Booth v. State

436 So. 2d 36
CourtSupreme Court of Florida
DecidedJune 9, 1983
Docket62561, 62559
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 436 So. 2d 36 (Booth v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Booth v. State, 436 So. 2d 36 (Fla. 1983).

Opinion

436 So.2d 36 (1983)

Donald Roberts BOOTH, Petitioner,
v.
STATE of Florida, Respondent.
Bertram Mark SCHWARTZ, Petitioner,
v.
State of Florida, Respondent.

Nos. 62561, 62559.

Supreme Court of Florida.

June 9, 1983.
Rehearing Denied September 16, 1983.

John D. O'Brien, Panama City, for Booth; and John S. Berk, Fort Lauderdale, for Schwartz.

*37 Jim Smith, Atty. Gen. and Wallace E. Allbritton, Asst. Atty. Gen., Tallahassee, for respondent.

SHAW, Justice.

Petitioners seek review of a district court of appeal decision, State v. Booth, 418 So.2d 385 (Fla. 1st DCA 1982), certifying a question to be of great public importance. We have jurisdiction. Art. V, § 3(b)(4), Fla. Const.

Petitioners were arrested at the Pensacola Municipal Airport and charged by both the United States and the State of Florida with illegal possession of marijuana. The federal indictments contained four counts: Counts I and II alleged conspiracy to possess marijuana in excess of one thousand pounds and possession with intent to distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 846 (1980), and 18 U.S.C. § 2 (1980); Counts III and IV alleged conspiracy to import marijuana in excess of one thousand pounds and importation of same, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 952 and 963 (1980), and 18 U.S.C. § 2 (1980).

The state information contained three counts: Count I alleged possession of more than twenty grams of cannabis in violation of section 893.13(1)(e), Florida Statutes (Supp. 1980); Count II alleged possession with intent to sell, in violation of section 893.13(1)(a), Florida Statutes (Supp. 1980); Count III alleged importation of more than one hundred pounds of cannabis, in violation of section 893.135(1)(a), Florida Statutes (Supp. 1980).

Petitioners were tried and adjudicated guilty as charged on all four counts of the federal indictment in the United States District Court. Petitioner Booth was sentenced to two twelve-year and two five-year terms of imprisonment to run concurrently and fined $75,000. Petitioner Schwartz was sentenced to two fifteen-year and two five-year terms of imprisonment to run concurrently and fined $100,000.

Petitioners subsequently filed motions to dismiss the state information on double jeopardy grounds. The trial court granted the motions, reasoning that the interests to be protected and the penalties to be imposed in the state and federal proceedings were substantially similar. In reversing, the district court adhered to the doctrine of dual sovereignty and certified the following question to this Court:

ARE SUCCESSIVE PROSECUTIONS IN FEDERAL AND FLORIDA COURTS ON CHARGES ARISING OUT OF THE SAME TRANSACTION INVOLVING VIOLATIONS OF DRUG LAWS OF BOTH SOVEREIGNS BARRED BY DOUBLE JEOPARDY?

418 So.2d at 387.

Our answer is no. We are not unaware that a number of states, although continuing to recognize the doctrine of dual sovereignty, have declined to permit a state prosecution following a federal prosecution for the same offense where the state and federal interests are identical and are served by the single federal prosecution. People v. Cooper, 398 Mich. 450, 247 N.W.2d 866 (1976); Commonwealth v. Mills, 447 Pa. 163, 286 A.2d 638 (1971). The petitioners ask that we join these states by holding that the State of Florida cannot prosecute when there has been a federal prosecution growing out of the same facts, and the interests to be protected and the penalties to be imposed in the federal and state prosecutions are substantially similar. We decline to do so. In allowing prosecutorial discretion in such situations, we perceive no violation of constitutional guarantees against double jeopardy and accordingly adhere to the doctrine of dual sovereignty established by federal and Florida case law. United States v. Wheeler, 435 U.S. 313, 98 S.Ct. 1079, 55 L.Ed.2d 303 (1978); Abbate v. United States, 359 U.S. 187, 79 S.Ct. 666, 3 L.Ed.2d 729 (1959); Bartkus v. Illinois, 359 U.S. 121, 79 S.Ct. 676, 3 L.Ed.2d 684 (1959); Strobhar v. State, 55 Fla. 167, 47 So. 4 (1908). We recognize that there may well be sound policy reasons for the adoption of a prosecutorial policy by the state executive branch similar to the federal policy, whereby the state would not bring a state prosecution following a federal prosecution, absent a compelling state interest. Petite v. *38 United States, 361 U.S. 529, 80 S.Ct. 450, 4 L.Ed.2d 490 (1960). Nevertheless, such a policy is not constitutionally mandated by either the United States or Florida Constitutions, and we decline to establish or formulate prosecutorial policy under the guise of constitutional pronouncements. Rinaldi v. United States, 434 U.S. 22, 98 S.Ct. 81, 54 L.Ed.2d 207 (1977). The result of our decision is to allow prosecutorial discretion by the state following a federal prosecution for the same offense.

The decision and opinion of the district court is approved.

It is so ordered.

ALDERMAN, C.J., and BOYD and OVERTON, JJ., concur.

EHRLICH, J., concurs with an opinion, with which BOYD, J., concurs.

McDONALD, J., dissents with an opinion, with which ADKINS, J., concurs.

EHRLICH, Justice, concurring.

I agree with the majority that nothing in the provisions of either the Florida or the United States Constitutions supports a conclusion that double jeopardy precludes the state from prosecution on charges for which the federal courts have already prosecuted, convicted and sentenced an individual. The federal rule against duplication of state and federal prosecutions, the so-called Petite doctrine, Petite v. United States, 361 U.S. 529, 531, 80 S.Ct. 450, 4 L.Ed.2d 490 (1960), is not based on constitutional imperatives, but is rather an agency policy formulated by the Justice Department.

Because in Florida's scheme of governmental organization there is no agency analogous to the federal Justice Department with power to formulate policy binding on all state attorneys, the exercise of prosecutorial discretion must be left to the state attorneys in the individual judicial circuits. Thus, on this issue there can be no guarantee of statewide uniformity or continuity unless legislative action is taken.

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