Clifton Sheppard v. State of Florida

Opinion

Third District Court of Appeal State of Florida

Opinion filed August 6, 2025. Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.

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No. 3D25-1039 Lower Tribunal No. F97-29169A ________________

Clifton Sheppard, Appellant,

vs.

State of Florida, Appellee.

An Appeal under Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.141(b)(2) from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Ramiro C. Areces, Judge.

Clifton Sheppard, in proper person.

James Uthmeier, Attorney General, for appellee.

Before EMAS, GORDO and LOBREE, JJ.

PER CURIAM. Affirmed. See Padgett v. State, No. 3D25-349, ––– So. 3d ––––, 2025

WL 1172840, at *1 (Fla. 3d DCA April 23, 2025) (“A life sentence is not

impermissible ‘indefinite imprisonment’ under the Florida Constitution. Art. I,

§ 17, Fla. Const.” (citing Ratliff v. State, 914 So. 2d 938, 940 (Fla. 2005)

(“Any sentence, even one of a short duration, can potentially exceed a

defendant's life span. The fact that the judicial system has no way of knowing

how long the defendant will live and therefore cannot know how long the

defendant will be incarcerated does not render a life sentence

unconstitutionally indefinite. It is abundantly clear that the Legislature, by

prescribing a sentence of life imprisonment, intends that the defendant

remain in prison for the rest of his life. The term ‘life’ is sufficiently definite

so that it can be understood and applied.”))) (additional citations omitted).