Keschener Destin v. the State of Florida

Opinion

Third District Court of Appeal State of Florida

Opinion filed January 22, 2025.

Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.

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No. 3D23-1403

Lower Tribunal No. F19-8825

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Keschener Destin,

Appellant,

vs.

The State of Florida,

Appellee.

An Appeal from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, William Altfield, Judge.

Carlos J. Martinez, Public Defender, and Susan S. Lerner, Assistant Public Defender, for appellant.

Ashley Moody, Attorney General, and Christina L. Dominguez, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.

Before EMAS, MILLER and BOKOR, JJ.

PER CURIAM.

Affirmed. See Alvarez v. State, 792 So. 2d 1255, 1257 (Fla. 3d DCA 2001) (finding no abuse of discretion by the trial court in allowing the State to reopen its case after it rested and defense moved for acquittal); M.W. v. State, 263 So. 3d 214, 214–15 (Fla. 3d DCA 2019) (affirming order on appeal and explaining that trial court did not “enter[] the fray” and “sacrifice[] trial court neutrality” by directing the State to establish a basis for a line of questioning after objection and noting the trial court’s “latitude to regulate the course of a trial in his courtroom”); see also Guzman v. State, 350 So. 3d 72, 73 (Fla. 4th DCA 2022) (affirming use of six-person jury and noting that a state appellate court has “no authority to overrule the precedent from the United States Supreme Court that endorsed the use of a jury with only six members as constitutional” (citing Gonzalez v. State, 982 So. 2d 77, 78 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008))).