State v. Moiz A. Godil

• Court: District Court of Appeal of Florida
• Decided: February 20, 2017
• Docket: 5D16-488
• Status: Published

Opinion

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA FIFTH DISTRICT

NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE MOTION FOR REHEARING AND DISPOSITION THEREOF IF FILED

STATE OF FLORIDA,

Appellant,

v. Case No. 5D16-488

MOIZ A. GODIL,

Appellee.

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Opinion filed February 24, 2017

Appeal from the Circuit Court for Orange County, Alan S. Apte, Judge.

Pamela Jo Bondi, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Deborah A. Chance, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, for Appellant.

James S. Purdy, Public Defender, and Noel A. Pelella, Assistant Public Defender, Daytona Beach, for Appellee.

PER CURIAM.

The State challenges the sentence imposed in this felony drug case in which the

trial court withheld adjudication of guilt without placing Appellee on probation in violation

of Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.670. Although Appellee properly concedes error

on this point, he nevertheless argues that the judgment must be affirmed because the alteration of the sentence would violate constitutional double jeopardy principles. We

reject Appellee’s double jeopardy argument. Because Appellee had no legitimate

expectation of finality in the sentence, the double jeopardy clause does not bar the

correction of the illegal sentence. Dunbar v. State, 89 So. 3d 901, 905 (Fla. 2012).

On remand, the trial judge shall either adjudicate Appellee guilty or impose

probation.

REVERSED AND REMANDED.

ORFINGER, TORPY and BERGER, JJ., concur.