From Casetext: Smarter Legal Research

Vickers v. State

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District
Jul 9, 2004
875 So. 2d 1288 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2004)

Opinion

Case No. 5D04-1249.

Opinion filed July 9, 2004.

3.800 Appeal from the Circuit Court for Citrus County, Richard A. Howard, Judge.

Lawrence Vickers, Malone, pro se.

Charles J. Crist, Jr., Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Rebecca Roark Wall, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, for Appellee.


Defendant, Lawrence James Vickers ["Vickers"], appeals the summary denial of his rule 3.800(a) motion. Vickers alleged in his motion that he was sentenced in three cases to seven and one-half years as a habitual felony offender for possession of cocaine with intent to sell or deliver, in violation of section 893.13, Florida Statutes (1997).

Vickers argues that the habitual felony offender statute does not authorize habitualization for a violation of section 893.13. A habitual felony offender sentence is authorized only when the felony for which a defendant is convicted and one of the two required prior convictions is not a violation of section 893.13. See § 775.084(1)(a)(3), Fla. Stat. (1997).

The trial court's order speaks only to prior convictions, finding that Vicker's prior record included many qualifying felonies. The trial court did not mention the offenses at conviction or attach any documents to its order.

The appealed order implies that Vickers may have been sentenced as an habitual violent felony offender, rather than an habitual felony offender, as the court cites section 775.084(1)(b)1, the habitual violent felony subsection, and states that only one prior violent felony need be established.

The State, in its response, acknowledges the correctness of Vickers' statement of the law and the failure of the trial court to attach any documents to its order as required. The State refers us to the Florida Department of Corrections' web site, which the State says shows that Vickers was convicted of two offenses in case number 02-482: sale, manufacture or delivery of cocaine, not possession; and battery on a law enforcement officer.

Because the pertinent records are not attached, we have gotten all the way through this appeal without knowing Vicker's current conviction, prior record, or even what his sentence was. Accordingly, we reverse and remand to the trial court to attach to its order copies of the record sufficient to refute appellant's claim.

REVERSED and REMANDED.

GRIFFIN, PLEUS and PALMER, JJ., concur.


Summaries of

Vickers v. State

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District
Jul 9, 2004
875 So. 2d 1288 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2004)
Case details for

Vickers v. State

Case Details

Full title:LAWRENCE VICKERS, Appellant, v. STATE OF FLORIDA, Appellee

Court:District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District

Date published: Jul 9, 2004

Citations

875 So. 2d 1288 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2004)

Citing Cases

Vickers v. State

Appellant challenges the legality of his sentence. Pursuant to remand in Vickers v. State, 875 So.2d 1288…