D.R.B., JR., A CHILD, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Fla. 1st DCA | 2004-06-29
No. 1D03-4557
Booth, J., Webster, J., Davis, J.
876 So. 2d 700 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (2004) Positive Treatment
Cited by 14 cases

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Synopsis

The court reversed a trial court's departure from the Department of Juvenile Justice's commitment recommendation because the trial court failed to adequately explain its reasoning with reference to the child's needs or the Department's factors.


Holding

A trial court departing from the Department's commitment recommendation must support its decision with competent, substantial evidence and explain how its reasoning differs from the Department's analysis.


Headnotes

[1] A trial court departing from the Department of Juvenile Justice's commitment recommendation for reasons not considered by the Department must support its decision with co…

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Facts & Procedural History

D.R.B., Jr., a child, was adjudicated delinquent and the trial court imposed a commitment to the Department of Juvenile Justice that departed from the…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

D.R.B., Jr., a child, appeals from his adjudication of delinquency and commitment to the Department of Juvenile Justice. Because the trial court erred in departing from the Department’s commitment recommendation, we reverse.

A trial court’s decision to depart from the Department’s commitment recommendation for reasons not considered by the Department must be supported by competent, substantial record evidence, and the trial court’s reasons* must reference the characteristics' of the restrictiveness level in relation to the needs of the child. A.C.N. v. State, 727 So. 2d 368, 370 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999). Where the trial court’s departure is based on evidence or factors considered by the Department, the trial court must explain why such evidence led the court to reach a different conclusion than the Department. E.S.B. v. State, 822 So. 2d 579, 581 (Fla. 1st DCA 2002). In this case, reversal is warranted because the trial court failed to refer to the needs of the child or explain why factors considered by the Department led the trial court to a different conclusion.

Accordingly, we affirm the adjudication of delinquency, but reverse the trial court’s disposition and remand the cause for further proceedings consistent herewith.

AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, and REMANDED.

BOOTH, WEBSTER and DAVIS, JJ., concur.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • N.B. v. State, 911 So. 2d 833 (Fla. 1st DCA 2005)
    …ential facility rather than on probation. “[Rjeversal is warranted because the trial court failed to refer to the needs of the child or explain why factors considered by the Department led the trial court to a different conclusion.” D.R.B. v. State, 876 So. 2d 700, 700-01 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004). See also S.C. v. State, 877 So. 2d 850, 851 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004); E.S.B., 822 So. 2d at 581; S.L.K v. State, 776 So. 2d 1062, 1063-64 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001); A.G. v. State, 737 So. 2d 1244, 1247-48 (Fla. 5th DCA 1999); A.C.N…
  • J.L.K. v. State, 894 So. 2d 984 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004)
    …omply with the dictates of A.C.N. v. State, 727 So. 2d 368, 370 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999), because the trial court failed to reference the characteristics of the restrictiveness levels in relation to the needs of the child. See also D.R.B., Jr., v. State, 876 So. 2d 700 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004); S.C. v. State, 877 So. 2d 850 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004). In C.C.B. the court gave the following reasons for departure: The trial court, in departing from the DJJ’s recommendation, stated that “these particular types of offenses,” or…
  • C.J. v. State, 923 So. 2d 553 (Fla. 1st DCA 2006)
    …rt erred because it failed to refer to the needs of the child or explain why its consideration of the evidence led to a different conclusion than that recommended by the Department. S.C. v. State, 877 So. 2d 850 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004); D.R.B. v. State, 876 So. 2d 700 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004). The trial court’s reasons for disagreement were a restatement of facts already known to the Department without an explanation of the reasons for coming to a different conclusion. The State argues that the trial court found tha…

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