JESUS RODRIGUEZ, A/K/A JESUS MUNOS, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
The court held that the trial court erred in imposing costs without notice and in sentencing the appellant to 25 years for a third-degree felony, but correctly imposed the mandatory minimum sentence for armed robbery.
[1] A trial court cannot impose costs without notice and an opportunity to be heard.
[2] A sentence for grand theft exceeding the statutory maximum for a third-degree felony is erroneous.
Previewing 2 of 3 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe appellant pled nolo contendere to charges including armed robbery and grand theft. The trial court imposed costs without notice and sentenced the …
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Imposition Of Costs cases and more on FLexlaw
HARRIS, Judge.
On October 18, 1989, Ronald and Amy Fasset returned home and found two Hispanic males, Jesus Rodriguez a/k/a Jesus Munos and a companion, holding guns leaving their house. The two men took the Fassets into the house, demanded money, and threatened to kill them. The victims were beaten and their car was stolen. The Fassets identified appellant and Vincente Silva from a photographic lineup.
The State charged appellant with armed robbery, armed burglary, grand theft, and kidnapping. Appellant pled nolo conten-dere as charged in exchange for a mid-range guidelines sentence. The trial court sentenced appellant to incarceration for 25 years on all four counts with a three year mandatory minimum on the armed robbery. Appellant appealed claiming that the trial court erred in imposing costs without notice, in sentencing him to 25 years on a third degree felony, and in sentencing him to a mandatory minimum on the armed robbery count.
A trial court cannot impose costs without notice and an opportunity to be heard. Harriel v. State, 520 So. 2d 271 (Fla.1988); Camp v. State, 536 So. 2d 369 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988). The trial court did not mention costs at the plea hearing, and there is no notice in the record. The assessment of costs must be reversed.
Grand theft is a third degree felony punishable by a maximum of five years. § 775.082, Fla.Stat. (1989). The judgment and sentence reflect a term of 25 years on this count. This was error and a new sentence is required.
Although appellant told the trial judge that only the codefendant was armed, he pled to armed robbery as a part of a negotiated plea to minimize his overall sentence. He specifically pled “as charged” to an information alleging that he was armed, and never moved to withdraw his plea. The court correctly assessed the minimum mandatory sentence.
AFFIRMED in part; REVERSED in part and remanded for resentencing on grand theft and reconsideration of the imposition of costs.
DAUKSCH and COBB, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Harriel v. State, 520 So. 2d 271 (Fla. 1988)
- Camp v. State, 536 So. 2d 369 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988)