JESSE STONE
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA

Fla. 5th DCA | 2026-01-02
No. 2025-0659
Herndon, J., Soud, J., Jay, C.J., Edwards, J.
2026 FL 58 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fifth District (2026)

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Holding

A trial court retains concurrent jurisdiction under Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.600(a) to correct clerical mistakes in judgments before the appellate record is docketed, and may correct scrivener's errors deviating from the pronounced sentence under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a) at any time during the pendency of a direct appeal.

Headnotes

[1] A trial court retains concurrent jurisdiction under Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.600(a) to correct clerical mistakes in judgments, decrees, or other parts of the…

[2] A scrivener's error in a written judgment and sentence that deviates from the oral pronouncement of sentence constitutes an illegal sentence subject to correction under F…

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Key Quotes

“a written sentence that conflicts with the oral pronouncement of sentence imposed in open court is an illegal sentence”

Explaining that scrivener's errors in judgments deviating from the pronounced sentence constitute illegal sentences subject to correction
Facts & Procedural History

Jesse Stone was convicted of sexual battery and burglary of a dwelling with an assault or battery. He appealed his judgment and sentence.…

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Topics
Burglary Of A Dwelling With An Assault Or Battery Florida Rule Of Criminal Procedure 3.800(A) Motion To Correct Illegal Sentence Burglary Of A Dwelling Assault And Battery

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Opinion of the Court
Jay

FIFTH DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL

STATE OF FLORIDA

_____________________________ Case No. 5D2025-0659 LT Case No. 2024-CF-002678-A _____________________________ JESSE STONE, Appellant, v. STATE OF FLORIDA, Appellee. _____________________________ On appeal from the Circuit Court for Marion County. Lisa D. Herndon, Judge. Matthew J. Metz, Public Defender, and Joseph Chloupek, Assistant Public Defender, Daytona Beach, for Appellant. James Uthmeier, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Tabitha Mills, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, for Appellee. January2, 2026

SOUD, J.

In this Anders1 case, Appellant Jesse Stone appeals his judgment and sentence on the charges of sexual battery and 1 See Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967).

2 See Meintzer v. State, 943 So. 2d 966, 967 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006). 3 See Williams v. State, 957 So. 2d 600, 603 (Fla. 2007) (“In effect, . . . we have determined that a written sentence that conflicts with the oral pronouncement of sentence imposed in open court is an illegal sentence.”). 4 Rule 3.800(a) expressly authorizes “a party” to file a motion to correct the illegal sentence, which encompasses both the State and a defendant. See also Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.800(b). And even in the absence of such a motion, the trial court retains “the inherent authority to sua sponte correct” a scrivener’s error in its judgment and sentence. See Spear v. State, 341 So. 3d 1106, 1111 (Fla. 2022). The trial court’s authority in this regard is cabined “with[in] rule-

AFFIRMED.

It is so ordered.

JAY, C.J., and EDWARDS, J., concur.

Footnotes
2 burglary of a dwelling with an assault or battery. We have jurisdiction. See Art. V, § 4(b)(1), Fla. Const.; Fla. R. App. P. 9.030(b)(1)(A). We affirm without further comment Stone’s judgment and sentence. We write to emphasize that, while generally a defendant’s filing of a notice of appeal divests the lower court of jurisdiction to further act in a case,2 “before the record [on appeal] is docketed” a trial court continues to have concurrent jurisdiction under Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.600(a) to correct sua sponte or upon motion “clerical mistakes in judgments, decrees, or other parts of the record arising from oversight or omission.” See Fla. R. App. P. 9.600(a); see also Luhrs v. State, 394 So. 2d 137, 139 (Fla. 5th DCA 1981) (“Prior to the time the record on appeal is transmitted, the lower tribunal has concurrent jurisdiction with the appellate court to render orders on any procedural matter relating to the cause.”); Escobar v. State, 189 So. 3d 1029, 1031–32 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016). Further, since a scrivener’s error in a judgment and sentence deviating from the pronounced sentence constitutes an illegal sentence,3 the error may be corrected under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a). And as the rule plainly provides, the trial court may do so “at any time,” except for the time provided by Rule 3.800(b) or otherwise during the pendency of a direct appeal.4
3 Finally, given the recurrence of scrivener’s errors in judgment and sentences making their way to this Court in Anders cases, we also strongly caution both prosecutors and defense counsel alike that it is their responsibility, in addition to that of the trial court, to review written judgment and sentences in a timely manner to ensure that a written judgment is in accord with the sentence as pronounced by the trial court. And in the instance a trial clerk prepares and the trial judge signs a written judgment containing a scrivener’s error (despite their good and hard work), it is incumbent upon counsel, and especially the prosecutor, to bring the error to the trial court’s attention via motion so that it may be corrected below.

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