RANDELL HOLMES, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Holmes was convicted of trafficking in cocaine after a traffic stop for improper display of a temporary vehicle tag on the Florida Turnpike. The Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed the conviction, finding the initial stop lawful and the evidence admissible.
The court affirmed Holmes's conviction, finding that the initial stop was lawful, the cash was admissible as corroborating evidence of Holmes's statement regarding the drug transaction, and the officer had authority to conduct the traffic stop as directed by a trooper.
[1] A temporary vehicle tag must be displayed in the same manner as a regular license plate when no specific statutory or administrative rule dictates otherwise.
[2] Cash found on a defendant may be admissible as evidence to corroborate the defendant's statement regarding the source of funds for a drug transaction.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“At that time, a reasonable reading of the law was that a temporary tag had to be displayed in the same manner as a regular license plate.”
Establishes the lawfulness of the initial traffic stop based on improper tag display
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceHolmes was stopped on the Florida Turnpike by officers for improper display of a temporary vehicle tag—no tag was visible on the rear of the vehicle a…
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PER CURIAM.
We affirm appellant’s conviction for trafficking in cocaine in violation of section 893.135(l)(b)l.b, Florida Statutes (1995).
We note that the initial stop of appellant on the Florida Turnpike was for improper display of a temporary vehicle tag. When the officers first saw appellant’s ear, no tag was visible on the rear of the vehicle. Section 320.131, Florida Statutes (1995), authorized temporary tags, but did not describe how they were to be displayed. Previously, Rule 15C-1.005 of the Florida Administrative Code had authorized the taping of a temporary tag to the “rear view window in an upright position.” However, that Rule was repealed as of March 4, 1996. See Fla. Admin.Code R. 15C-1.005 (April, 1996). The date of the arrest was November 20, 1996. At that time, a reasonable reading of the law was that a temporary tag had to be displayed in the same manner as a regular license plate. See §§ 316.221(2), 316.605(1), Fla. Stat. (1995).1 The argument raised in the motion to suppress— that the temporary tag was properly displayed— was not well taken.
We find no error in the admission in evidence of the cash found on appellant at the time of his arrest. Unlike Ferguson v. State, 697 So. 2d 979 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997), which involved the charge of simple possession of 1.6 grams of cocaine, in this case the cash was relevant to corroborate appellant’s statement that he had been given cash by someone in Jacksonville to buy a large amount of cocaine in Miami. See also Ezell v. State, 648 So. 2d 1257 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995).
As to the remaining issue, we observe that Officer Lumpkin’s stop of the vehicle was at the direction of Trooper Coker, who was within his authority to make a stop for a traffic infraction. See Sims v. State, 425 So. 2d 563, 568 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982); Gillis v. State, 634 So. 2d 725, 726 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994).
AFFIRMED.
STONE, C.J., and KLEIN and GROSS, JJ., concur. . Section 320.131(4), Florida Statutes (1997), now allows temporary tags to be displayed in the rear window of a vehicle. This amendment does not apply to this case, since it did not become effective until October 1, 1997. See Ch. 97-300, §§ 13, 54, at 5398, 5421, Laws of Fla.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Sands v. State, 753 So. 2d 630 (Fla. 5th DCA 2000)…of section 316.605, was that a temporary tag had to be displayed in the same manner as a permanent license plate, to wit: illuminated at night, securely fastened in the spot for a permanent license plate, and visible from 100 feet. Holmes v. State, 710 So. 2d 651 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). The stop of Sand’s van took place in May of 1998, over six months after subsection 320.131(4) became effective. The new subsection authorizes the placement of temporary tags “attached to the inside of the rear window in an upri…
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State v. Parrish, 731 So. 2d 101 (Fla. 2d DCA 1999)…As to the traffic stop, the trial court’s ruling that the temporary tag was properly affixed to the rear window was based on law that was no longer controlling at the time the officers stopped Parrish’s truck on June 12, 1997. See Holmes v. State, 710 So. 2d 651 (Fla. 4th DCA), review denied, No. 93,078, 725 So. 2d 1108 (Fla. Sept. 22, 1998). Holmes explains: Section 320.131, Florida Statutes (1995), authorized temporary tags, but did not describe how they were to be displayed. Previously, Rule 15C-1.005 o…
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Mosely v. State, 1 So. 3d 261 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009)…. 2d 531, 532 (Fla. 4th DCA 2007), and Ferguson v. State, 697 So. 2d 979 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997), in which we held that, in possession cases, evidence of money found on the defendant was irrelevant and prejudicial. The state relies on Holmes v. State, 710 So. 2d 651, 652 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998), but in Holmes the defendant was charged with trafficking, which made the cash relevant. Accordingly, as we did in Buitrago and Ferguson, we reverse for a new trial. FARMER and DAMOORGIAN, JJ., concur.…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Ferguson v. State, 697 So. 2d 979 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997)
- Ezell v. State, 648 So. 2d 1257 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995)
- Sims v. State, 425 So. 2d 563 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982)
- Gillis v. State, 634 So. 2d 725 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994)