IGNACIO BEATO
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA

Fla. 5th DCA | 2020-03-13
No. 19-1399
Lauten, J., Grosshans, J., Sasso, J., Traver, J.
Florida District Court of Appeal, Fifth District (2020)

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Holding

Once an appearance bond is discharged, the circuit court has no legal authority to retain a passport that was surrendered as a condition of the bond, and the defendant is entitled to its return.


Headnotes

[1] A circuit court loses legal authority to retain property surrendered as a condition of an appearance bond once the bond is discharged, and the defendant is entitled to re…

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Facts & Procedural History

Ignacio Beato surrendered his United States passport to the Orange County Clerk of Court as a condition of an appearance bail bond on a fugitive warra…

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Opinion of the Court
Traver

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA

FIFTH DISTRICT

NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO

FILE MOTION FOR REHEARING AND

DISPOSITION THEREOF IF FILED

IGNACIO BEATO,

Appellant,

v. Case No. 5D19-1399

STATE OF FLORIDA,

Appellee.

________________________________/

Opinion filed March 13, 2020

Nonfinal Appeal from the Circuit Court for Orange County, Frederick J. Lauten, Judge.

Robert Wesley, Public Defender, and Robert Thompson Adams IV, Assistant Public Defender, Orlando, for Appellant.

Ashley Moody, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Marjorie Vincent-Tripp, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, for Appellee.

PER CURIAM.

Ignacio Beato surrendered his United States passport to the Orange County Clerk of Court as a condition of an appearance bail bond on a fugitive warrant from Pennsylvania. § 941.16, Fla. Stat. (2015). He appeals the circuit court’s summary denial

REVERSED.

GROSSHANS, SASSO and TRAVER, JJ., concur.

1 Contrary to Beato’s assertions, the surrender of a United States passport to the court clerk as an appearance bond condition is not analogous to the return of property seized by law enforcement or the disposition of tangible personal property lawfully seized in an investigation. See § 705.105, Fla. Stat. (2019); Scott v. State, 922 So. 2d 1024, 1026 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006); 22 C.F.R. § 51.7(b) (2019).

Footnotes
2 of his motion for its return. We have jurisdiction over this nonfinal order. Fla. R. App. P. 9.130(a)(3)(C)(ii). The bond was discharged on March 3, 2016. Because the circuit court had no legal authority to hold the passport after the discharge of the appearance bond, Beato is entitled to the return of his passport in this case.1 See Chippas v. Midland Ins. Co., 456 So. 2d 495, 496 (Fla. 3d DCA 1984); Gustafson v. State, 251 So. 2d 689, 690 (Fla. 4th DCA 1971) (finding defendant was entitled to return of full amount of bail money after discharge of bond).

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