P.P. v. State, 84-845
| Decision Date | 26 March 1985 |
| Docket Number | No. 84-845,84-845 |
| Citation | 466 So.2d 1140,10 Fla. L. Weekly 849 |
| Parties | 10 Fla. L. Weekly 849 P.P., a juvenile, Appellant, v. The STATE of Florida, Appellee. |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
Bennett H. Brummer, Public Defender and Beth Weitzner, Asst. Public Defender, for appellant.
Jim Smith, Atty. Gen. and Richard L. Polin and Jean Howard, Asst. Attys. Gen., for appellee.
Before BARKDULL and HUBBART and NESBITT, JJ.
This is an appeal from a juvenile delinquency adjudication, entered below after trial, for the offense of obstructing justice. We reverse based on a finding of insufficient evidence.
The undisputed facts adduced at trial establish that Officer Raphael Masterrer of the City of Miami Police Department stopped a car driven by the juvenile P.P. pursuant to a BOLO. Officer Masterrer arrested the juvenile for operating a motor vehicle without a license and in preparation for filling out the arrest report, inquired as to the juvenile P.P.'s name and birthdate. The juvenile correctly identified himself and stated that his birthdate was in October 1965. As Officer Masterrer was filling out his report, the juvenile P.P. stated, with no prompting from the officer, he then stated that his birthdate was in October 1964. While the officer was still talking to the juvenile P.P. and before he had completed his report, the juvenile P.P. stated that his birthdate was October 15, 1966. This latter date was, in fact, the correct birthdate of the juvenile P.P. Officer Masterrer put this correct date of birth in his arrest report and thereafter transported the juvenile P.P. to Youth Hall.
At the conclusion of the trial below, the juvenile P.P., through counsel, moved for a judgment of non-delinquency on the ground that the evidence failed to establish a prima facie case of obstruction of justice in that the juvenile had, in fact, voluntarily corrected any prior false birthdates given to the officer. The motion was denied and the juvenile P.P. was found delinquent as charged. This appeal follows.
The juvenile P.P. was charged with violating Section 21-26(A)(3)(a), Code of Metropolitan Dade County [made a misdemeanor by § 125.69, Fla.Stat. (1983) ], which provides as follows:
"Firemen, policemen, service, execution of process; court order; hindering, obstructing justice.
(A) Prohibitions.
....
(3) It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly obstruct justice. A person obstructs justice when, with intent to prohibit the apprehension or obstruct the prosecution or defense of any person, the person knowingly commits any of the following actions:
(a) Destroys, alters, conceals or disguises physical evidence, plants false evidence, or furnishes false...
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Barr v. State
...(court refused to extend recantation, a statutory defense to perjury, to the offense of obstructing justice). But cf. P.P. v. State, 466 So.2d 1140 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985) (extending defense of recantation to offense of obstructing justice by giving false information, finding that the underlying......
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A.A.R. v. State, 4D05-515.
...defense for obstruction and perjury charges applies equally to the current "false name" statute. As explained in P.P. v. State, 466 So.2d 1140, 1141 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985): Just as in perjury prosecutions where a defendant may recant his intentionally false testimony prior to the final submissi......
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L.J. v. State, 3D07-1494.
...to correct, without fear of prosecution, their prior falsehoods before they have done any harm." Id. at 466 (quoting P.P. v. State, 466 So.2d 1140, 1141 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985)). Moreover, "[t]he extent of the delay correlates to the amount of harm done, if any." A.A.R., 926 So.2d at 466. The Fo......
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L.T. v. State
...and before he was arrested, no “harm” was incurred by L.T. not recanting until shortly after he was arrested. See P.P. v. State, 466 So.2d 1140, 1141 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985) (“The undisputed evidence shows that the juvenile, in fact, gave his correct birthdate to Officer Masterrer who, in turn, ......