Ware v. State

146 So. 3d 1254, 2014 Fla. App. LEXIS 14201, 2014 WL 4471641
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedSeptember 12, 2014
DocketNo. 5D14-452
StatusPublished

This text of 146 So. 3d 1254 (Ware 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.

Bluebook
Ware v. State, 146 So. 3d 1254, 2014 Fla. App. LEXIS 14201, 2014 WL 4471641 (Fla. Ct. App. 2014).

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

Appellant was convicted of two counts of sexual activity with a minor child 12 years of age or older, but less than 18 years of age by a person in familial or custodial authority, and two counts of lewd or lascivious molestation of a minor child 12 years of age or older, but less than 16 years of age. He appeals the summary denial of his supplemental third amended motion for post-conviction relief filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 8.850, which raised 20 grounds for relief. We affirm the lower court’s summary denial of all issues, except for the summary denial of ground 19, which is discussed below, because each issue is either conclusively refuted by the record, legally insufficient after amendment, without merit as a matter of law, or is inherently incredible.

The victim in this case delayed reporting to law enforcement that she had been sexually battered and molested by Appellant. Anticipating an attack on her credibility, the State successfully argued, pretrial, that the victim should be allowed to testify that she did not immediately report these crimes because she was afraid of Appellant as she had witnessed him commit acts of domestic violence on her mother. Over objection, the trial court, citing to Williamson v. State, 681 So.2d 688 (Fla.1996), permitted the testimony. In ground 19, Appellant alleges that his counsel was ineffective by failing to object at trial and thereafter move for a mistrial because the victim’s trial testimony did not support the State’s proffered theory that the victim failed to timely report the crimes because she was afraid of Appellant. In response, the State recommends that this court remand ground 19 to the trial court to either attach record documents that will conclusively refute the ground or conduct an evidentiary hearing. See, e.g., McLin v. State, 827 So.2d 948, 954 (Fla.2002) (“To uphold the trial court’s summary denial of claims raised in a 3.850 motion, the claims must be either facially invalid or conclusively refuted by the record.” (quoting Foster v. State, 810 So.2d 910, 914 (Fla. 2002))). We agree and reverse the summary denial of ground 19 and remand with instructions that the trial court either attach portions of the record that conclusively refute this ground or grant an evidentia-ry hearing.

AFFIRMED in part; REVERSED in part; and REMANDED for further proceedings.

ORFINGER, EVANDER and LAMBERT, JJ., concur.

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Related

Foster v. State
810 So. 2d 910 (Supreme Court of Florida, 2002)
Williamson v. State
681 So. 2d 688 (Supreme Court of Florida, 1996)
McLin v. State
827 So. 2d 948 (Supreme Court of Florida, 2002)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
146 So. 3d 1254, 2014 Fla. App. LEXIS 14201, 2014 WL 4471641, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ware-v-state-fladistctapp-2014.