Johns v. State
This text of 36 So. 3d 765 (Johns v. State) 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.
Opinion
The appellant appeals the denial, on timeliness grounds, of his motion for post-conviction relief filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850. We reverse and remand for further proceedings.
A defendant must file a motion for post-conviction relief within two years of the judgment and sentence becoming final. See Fla. R.Crim. P. 3.850(b). When a defendant does not appeal his or her conviction it becomes final when the 30-day period for filing an appeal expires. Gust v. State, 535 So.2d 642, 643 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988). Here, the appellant’s conviction became final on or about October 27, 2007. The appellant filed his motion, pursuant to the mailbox rule, * on October 22, 2009, within two years of his judgment and sentence becoming final. Thus, the motion is timely. Accordingly, we reverse and remand for the trial court to address the merits of the motion.
Under the mailbox rule, a motion filed by a pro se inmate is deemed filed when it is handed over to the correctional institution for mailing. See Haag v. State, 591 So.2d 614 (Fla.1992).
Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI
Related
Cite This Page — Counsel Stack
36 So. 3d 765, 2010 Fla. App. LEXIS 6218, 2010 WL 1794409, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/johns-v-state-fladistctapp-2010.