘substance’ and ‘procedure’ shifts as the legal context changes."). But this amendment does not appear to be one of those occasions.

In Florida, statutory changes to the burden of proof—the change at issue here—are invariably deemed procedural in nature for purposes of retroactive application.³ See, e.g., Shaps v. Provident Life & Acc. Ins. Co., 826 So.2d 250, 254 (Fla. 2002) ("[G]enerally in Florida the burden of proof is a procedural issue."); Walker & LaBerge, Inc. v. Halligan, 344 So.2d 239, 243 (Fla. 1977) ("Burden of proof requirements are procedural in nature.... [and] could be abrogated retroactively because ‘no one has a vested right in any given mode of procedure.’ " (citations omitted) (quoting Ex parte Collett, 337 U.S. 55, 71, 69 S.Ct. 944, 93 L.Ed. 1207 (1949) ) ); Kenz v. Miami–Dade County, 116 So.3d 461, 464 (Fla. 3d DCA 2013) ("Indeed, under Florida case law, issues relating to a party's burden of proof are generally procedural matters."); see also Ziccardi v. Strother, 570 So.2d 1319, 1321 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990) (determining that reenactment of civil RICO statute, which altered the burden of proof and removed punitive damages as an element of compensation, could be applied retroactively; "[u]nder these circumstances, we do not agree ... that modification of the burden of proof in this statute amounted to a substantive change in the law").⁴ In light of Florida's precedents on this point, we need not belabor the analysis. Subsection (4) now ascribes to the State what had, under common law precedent, been the defendant's burden of proof. That is not a substantive change. Neither the substantive rights of a successful claim of immunity nor the necessary elements of proof to establish a claim of immunity were altered by the June 9, 2017, amendment. Cf. Metro. Dade County v. Chase Fed. Hous. Corp., 737 So.2d 494, 499 (Fla. 1999) ("A retroactive statute is one which gives to preenactment conduct a different legal effect from that which it would have had without the passage of the statute." (quoting Charles B. Hochman, The Supreme Court and the Constitutionality of Retroactive Legislation, 73 Harv. L. Rev. 692, 692 (1960) ) ). As such, under Florida law, it is a procedural amendment that the legislature wrought, one which can be applied retrospectively.⁵

We must next determine whether Mr. Martin's case was "pending" at the time of the June 9, 2017, amendment. Our court has observed that "procedural or remedial changes [to statutes] may be immediately applied to pending cases, including in some instances cases pending on direct appeal." Heilmann v. State, 310 So.2d 376, 377 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975) (footnote omitted); see also Rothermel v. Fla. Parole & Prob. Comm'n, 441 So.2d 663, 665 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983) ("Although we have found no Florida case squarely on point with respect to the applicability of the principles of law enunciated above to cases pending on appeal, it appears that the prevailing rule is that cases pending on appeal and not yet determined are affected by legislative acts which pertain only to remedy or procedure."); Turner v. United States, 410 F.2d 837, 842 (5th Cir. 1969) ("[C]hanges in statute law relating only to procedure or remedy are usually held immediately applicable to pending cases, including those on appeal from a lower court."); Bowles v. Strickland, 151 F.2d 419, 420 (5th Cir. 1945) ("A suit in process of appeal ... is a pending suit."). So, too, we conclude that Mr. Martin's case was still pending when the legislature amended section 776.032 by virtue of his appeal pending before this court.

Adhering to stare decisis, we must hold that the June 9, 2017, amendment to section 776.032 changing the burden of proof was procedural in nature. Because his appeal remained pending before us at the time the amendment took effect, the amendment should be applied to Mr. Martin's case. How to now apply it is the only issue left to decide. We address the scope of remand below.

B.

"Where the burden of...