C.D. v. State

865 So. 2d 605, 2004 Fla. App. LEXIS 458
District Court of Appeal of Florida·Decided January 21, 2004·No. No. 4D02-3136·Published·Cited by 21 cases

Opinion

MAY, J.

The juvenile speedy trial rule is examined in an appeal from the trial court’s denial of a motion for discharge, pursuant to Florida Rule of Juvenile Procedure 8.090. Following that denial, the juvenile entered a plea and reserved his right to appeal. We find no error in the trial court’s ruling on the motion for discharge and affirm.

The chronology of events relevant to our discussion is set forth below.

November 7, 2001 - Arrest Date
January 25, 2002 - Petition Filed
February 6, 2002 - 90 days Expired
February 15, 2002 - Summons Issued
March 1, 2002 - Arraignment Date
March 11, 2002 - M/Diseharge Filed
March 18, 2002 - M/Discharge Denied
July 23, 2002 - Plea Taken1

The defendant argues that the State’s failure to serve and arraign him within ninety days from the date of his arrest deprives the State of the recapture period. The State responds that the rules do not require service or arraignment within the ninety-day period to access the recapture period. Recent decisions from this court have caused the answer to be unclear. We now recede from those decisions.

The Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure provide the procedural framework under which parties and the courts function in delinquency proceedings. While some of them are undisputedly clear, others leave room for interpretation.

Previously, this court has found room to interpret the juvenile speedy trial rule. State v. V.M., 842 So.2d 1066 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003); State v. D.L., 841 So.2d 663 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003); D.D. v. State, 817 So.2d 930 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002). By our opinion today, we recede from those cases and adhere to the plain language of Florida Rule of Juvenile Procedure 8.090(m).

Florida Rule of Juvenile Procedure 8.030(a) provides that delinquency proceedings are “initiated by the filing of a petition....”2 There is no provision in the [607] rules dictating a deadline for service of the petition. When the State files a petition of delinquency, the rules provide for the child to “be brought to an adjudicatory hearing without demand within 90 days of the earlier of the following: (1) The date the child was taken into custody. (2) The date the petition was filed.” Fla. R. Juv. P. 8.090(a). Accordingly, the first step is to determine whether the State met the ninety-day deadline.

Once that determination is made, the remedy for failure to comply is set forth in subsection (m). See Fla. R. Juv. P. 8.090(b). Subsection (m) is entitled “Remedy for Failure to Try Respondent Within the Specified Time.” It is this provision that provides for a hearing within five days and the ten-day recapture period. See Fla. R. Juv. P. 8.090(m).

In this case, the State filed the petition within ninety days from the date of arrest, but served and arraigned the defendant beyond the ninety days. Simply put, the State failed to bring the defendant to trial within ninety days, giving rise to the defendant’s motion for discharge. The trial court followed the procedure outlined in subsection (m), held the requisite hearing within five days, and found none of the factors in subsection (d) to apply. The trial court denied the motion, and allowed the State the ten-day recapture period set forth in subsection (m). In doing so, the trial court not only complied with the rule, but with the principles upon which it is based.

A Little History

In Barker v. Wingo, 407 U.S. 514, 92 S.Ct. 2182, 33 L.Ed.2d 101 (1972), the United States Supreme Court explained the constitutional parameters of the adult speedy trial rule.

The right to a speedy trial is generically different from any of the other rights enshrined in the Constitution for the protection of the accused. In addition to the general concern that all accused persons be treated according to decent and fair procedures, there is a societal interest in providing a speedy trial which exists separate from, and at times in opposition to, the interests of the accused.
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As the time between the commission of the crime and trial lengthens, witnesses may become unavailable or their memories may fade. If the witnesses support the prosecution, its case will be weakened, sometimes seriously so. And it is the prosecution which carries the burden of proof. Thus, unlike the right to counsel or the right to be free from compelled self-incrimination, deprivation of the right to speedy trial does not per se prejudice the accused’s ability to defend himself.
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The amorphous quality of the right also leads to the unsatisfactorily severe remedy of dismissal of the indictment when the right has been deprived. This is indeed a serious consequence because it means that a defendant who may be guilty of a serious crime will go free, without having been tried. Such a remedy is more serious than an exclusionary rule or a reversal for a new trial.

Id. at 519-22, 92 S.Ct. 2182.

The Court identified three interests to be served by the constitutional right to a speedy trial: “(i) to prevent oppressive pretrial incarceration; (ii) to minimize anxiety and concern of the accused; and (iii) to limit the possibility that the defense will be impaired.” Id. at 532, 92 S.Ct. 2182. Next, the Court articulated four factors to be considered in determining whether there has been a deprivation of the right to a speedy trial: “Length of delay, the rea[608] son for the delay, the defendant’s assertion of his right, and prejudice to the defendant.” Id. at 530, 92 S.Ct. 2182. The Court found no constitutional basis for establishing a finite number of days within which to bring a defendant to trial. And, it suggested any attempt to do so would engage the Court “in legislative or rule-making activity, rather than in the adjudicative process to which [it] should confine [its] efforts.” Id. at 523, 92 S.Ct. 2182.

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