Harmless Error Doctrine

1,384 Florida cases classified under this topic, plus 1,569 listed through its narrower topics · sorted by citation count · see the citation graph · browse and sort

• Baker v. McNeil
  711 F. Supp. 2d 1313· N.D. Fla.· 2010-03-31 ·via Harmless Error Review
  The court held that the exclusion of evidence regarding the complaining witness's prior false accusations of sexual misconduct violated the Confrontation Clause and was not harmless error.
• NEW White Linen, Inc. v. Commercial Laundry Equip. Co., Inc.
  21 So. 3d 855· Fla. 4th DCA· 2009-10-07
  Florida appellate court reversed an attorney's fees award because the trial court failed to make specific findings regarding time expended, hourly rate, and other relevant factors, requiring remand for proper findings or a new hearing.
• Foster v. State
  10 So. 3d 715· Fla. 2d DCA· 2009-06-19
  Florida appellate court affirmed convictions for aggravated battery, attempted murder, and cocaine possession, holding that instructing the jury in the deliberation room without the defendant present, though procedurally problematic, constituted harmless error.
• Abel Hernandez v. State
  11 So. 3d 449· Fla. 3d DCA· 2009-06-03 ·via Harmless Error Standard
• Vadhani Williams v. State
  1 So. 3d 335· Fla. 5th DCA· 2009-01-23 ·via Harmless Error Standard
  Vadhani Williams appealed his convictions for attempted second-degree murder and aggravated assault with a firearm, arguing the trial court erroneously prohibited cross-examination of the victim regarding a pending battery charge. The appellate court agreed the trial court erred
• Marrs v. Marrs
  988 So. 2d 137· Fla. 1st DCA· 2008-07-30
  Florida appellate court reversed a post-dissolution order determining alimony and property distribution due to unreasonable delay in rendering the order and the trial court's failure to address five specific financial accounts before it for distribution.
• Butler v. State
  972 So. 2d 1089· Fla. 5th DCA· 2008-01-25 ·via Harmless Error Standard
  The court held that the trial court did not err in denying motions to suppress the defendant's confession and the child victim's hearsay statements.
• Moore v. State
  994 So. 2d 1127· Fla. 3d DCA· 2008-01-02
  The court held that the trial court did not err in denying the admission of the victim's prior convictions, in its handling of the State's closing argument, or in the imposition of the sentence.
• United States v. Alvarez
  506 F. Supp. 2d 1285· S.D. Fla.· 2007-08-31 ·via Harmless Error Analysis In Sentencing
  The court held that defendants' appeals are frivolous due to their waivers and that 28 U.S.C. § 1915 is constitutional as it does not grant a right to appointed counsel for frivolous appeals.
• Bodie v. State
  959 So. 2d 1216· Fla. 3d DCA· 2007-06-20 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  Jason Jerrod Bodie appeals his convictions for three counts of attempted murder and unlawful firearm possession, arguing a new trial is warranted due to missing portions of the trial transcript. Although the State's thirty-minute closing argument could not be reconstructed, the a
• A.P. v. State
  958 So. 2d 519· Fla. 2d DCA· 2007-06-06
  A 15-year-old girl challenges her delinquency adjudication, arguing the trial court failed to ensure she made a knowing and voluntary waiver of her right to conflict-free counsel when her public defender had represented the victim in a prior case. The court reversed, finding the
• Strawder v. State
  929 So. 2d 1102· Fla. 1st DCA· 2006-05-04 ·via Chapman V. California Harmless Error Standard
  Brian Strawder appealed his convictions for first-degree murder and robbery, challenging the admission of evidence regarding a prior vague threat he made against an undefined group of people. Although the appellate court agreed the trial court erred in admitting this evidence, it
• Johnson v. State
  920 So. 2d 1282· Fla. 4th DCA· 2006-03-01 ·via Harmless Error Standard
  Johnson appealed his cocaine sale conviction, challenging the trial court's admission of testimony that he was the subject of a drug investigation. While the appellate court found the testimony's admission was error, it affirmed the conviction because the error was harmless given
• Palmer v. State
  920 So. 2d 1153· Fla. 3d DCA· 2006-02-01
• United States v. Valencia-Aguirre
  409 F. Supp. 2d 1358· M.D. Fla.· 2006-01-09 ·via Harmless Error Review
  The court held that the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 replaced discretionary sentencing, and post-Booker sentencing requires consultation of the Guidelines and § 3553(a) factors, with appellate review for unreasonableness.
