State v. Gaines, 82-1416
| Citation | 431 So.2d 736 |
| Decision Date | 25 May 1983 |
| Docket Number | No. 82-1416,82-1416 |
| Parties | STATE of Florida, Appellant, v. Marie Wolff GAINES, Appellee. |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Florida (US) |
Jim Smith, Atty. Gen., Tallahassee, and Sharon Lee Stedman, Asst. Atty. Gen., West Palm Beach, for appellant.
James I. Cohn, Fort Lauderdale, for appellee.
This is the case of a self-proclaimed "evil stepmother" who entered into serious discussions with other persons, one of whom--unknown to her--was a detective, to effect the maiming of her stepson, but who stopped short of committing the crime of solicitation. Therefore, we affirm the trial court's dismissal of the information but perpetually memorialize her invidious conduct by this opinion.
Section 777.04(2), Florida Statutes (1981), provides:
Whoever solicits another to commit an offense prohibited by law and in the course of such solicitation commands, encourages, hires, or requests another person to engage in specific conduct which would constitute such offense or an attempt to commit such offense commits the offense of criminal solicitation and shall, when no express provision is made by law for the punishment of such solicitation, be punished as provided in subsection (4).
In discussing the crime of solicitation, W.R. LaFave and A.W. Scott, Jr., in Handbook on Criminal Law, section 58, p. 414 state:
For the crime of solicitation to be completed, it is only necessary that the actor, with intent that another person commit a crime, have enticed, advised, incited, ordered or otherwise encouraged that person to commit a crime. The crime solicited need not be committed.
(Emphasis supplied.) The uncontradicted facts of this case establish that appellee reached the threshold of the crime but never crossed it. Her conversations with these other individuals evidenced unrestrained malice and spite. Nevertheless, she saved herself from criminal prosecution--not by saying that the act would take place some months in the future--but by making it plain that she would make her decision at that time whether the "hit man" (in reality the undercover detective) should proceed.
We recognize that intent is normally not an issue to be decided by a motion to dismiss filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.190(c)(4). See State v. J.T.S. and G.R.W., 373 So.2d 418, 419 (Fla. 2d DCA 1979), which held:
Intent is not an issue to be decided on a motion to dismiss under Rule 3.190(c)(4), Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure, since intent is usually inferred from the acts of the parties and the surrounding circumstances; being a state of mind, intent is a question of fact...
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Allen v. State
...crime of solicitation where defendant stated that she would decide at a later date if she wanted the hit man to proceed. State v. Gaines, 431 So.2d 736 (Fla. 4 DCA 1983) (statutory offense).22 In Maryland, the definition of solicitation varies depending on whether the crime is common law so......
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Enoch v. State
...person that a condition of membership is the commission of any crime. To support this argument, Enoch relies on State v. Gaines, 431 So.2d 736 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983). After the State charged the defendant in Gaines with solicitation of another to commit an offense prohibited by law pursuant to......
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Brady v. State, 86-1647
...marked as Exhibits I through 4 and made a part hereof. THE APPLICABLE LAW The defendant would rely on the case of State v. Gaines, 431 So.2d 736 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983) which holds that where a solicitation is conditional, it does not constitute a crime. In Gaines, the defendant, who was charge......
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Jones v. State
...to commit perjury. The charge included all of the elements necessary to establish the offense of solicitation. See State v. Gaines, 431 So.2d 736 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983) (crime of solicitation is completed when the actor with intent that another person commit a crime, has enticed, advised, inci......