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981 F.2d 422·
9th Cir.·
1992-12-02
·cited 2×
The admission of a photograph showing numerous weapons, which was only marginally relevant to the defendant's defense and highly prejudicial, constituted an abuse of discretion and reversible error under Federal Rule of Evidence 403.
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880 F.2d 108·
9th Cir.·
1989-07-19
·cited 2×
The court held that a prior en banc decision regarding an erroneous jury instruction on reasonable doubt controls this case, requiring reversal.
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431 So. 3d 577·
Fla. 3d DCA·
2026-03-18
·cited 1×
Christopher Barbaro Mesa appealed his conviction and sentence for grand theft of a motor vehicle, challenging the trial court's imposition of a habitual felony offender sentence enhancement without jury fact-finding under Erlinger v. United States. The appellate court affirmed th
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388 So. 3d 810·
Fla. 4th DCA·
2024-04-10
·cited 1×
Colby McCoggle, convicted as a juvenile of murder in 1994, appealed his resentencing after his original mandatory life sentence was initially deemed unconstitutional under Miller v. Alabama but later upheld as constitutional under subsequent case law. The appellate court affirmed
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374 So. 3d 914·
Fla. 2d DCA·
2023-11-29
·cited 1×
A Nelson hearing was not required because Butler made only general complaints of dissatisfaction with counsel's trial preparation and strategy rather than a clear and unequivocal request to discharge counsel, and any such request was untimely after trial began. The Faretta inquir
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358 So. 3d 827·
Fla. 3d DCA·
2023-03-29
·cited 1×
The appellate court reversed a battery conviction because the prosecutor made improper comments and questions during the trial. These comments improperly invaded the jury's province, potentially commented on the defendant's silence, bolstered police testimony, and mischaracterize
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2021 WL 4310984·
M.D. Fla.·
2022-03-09
·cited 1×
The court held that the plaintiff waived several arguments by failing to raise them before the Magistrate Judge or in the joint memorandum, and therefore affirmed the Commissioner's decision to deny Social Security benefits.
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257 So. 3d 520·
Fla. 2d DCA·
2018-09-26
·cited 1×
When sentencing a juvenile offender for crimes of violence, a jury rather than a judge must make the factual finding of whether the defendant actually killed, intended to kill, or attempted to kill the victim.
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Fla. 3d DCA·
2026-06-18
A sentence that does not exceed the statutory maximum for the crime does not violate Apprendi, even if the trial court found additional facts in imposing it.
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Fla. 6th DCA·
2026-04-24
The trial court properly conducted a Faretta inquiry when Bandera-Valier waived counsel before the probation violation hearing, and no renewed Faretta inquiry was required at the hearing itself; however, the court erred by failing to renew the offer of counsel prior to sentencing
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Fla. 2d DCA·
2026-03-18
Jermaine Antwan Davis appealed his conviction and sentence for aggravated battery, challenging his sentencing as a habitual felony offender (HFO) and prison releasee reoffender (PRR) under the Erlinger v. United States standard. The court affirmed his conviction and sentence, hol
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11th Cir.·
2026-01-21
Stefan Eberhard Zappey, a former DOD elementary school teacher, was convicted of sexually abusing four students at Patch Elementary School in Germany between 2006-2010. On appeal, Zappey challenged the trial court's exclusion of expert testimony on memory reliability, arguing it
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M.D. Fla.·
2025-12-23
The court held that the applicant failed to show that the state court's denial of his ineffective assistance of counsel claims was contrary to or an unreasonable application of federal law.
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S.D. Fla.·
2025-09-09
Timothy Hightower, a state prisoner convicted of cocaine trafficking offenses within 1,000 feet of a church, sought federal habeas relief challenging his conviction on grounds that the trial court improperly denied severance of separate charges, that a detective's testimony regar
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11th Cir.·
2025-04-30
The Eleventh Circuit held that the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting evidence of the defendant's prior state drug convictions, even though they were Alford pleas, because they were relevant to intent and not substantially outweighed by prejudice.
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M.D. Fla.·
2025-02-07
The court affirmed the Commissioner's decision denying disability benefits, adopting the Magistrate Judge's recommendation.
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S.D. Fla.·
2024-12-17
The court held that the plaintiff is not entitled to attorney fees under the EAJA because the government's position was substantially justified, despite the ALJ's failure to adequately articulate her reasoning.
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S.D. Fla.·
2024-11-26
Joseph Haas, convicted of arson and attempted manslaughter arising from a fire at his house, sought federal habeas relief on grounds including double jeopardy, due process, and ineffective assistance of counsel. The court denied all claims but issued a certificate of appealabilit
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M.D. Fla.·
2023-11-21
The court denied the petition for writ of habeas corpus, finding that the petitioner's claims of ineffective assistance of counsel and due process violations were meritless.
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M.D. Fla.·
2023-04-17
Andre Alston sought to vacate his 15-year conviction and sentence for firearm possession by a convicted felon under 28 U.S.C. § 2255, arguing prosecutorial misconduct, speedy trial violations, ineffective assistance of counsel, and other constitutional violations. The district co
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M.D. Fla.·
2023-03-31
The court denied the petitioner's motion for reconsideration, finding no manifest error of law or fact in the prior denial of his motion to vacate sentence.
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Fla. 3d DCA·
2023-03-29
Multiple improper prosecutorial comments and questions—including soliciting officer opinions on the initial aggressor, commenting on pre-arrest silence, vouching for police credibility, and mischaracterizing evidence—constituted reversible error in a case turning entirely on witn
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M.D. Fla.·
2023-03-17
The court held that the petitioner's prior state drug convictions qualified as 'serious drug offenses' under the ACCA, and counsel was not ineffective for failing to challenge this classification. The court also found the indictment sufficiently stated the offense.
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Del. Super. Ct.·
2023-02-17
The court denied the defendant's motion for a new trial, finding that the alleged prosecutorial misconduct did not rise to the level of reversible error and that the indictment was sufficient. The court applied different standards of review for misconduct claims based on whether
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Del.·
2023-02-13
The Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the Superior Court's judgment, finding no error in the denial of the defendant's motion to suppress, the admission of DNA evidence, the handling of alleged prosecutorial misconduct, or the sufficiency of the evidence. The court also held that t
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Fla. 5th DCA·
2023-01-20
The trial court's judgment and sentences are affirmed, but the case is remanded to correct a clerical error in the judgment document.
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Fla. 5th DCA·
2023-01-20
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Fla. 4th DCA·
2022-06-08
A sentencing court's reliance on an inaccurately calculated scoresheet constitutes reversible error when the imposed sentence exceeds the corrected scoresheet's recommendation and the record does not conclusively demonstrate the court would have imposed the same sentence under th
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M.D. Fla.·
2022-06-03
William St. Claire sought federal habeas relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2254, claiming constitutional violations at his trial for aggravated assault with a firearm, including denial of funds for a communications expert, improper exclusion of evidence regarding his reasons for visiting
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M.D. Fla.·
2022-01-04
The court held that the petitioner's claim of insufficient evidence was procedurally defaulted and lacked merit, and that any Rehaif error was harmless on collateral review.
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Del. Super. Ct.·
2021-11-10
The court denied the defendant's motion for post-conviction relief, finding that his claims were procedurally barred under Rule 61. The defendant failed to demonstrate cause for not raising the issues on direct appeal, as sufficient evidence was available to his trial counsel. Fu
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Fla.·
2021-10-21
Trial counsel did not render deficient performance by introducing a portion of Smith's interrogation containing references to lack of remorse, as it was a sound strategic decision to show detective misconduct; counsel was not deficient in stipulating to booking photographs with w
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M.D. Fla.·
2021-10-04
Raimundo Antonio Hogan was convicted of firearm possession by a convicted felon and sentenced to 180 months imprisonment; he challenged his conviction and sentence through a §2255 motion on grounds of ineffective assistance of counsel, prosecutorial misconduct regarding firearm s
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S.D. Fla.·
2020-12-03
The court held that the movant failed to demonstrate prejudice from the alleged instructional error, and that his section 924(o) conviction was not solely based on the unconstitutionally vague residual clause of section 924(c).