• Candy Ann Turben v. State
  884 So. 2d 1157· Fla. 1st DCA· 2004-10-28 ·via Harmless Error Rule
• Jovon Tyrese Mims v. State
  872 So. 2d 453· Fla. 2d DCA· 2004-05-19 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  Jovon Mims appealed his conviction for drug sales and fleeing police, challenging the admission of his statement to a deputy that he had not sold drugs in four months. The Florida appellate court agreed that admission of this statement constituted error because it was relevant on
• Cole v. State
  866 So. 2d 761· Fla. 1st DCA· 2004-02-19 ·via Burden Of Proof For Harmless Error
  Lorenzo Cole appeals his convictions for fleeing police, driving with a suspended license, and leaving the scene of an accident, arguing the trial court erred in denying his motion for mistrial as untimely after the court sustained his objection to improper prosecutorial comments
• Alvelo v. State
  866 So. 2d 1240· Fla. 5th DCA· 2004-01-23 ·via Harmless Error Standard
• Mooney v. State
  864 So. 2d 60· Fla. 4th DCA· 2003-12-17 ·via Harmless Error Analysis In Sentencing
  Michael Mooney appealed the trial court's denial of his Rule 3.800 motion to correct his sentence based on a scoresheet miscalculation. The court affirmed the denial, finding that although the scoresheet contained a calculation error, the trial court would have imposed the same l
• B.M. v. Dep't of Child. & Families
  842 So. 2d 936· Fla. 1st DCA· 2003-03-18
  A legal guardian defending a dependency proceeding is not entitled to notice of available advocacy services under section 39.502(15) because the statute applies only to "parties," not "participants," as those terms are defined in the Florida dependency statute.
• Castro v. United States
  248 F. Supp. 2d 1170· S.D. Fla.· 2003-02-28 ·via Harmless Error Review
  The court held that the movant's claims were procedurally barred or substantively without merit, and adopted the Magistrate's recommendation to deny the motion to vacate, set aside, or correct the conviction and sentence.
• Milson v. State
  832 So. 2d 897· Fla. 3d DCA· 2002-12-18
• Avant v. State
  793 So. 2d 97· Fla. 2d DCA· 2001-08-15 ·via Harmless Error Analysis In Sentencing
  The court held that the trial court erred in denying the motion to correct an illegal sentence, as the error was not harmless and the sentencing amendments could not be applied retroactively.
• Taylor v. State
  789 So. 2d 523· Fla. 3d DCA· 2001-07-18
• Nile Almon Myers v. State
  788 So. 2d 1112· Fla. 2d DCA· 2001-07-06 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  The court held that a prosecutor's improper bolstering of a key witness's credibility during closing arguments, especially in a case with questionable evidence, constitutes reversible error.
• Maxie Smith v. State
  758 So. 2d 1186· Fla. 2d DCA· 2000-05-05 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  The court held that the trial court did not err in failing to sustain an objection to a peremptory juror strike and did not err in failing to grant a mistrial or give a curative instruction for improper prosecutorial remarks.
• Campbell-Eley v. State
  756 So. 2d 1043· Fla. 4th DCA· 2000-04-05 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  The Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed Campbell-Eley's third-degree murder conviction, holding that the trial court violated her Sixth Amendment right to a public trial by completely excluding all members of the public, including family members, from the courtroom d
• Grant v. State
  779 So. 2d 355· Fla. 2d DCA· 2000-03-29 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  The court held that a defendant must be sufficiently apprised of the dangers and disadvantages of self-representation before waiving counsel.
• COX v. State
  745 So. 2d 1127· Fla. 3d DCA· 1999-12-15
  Cameron Cox was convicted by jury of First Degree Murder and Attempted Murder in the First Degree. The appellate court vacated and clarified its prior opinion, reducing the Attempted Murder conviction to Second Degree based on insufficient evidence for the higher charge, while af
• Denson v. State
  745 So. 2d 1093· Fla. 4th DCA· 1999-11-24 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  The court held that the trial court erred in admitting evidence of a collateral crime to prove identity because the crimes lacked unique characteristics.
• Jacques M. Jean v. Theodorsen
  736 So. 2d 1240· Fla. 4th DCA· 1999-06-23
  Trial court erred in striking expert testimony due to alleged discovery violation, but the error was harmless because other medical witnesses adequately established plaintiff's permanent injury from the accident.
• Markees A. Jones v. State
  727 So. 2d 1120· Fla. 5th DCA· 1999-03-12
  Florida appellate court affirmed defendant's first-degree murder conviction, rejecting claims that trial errors regarding jury instructions and prosecutor's comments warranted a new trial.
