Ford v. Singletary

District Court of Appeal of Florida

Ford v. Singletary

689 So. 2d 392, 1997 Fla. App. LEXIS 1869, 1997 WL 90802

CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida

DecidedMarch 5, 1997

DocketNo. 97-256

StatusPublished

Cited by5 cases

This text of 689 So. 2d 392 (Ford v. Singletary) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Ford v. Singletary, 689 So. 2d 392, 1997 Fla. App. LEXIS 1869, 1997 WL 90802 (Fla. Ct. App. 1997).

Pincite

Opinion

CONFESSION OF ERROR

PER CURIAM.

By way of a petition for writ of habeas corpus, David Ford claims that his appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to challenge the legality of Ford’s conviction for attempted first degree murder pursuant to State v. Gray, 654 So.2d 552 (Fla.1995). Specifically, Ford had been charged with one count of attempted first degree murder¹ which had been pled as attempted premeditated murder or alternatively, attempted felony murder. The jury was instructed on both theories and found Ford guilty of attempted first degree murder. The jury, however, did not specify the theory under which Ford was convicted. Ford then appealed his conviction to this court.

While his appeal was pending, the supreme court issued the Gray decision which effectively abolished the crime of attempted felony murder. The supreme court further stated that its holding in Gray was to be applicable to “all cases pending on direct review or not yet final.” 654 So.2d at 554. The state properly concedes that Ford received ineffective assistance from appellate counsel when the Gray issue was not raised [393]*393on his direct appeal to this court. Stokes v. State, 685 So.2d 1368 (Fla. 2d DCA 1996).

Where as here, it is impossible to determine from the verdict form which of the two theories the jury relied on to convict Ford of attempted first degree murder, the attempted murder conviction must be vacated and the case remanded for a retrial on the charge of attempted first degree murder. State v. Wilson, 680 So.2d 411 (Fla.1996); Meeks v. State, 667 So.2d 1002 (Fla. 3d DCA), review denied, 677 So.2d 840 (Fla. 1996). We therefore grant the petition and vacate Ford’s conviction and sentence for attempted first degree murder and remand this cause for retrial on the charge of attempted premeditated murder.

Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus Granted.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

CONFESSION OF ERROR

PER CURIAM.

By way of a petition for writ of habeas corpus, David Ford claims that his appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to challenge the legality of Ford’s conviction for attempted first degree murder pursuant to State v. Gray, 654 So.2d 552 (Fla.1995). Specifically, Ford had been charged with one count of attempted first degree murder¹ which had been pled as attempted premeditated murder or alternatively, attempted felony murder. The jury was instructed on both theories and found Ford guilty of attempted first degree murder. The jury, however, did not specify the theory under which Ford was convicted. Ford then appealed his conviction to this court.

While his appeal was pending, the supreme court issued the Gray decision which effectively abolished the crime of attempted felony murder. The supreme court further stated that its holding in Gray was to be applicable to “all cases pending on direct review or not yet final.” 654 So.2d at 554. The state properly concedes that Ford received ineffective assistance from appellate counsel when the Gray issue was not raised [393]*393on his direct appeal to this court. Stokes v. State, 685 So.2d 1368 (Fla. 2d DCA 1996).

Where as here, it is impossible to determine from the verdict form which of the two theories the jury relied on to convict Ford of attempted first degree murder, the attempted murder conviction must be vacated and the case remanded for a retrial on the charge of attempted first degree murder. State v. Wilson, 680 So.2d 411 (Fla.1996); Meeks v. State, 667 So.2d 1002 (Fla. 3d DCA), review denied, 677 So.2d 840 (Fla. 1996). We therefore grant the petition and vacate Ford’s conviction and sentence for attempted first degree murder and remand this cause for retrial on the charge of attempted premeditated murder.

Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus Granted.

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)

689 So. 2d 392, 1997 Fla. App. LEXIS 1869, 1997 WL 90802, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ford-v-singletary-fladistctapp-1997.

Opinion

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack