Reasonable Belief Of Imminent Death Or Great Bodily Harm

16 Florida cases classified under this topic · sorted by citation count · see the citation graph · browse and sort

• State v. Rivera
  719 So. 2d 335· Fla. 5th DCA· 1998-09-11 ·cited 55×
  Florida appeals the trial court's judgment of acquittal for Ivan Rivera, who shot Mike McCrae with a shotgun after a high-speed chase on Interstate 4. The court affirmed the acquittal, holding that the state failed to rebut Rivera's prima facie case of self-defense because the un
• State v. Floyd
  186 So. 3d 1013· Fla.· 2016-03-10 ·cited 40×
  The Florida Supreme Court reviewed jury instructions on the justifiable use of deadly force to determine whether Florida Standard Jury Instruction 3.6(f) provided conflicting guidance regarding the duty to retreat. The court held that the instructions correctly and accurately sta
• Smiley v. State
  395 So. 2d 235· Fla. 1st DCA· 1981-03-10 ·cited 26×
  Brenda Smiley appeals her conviction for attempted first degree murder after shooting her sleeping husband four times with a .22 caliber pistol. The court affirmed her conviction and mandatory minimum sentence, rejecting her arguments regarding jury instructions on self-defense,
• State v. Bobbitt
  389 So. 2d 1094· Fla. 1st DCA· 1980-11-07 ·cited 20×
  Florida's First District Court of Appeal reversed Elsie Virginia Bobbitt's manslaughter conviction for shooting her abusive husband in self-defense, holding that she had no duty to retreat from her own home before using deadly force and that the evidence of self-defense was legal
• Viera v. State
  163 So. 3d 602· Fla. 3d DCA· 2015-04-08 ·cited 14×
  Eduardo Viera petitioned for a writ of prohibition to challenge the trial court's denial of his motion to dismiss charges of attempted murder and aggravated battery based on Florida's Stand Your Ground law. The court denied the petition, holding that competent substantial evidenc
• Crimins v. State
  113 So. 3d 945· Fla. 5th DCA· 2013-02-08 ·cited 13×
  John Crimins was convicted of aggravated battery after claiming self-defense against Jason Warren. The trial court instructed the jury on the forcible felony exception to self-defense, but the appellate court reversed because there was no evidence Crimins was engaged in a separat
• Jenkins v. State
  942 So. 2d 910· Fla. 2d DCA· 2006-10-11 ·cited 11×
  Melvin Jenkins was convicted of manslaughter after fatally stabbing Bryan Cerezo in a confrontation outside Jenkins' mobile home. The appellate court reversed the conviction, holding that Jenkins established a prima facie case of self-defense and the State failed to present legal
• Hernandez v. State
  842 So. 2d 1049· Fla. 4th DCA· 2003-04-23 ·cited 9×
  Carlos Hernandez was convicted of manslaughter with a deadly weapon after stabbing a teenager during a fight. On appeal, he challenged the trial court's denial of his motion for judgment of acquittal, arguing the evidence failed to disprove self-defense, but the appellate court a
• Kardel K. Snow v. State
  352 So. 3d 529· Fla. 1st DCA· 2022-12-12 ·cited 5×
  The appellate court denied a petition for a writ of prohibition challenging a trial court's denial of self-defense immunity. The court found the petition was filed too late, and also that the trial court's decision was correct on the merits.
• Fletcher v. State
  273 So. 3d 1187· Fla. 1st DCA· 2019-06-12 ·cited 5×
  Fletcher was entitled to Stand Your Ground immunity because he was standing on a public sidewalk, not trespassing on Parker's property, when he fired the shot in defense of his brother. The trial court erred in treating Fletcher as a trespasser based on evidence showing he was ap
• State v. Moore
  337 So. 3d 876· Fla. 3d DCA· 2022-03-02 ·cited 4×
  A defendant seeking dismissal based on self-defense immunity under section 776.032(4) must allege specific facts that show or tend to show all elements of justifiable use of deadly force, including that the defendant reasonably believed deadly force was necessary to prevent immin
• Jackson v. State
  253 So. 3d 738· Fla. 1st DCA· 2018-08-10 ·cited 4×
  Curtis James Jackson appeals his conviction for aggravated battery with a firearm, raising two issues on appeal. The court reverses and remands for a new trial, finding that the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury on Jackson's theory of justifiable use of deadly for
• Hiram Gonzalez Morales v. State
  251 So. 3d 167· Fla. 4th DCA· 2018-06-27 ·cited 4×
  The trial court properly denied Morales's motion to dismiss on Stand Your Ground grounds because the evidence, viewed in favor of the State, refuted his self-defense claim as physically implausible. The judgment of conviction for second degree murder was supported by competent su
• Smith v. State
  387 So. 3d 495· Fla. 1st DCA· 2024-06-19 ·cited 1×
  A defendant engaged in criminal activity or present in a place where he has no right to be may still claim self-defense immunity under § 776.012(2) if he reasonably believed deadly force was necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm and had no reasonable means of r
• Navarro v. State
  190 So. 3d 212· Fla. 4th DCA· 2016-04-27 ·cited 1×
  Manuel Navarro appeals his manslaughter conviction, arguing the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury of his right to stand his ground and lack of duty to retreat under Florida law. The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed and remanded for a new trial, holding tha
• Demond Lavette Moore v. State
  Fla. 6th DCA· 2025-05-02
  Once a defendant establishes a prima facie claim of self-defense immunity under Florida's Stand Your Ground law, the State bears the burden to prove by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant is not entitled to immunity. The trial court erred by relying on inadmissible e