• Patterson v. State
  724 So. 2d 640· Fla. 2d DCA· 1999-01-06
• Wuesthoff Mem'l Hosp. & Johns E. Co., Inc. v. Schmitt
  694 So. 2d 145· Fla. 1st DCA· 1997-06-04
• Poole v. State
  691 So. 2d 1097· Fla. 4th DCA· 1997-03-19 ·via Burden Of Proof For Harmless Error
  Maurice Poole appeals his conviction for trafficking cocaine and aggravated battery on a police officer. The Fourth District Court of Appeal affirms the conviction, finding no error in the trial court's denial of Poole's motion to disqualify the judge, denial of his motion to sup
• Wilson v. State
  666 So. 2d 979· Fla. 1st DCA· 1996-01-16
  A grand jury's return of a no-true bill is not clearly and directly relevant to a material fact at trial and is inadmissible when introduced to rehabilitate a witness's credibility, as it misleads the jury into inferring that the witness has been cleared of all criminal involveme
• Jones v. State
  658 So. 2d 122· Fla. 2d DCA· 1995-06-30
  A trial court abuses its discretion and commits reversible error when it fails to conduct the Nelson inquiry into the adequacy of court-appointed counsel before determining whether a defendant may represent himself, and further errs by failing to advise the defendant that if he d
• Stephenson v. State
  634 So. 2d 1155· Fla. 4th DCA· 1994-04-20
  Affirmed conviction for possession of firearm by convicted felon despite prosecutorial overkill in presenting prior convictions and inflammatory references, based on overwhelming evidence and non-viable necessity defense.
• Stuart Yacht Club & Marina, Inc. v. State
  625 So. 2d 1263· Fla. 4th DCA· 1993-10-06
  Stuart Yacht Club challenged DNR's proposed rules implementing Florida's Pollutant Spill Prevention and Control Act, arguing they exceeded delegated authority and failed to comply with rulemaking procedures regarding economic impact statements. The court affirmed rules 16.032 and
• Grieco v. State
  626 So. 2d 968· Fla. 4th DCA· 1993-09-29 ·via Harmless Error Rule
• Green v. State
  623 So. 2d 1237· Fla. 4th DCA· 1993-09-15 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  The Department of Labor's 'true doubt' rule, which shifts the burden of persuasion to the party opposing a benefits claim when evidence is evenly balanced, violates Section 7(c) of the Administrative Procedure Act.
• State of N.C. v. The United States Dep't OF Health & Human Servs.
  999 F.2d 767· 4th Cir.· 1993-07-16
  The court held that the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) reasonably determined that North Carolina's Medicaid plan amendment constituted a significant change requiring public notice, and the state's failure to provide such notice was not harmless error.
• United States v. Nicholas Castano & Theresa Rodriguez
  999 F.2d 615· 2d Cir.· 1993-07-15 ·via Fed.R.Crim.P. 52(A) (Harmless Error)
  The court held that a defendant who goes to trial to assert issues not related to factual guilt may be entitled to an acceptance of responsibility reduction, but otherwise, denying factual guilt at trial forecloses such a reduction. The court also held that the erroneous admissio
• United States v. Brito-Hernandez
  996 F.2d 80· 5th Cir.· 1993-07-09
  The court held that even if the trial court erred in permitting impeachment with a prior foreign conviction, the error was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt due to overwhelming evidence of guilt.
• United States v. Wagner
  996 F.2d 906· 7th Cir.· 1993-06-17 ·via Harmless Error Rule
  The court affirmed the validity of the guilty pleas and sentences for John and Michael Wagner, but vacated Scott Sine's sentence and remanded for a specific finding on cocaine attribution, while dismissing ineffective assistance of counsel claims.
• Nethery v. Collins
  993 F.2d 1154· 5th Cir.· 1993-06-11 ·via Chapman V. California Harmless Error Standard
  The court held that the jury instructions prevented adequate consideration of mitigating evidence of voluntary intoxication, violating the Eighth Amendment.
• United States v. Price
  995 F.2d 729· 7th Cir.· 1993-06-08
  The court held that the exclusion of expert testimony was not an abuse of discretion and, even if it were, the error was harmless due to overwhelming evidence of guilt.
• United States v. Mejia-Alarcon
  995 F.2d 982· 10th Cir.· 1993-06-07 ·via Harmless Error Analysis (Kotteakos V. United States)
  The court held that the district court erred in admitting a prior food stamp conviction for impeachment purposes, but this error was harmless. The court also held that the district court did not err in failing to explicitly ascertain the defendant's consent to a stipulation, and
• United States v. Hanson
  994 F.2d 403· 7th Cir.· 1993-06-02
  The court held that while the exclusion of testimony regarding a superior's statement about disclosure requirements was an error, it was harmless because the evidence of guilt was overwhelming and the defendants were able to present a defense. The court also held that the trial c