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N.D. Fla.·
2020-11-23
The court held that while the petitioner was denied his right to a jury finding on a fact essential to his minimum mandatory sentence under Alleyne v. United States, this error was harmless because the evidence overwhelmingly established the fact, and therefore, relief under § 22
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Fla. 1st DCA·
2020-11-16
The appellate court reversed the denial of a postconviction motion, finding that an inaccurate sentencing scoresheet used in the appellant's plea agreement required resentencing. The court held that the "would-have-been-imposed" standard was misapplied by the lower court.
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M.D. Fla.·
2020-08-27
Zachery Keith Turner, convicted of lewd and lascivious battery on a minor, filed a federal habeas corpus petition challenging his conviction and 15-year sentence on multiple grounds, including claims of competency-to-stand-trial error, ineffective assistance of counsel, and Crawf
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S.D. Fla.·
2020-07-16
The court adopted the Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation, overruling the movant's objections and denying his motion to vacate, set aside, or correct his conviction and sentence.
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Fla. 2d DCA·
2020-06-03
The appellate court held that an erroneous denial of a motion to disqualify a judge in a criminal case, when raised on direct appeal, should be reviewed for harmless error. The court found the error harmless in this specific case and affirmed the conviction, but certified a quest
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M.D. Fla.·
2020-06-01
The court held that the petitioner's conviction under 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) for using a firearm during a Hobbs Act Robbery is valid, as Hobbs Act Robbery qualifies as a crime of violence under the elements clause, and the petitioner's guilty plea established guilt for this predicate
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Del. Super. Ct.·
2019-09-25
The court denied the defendant's motions for judgment of acquittal and for a new trial. The court found sufficient evidence to support the attempted rape convictions and that the prosecutor's closing arguments did not constitute reversible error.
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11th Cir.·
2019-07-02
Renado Smith and Richard Delancy, two Bahamian nationals, were convicted of conspiracy to commit alien smuggling, alien smuggling, and attempted illegal reentry after operating a boat that transported 21 Haitian nationals toward the United States in November 2016. The Eleventh Ci
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272 So. 3d 1229·
Fla.·
2019-06-06
The Florida Supreme Court discharged jurisdiction and dismissed a review proceeding, concluding that jurisdiction was improvidently granted. The case involved a conflict regarding whether a trial court's failure to make written findings constitutes harmless error or requires per
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273 So. 3d 116·
Fla. 3d DCA·
2019-02-13
An upward departure sentence based on the trial court's finding of an escalating pattern of criminal conduct, without jury determination, violates Apprendi and Blakely but constitutes harmless error when the record demonstrates beyond a reasonable doubt that a rational jury would
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257 So. 3d 357·
Fla.·
2018-11-08
Eriese Alphonso Tisdale was convicted of first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer and sentenced to death based on a 9-3 jury recommendation. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed all convictions and non-capital sentences but vacated the death sentence because the non-unanimo
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138 So. 3d 1204·
Fla. 4th DCA·
2014-05-28
The defendant was convicted of felony battery and appealed the trial court's exclusion of his fiancée's testimony due to a violation of the witness sequestration rule. The appellate court held that the trial court erred by applying the sequestration rule as a strict rule of law w
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15th Cir. Ct. App. Div.·
2011-04-11
Keren-Esther Harp was convicted of Leaving the Scene of a Crash Involving Damage and Reckless Driving Causing Injury to Property. The appellate court reversed her conviction because the trial court erroneously admitted hearsay testimony from a community service aide about stateme
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58 So. 3d 372·
Fla. 5th DCA·
2011-04-08
A defendant cannot be sentenced without counsel present unless there is a knowing and voluntary waiver of the right to counsel, and proceeding to sentencing when defense counsel is absent and no waiver is shown in the record constitutes fundamental error requiring reversal.
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45 So. 3d 572·
Fla. 4th DCA·
2010-10-20
Edward VanWagner was convicted of armed kidnapping based on jury instructions that allowed conviction under intent elements not charged in the indictment. The Fourth District granted his habeas corpus petition for ineffective assistance of appellate counsel, finding fundamental e
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711 F. Supp. 2d 1313·
N.D. Fla.·
2010-03-31
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.