Mathis v. State, 69746
| Court | United States State Supreme Court of Florida |
| Writing for the Court | BARKETT; McDONALD |
| Citation | 515 So.2d 214,12 Fla. L. Weekly 580 |
| Parties | 12 Fla. L. Weekly 580 Gary Ellis MATHIS, Petitioner, v. STATE of Florida, Respondent. |
| Docket Number | No. 69746,69746 |
| Decision Date | 12 November 1987 |
Page 214
v.
STATE of Florida, Respondent.
Page 215
J. Craig Williams of Williams and Stapp, P.A., Jacksonville, for petitioner.
Robert A. Butterworth, Atty. Gen. and Patricia Conners, Asst. Atty. Gen., Tallahassee, for respondent.
BARKETT, Justice.
We have for review Mathis v. State, 498 So.2d 647 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986), in which the district court certified the following question of great public importance:
DOES A TRIAL COURT'S STATEMENT, MADE AT THE TIME OF DEPARTURE FROM THE SENTENCING GUIDELINES, THAT IT WOULD DEPART FOR ANY ONE OF THE REASONS GIVEN, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER BOTH VALID AND INVALID REASONS ARE FOUND ON REVIEW, SATISFY THE STANDARD SET FORTH IN ALBRITTON v. STATE?
Id. at 649. We have jurisdiction. Art. V, § 3(b)(4), Fla. Const. We quash the decision of the district court with orders to remand to the trial court for resentencing. 1
Mathis robbed three Jacksonville convenience stores between 7:30 and 8:45 p.m. on January 7, 1985, while under the influence of cocaine, heroin, alcohol, and quaaludes. He pleaded guilty to three counts each of armed robbery, aggravated assault, and use of a firearm during commission of a felony. The trial court exceeded the recommended guidelines range of seven to nine years and imposed an eighteen-year sentence. The district court affirmed, finding
Page 216
three of the seven reasons given by the trial court invalid. The remaining reasons, as summarized in the district court opinion, are as follows: (1) The manner in which the crimes were committed constituted a crime binge; (2) Mathis' action constituted the excessive use and threat of force; (3) Two of the victims were female store clerks working alone and at night; (4) Mathis' actions created an unreasonable risk to the safety of others. Mathis, 498 So.2d at 648-49.Petitioner argues that none of the reasons the trial court set forth are "clear and convincing" reasons to depart from the recommended guidelines sentence in this case. We agree. Neither reasons prohibited by the guidelines themselves, nor factors already taken into account in calculating the guidelines score, nor an inherent component of the crime in question can justify departure. State v. Mischler, 488 So.2d 523, 526 (Fla.1986).
The first reason, that the crimes constituted a "crime binge," does not constitute a clear and convincing ground for departure. See State v. Rousseau, 509 So.2d 281 (Fla.1987)....
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Wemett v. State, 74723
...and convincing reason to depart." 492 So.2d at 1309. We resolved analogous situations in similar fashion Page 887 in Mathis v. State, 515 So.2d 214 (Fla.1987), and Lerma v. State, 497 So.2d 736 (Fla.1986), receded from on other grounds, State v. Rousseau, 509 So.2d 281, 284 (Fla.1987). In M......
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...challenge to sentencing Guidelines promulgated by a commission on which the Chief Justice of Minnesota serves); Mathis v. State, 515 So.2d 214 (Fla.1987) (construing sentencing Guidelines promulgated by the Florida Supreme 6. As a practical matter it is desirable for judges to continue to s......
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