State v. Barfield, 5D08-617.
| Decision Date | 05 December 2008 |
| Docket Number | No. 5D08-617.,5D08-617. |
| Citation | 995 So.2d 1138 |
| Parties | STATE of Florida, Appellant, v. Leeroy Wayne BARFIELD, Appellee. |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
Bill McCollum, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Jeffrey R. Casey, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, for Appellant.
James S. Purdy, Public Defender, and Thomas J. Lukashow, Assistant Public Defender, Daytona Beach, for Appellee.
The State appeals the trial court's withholding of adjudication for three third-degree felony charges against Leeroy Barfield. We affirm the withholding of adjudication.
Barfield was arrested at Orlando International Airport for possession of amphetamines, prescription drugs, and drug paraphernalia, and for attempting to destroy the evidence. He was charged with three third-degree felonies. Barfield failed to appear at his arraignment and was arrested several months later in Texas, also for amphetamine possession. Once the Texas case concluded, he returned to Florida and reached a plea agreement with the State. At the plea hearing, Barfield requested a withholding of adjudication on the charges. The State objected, arguing that under Florida law the trial court cannot withhold adjudication on a third-degree felony if the defendant has had adjudication withheld on a prior felony charge. § 775.08435, Fla. Stat. (2008). The State argued that the drug charges in Texas were felony charges, that Barfield received the equivalent of a withholding of adjudication under Texas law, and that withholding adjudication in Florida was therefore improper. The trial court disagreed and granted Barfield's request on the grounds that (1) the prior felony occurred in another state and (2) the State did not produce sufficient evidence of the prior felony. We find it unnecessary to determine whether withholding of adjudication on a felony in another state suffices under section 775.08435 because the State in this case failed to produce evidence of the prior felony or the prior withholding.
Section 948.01(2), Florida Statutes (2008), provides that a trial court can place a defendant on probation without adjudicating the defendant guilty:
If it appears to the court upon a hearing of the matter that the defendant is not likely again to engage in a criminal course of conduct and that the ends of justice and the welfare of society do not require that the defendant presently suffer the penalty imposed by law, the court, in its discretion, may either adjudge the defendant to be guilty or stay and withhold the adjudication of guilt; and, in either case, it shall stay and withhold the imposition of sentence upon such defendant and shall place the defendant upon probation.
(Emphasis added). However, this power is not unlimited. As described above, section 775.08435 provides that adjudication of guilt cannot be withheld on a felony charge if the defendant has received a prior withholding:
(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of s. 948.01, the court may not withhold adjudication of guilt upon the defendant for:
. . . .
(c) A third degree felony offense if the defendant has a prior withholding of adjudication for a felony offense that did not arise from the same transaction as the current felony offense.
(Emphasis added).
In this case, the State alleged (1) a prior withholding of adjudication (2) for a felony in Texas (3) from a different transaction than that supporting the Florida felony charges. However, the State still has the burden of proving that a defendant was previously charged with a felony for which adjudication was withheld. In this case, the trial court withheld adjudication for the Florida felony charges because "[t]here's no indication in writing...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Braine v. State, Case No. 2D17-807
...did not argue or present any evidence that the defendant had prior withholds of adjudication." (emphasis added) ); State v. Barfield, 995 So.2d 1138, 1140 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008) (affirming withhold of adjudication where "the State did not produce any evidence of a prior felony or a prior withh......
-
Alcantara v. State Of Fla.
...court must either require the State to produce corroborating evidence of the offense or not consider the offense. See State v. Barfield, 995 So.2d 1138 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008); Smith v. State, 714 So.2d 1152, 1153 (Fla. 2d DCA 1998). In the present case, the State failed to introduce a certifie......
- Florida Farm Bureau General Ins. v. Jordan
-
State v. Good, 4D09-227.
...if the defendant has a "prior withholding of adjudication for a felony offense." A similar situation occurred in State v. Barfield, 995 So.2d 1138 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008). In Barfield, the State appealed the trial court's decision to withhold adjudication for three third degree felony charges, ......
-
Judgment and sentence
...the court does not err in withholding when the state fails to produce evidence showing that the crime was a felony. State v. Barfield, 995 So. 2d 1138 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008) Attempted 2d degree murder with a firearm is a 1st degree felony with a maximum penalty of 30 years, and the court errs ......