Puckett v. Gentry
| Decision Date | 14 March 1991 |
| Docket Number | No. 90-2322,90-2322 |
| Citation | 16 Fla. L. Weekly 719,577 So.2d 965 |
| Parties | 16 Fla. L. Weekly 719 Jesse O. PUCKETT, Petitioner, v. Richard E. GENTRY, Respondent. |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
Jesse O. Puckett, Cross City, petitioner, pro se.
Richard E. Gentry, St. Augustine, respondent, pro se.
The petitioner, Jesse O. Puckett, seeks a writ of mandamus from this court directed to Attorney Richard E. Gentry, who represented him at trial and on appeal in a case wherein Puckett was convicted of murder. Puckett asks that Gentry be compelled to furnish him with "Pre-Trial and Trial Transcript [sic] which have been transcribed via funds from Petitioner" now that the direct appeal has been affirmed. He alleges that, despite repeated requests, Gentry refuses to furnish him these transcripts.
According to the petition, Puckett retained Gentry to represent him at trial and paid him $15,000.00 to do so. He allegedly was told by Gentry that $1,500.00 of this amount was applied to payment for the trial transcript. Subsequent to sentence, Puckett was declared indigent for appellate purposes. He further alleges that Gentry, at the latter's request, was appointed to represent him on appeal "as a court appointed special public defender," and did so. He relies on the case of Dennis v. Brummer, 479 So.2d 857 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985), wherein our sister court ordered a public defender to furnish court transcripts and documents to the client after termination of the case in chief.
Gentry, on the other hand, responds that he is not an official or employee of the State of Florida, has not been paid any attorney fees for the appeal as alleged by petitioner, and has declined to furnish the requested transcripts because his bills and statements to Puckett have been ignored and he would not be reimbursed even costs of copying and shipping a 24-inch thick file to Puckett.
The record reveals no order appointing Gentry as "special public defender" as alleged by Puckett. Rather, at the conclusion of sentencing, the following exchange occurred between the trial court and Attorney Gentry:
THE COURT: ... If you desire to file an appeal, you must file it within a period of 30 days, otherwise, you waive your right to appeal. All right. Okay.
He is adjudicated to be insolvent based upon the affidavit and the Public Defender's Office is appointed to represent him on the appeal.
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Bd. of Cnty. Comm'rs Broward Cnty. Fla. v. Parrish
...ministerial duty required by law.” Poole v. City of Port Orange, 33 So.3d 739, 741 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010) (citing Puckett v. Gentry, 577 So.2d 965, 967 (Fla. 5th DCA 1991) ). “ ‘To be entitled to mandamus relief, the petitioner must have a clear legal right to the requested relief, the respond......
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Seigler v. Bell
...ministerial duty required by law.” Poole v. City of Port Orange, 33 So.3d 739, 741 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010) (citing Puckett v. Gentry, 577 So.2d 965, 967 (Fla. 5th DCA 1991) ). “To state a cause of action for mandamus, a party must allege a clear legal right to performance of the act requested, ......
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Bd. of Cnty. Comm'rs Broward Cnty. Fla. v. Parrish
...ministerial duty required by law." Poole v. City of Port Orange, 33 So. 3d 739, 741 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010) (citing Puckett v. Gentry, 577 So. 2d 965, 967 (Fla. 5th DCA 1991)). "To be entitled to mandamus relief, the petitioner must have a clear legal right to the requested relief, theresponden......
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Smith v. State, s. 96-00365
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