Benjamin Bernard Peoples v. the State of Florida

Opinion

Third District Court of Appeal State of Florida

Opinion filed May 14, 2025.

Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.

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No. 3D23-0105

Lower Tribunal No. F22-11948

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Benjamin Bernard Peoples, Appellant,

vs.

The State of Florida,

Appellee.

An Appeal from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Lody Jean, Judge.

Carlos J. Martinez, Public Defender, and Maria E. Lauredo, Chief Assistant Public Defender, for appellant.

James Uthmeier, Attorney General, and David Llanes, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.

Before LINDSEY, BOKOR, and GOODEN, JJ.

PER CURIAM.

Appellant Benjamin Bernard Peoples appeals his conviction and sentence. The jury found him guilty of resisting a police officer without violence, but not guilty of battery on a police officer and depriving an officer of his means of protection. Peoples asserts that the trial court abused its discretion by denying his motion for mistrial for comments made by the prosecutor during closing argument. The comments concerned photographs taken from an officer’s body camera and introduced by the defense.

“A motion for mistrial should be granted only where necessary to ensure that the defendant receives a fair trial.” Caraballo v. State, 39 So. 3d 1234, 1249 (Fla. 2010). After having reviewed the entirety of the record and the context of the closing argument, we conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by denying Peoples’ motion for mistrial. The comments were not so prejudicial that it vitiated the entire trial or denied the accused a fair trial. Thomas v. State, 748 So. 2d 970, 980 (Fla. 1999); Buenoano v. State, 527 So. 2d 194, 198 (Fla. 1988).

Affirmed.