BADIA v. STATE

Citation Codes

Equivalent Citations

citation codes

Docket Number

No. 3D99-1716.

Attorney(S)

Clayton R. Kaeiser, for appellant. Robert A. Butterworth, Attorney General, and Consuelo Maingot, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.

Judges

PER CURIAM.

See more information ...

Smart Summary

Factual and Procedural Background

Manuel M. Badia was convicted of second-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and attempted second-degree murder of another victim. He was sentenced to forty years in prison with a three-year mandatory minimum on both the second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder convictions, and fifteen years on the possession charge, all to run concurrently. Badia appealed these convictions and sentences.

Legal Issues Presented

Whether a conviction for attempted second-degree murder is legally valid, given arguments that it is a non-existent crime.
Whether the sentence imposed for the attempted second-degree murder conviction was legal.

Arguments of the Parties

Appellant's Arguments

Badia argued that attempted second-degree murder is a non-existent crime and thus he cannot be convicted of it, citing Brown v. State, 733 So.2d 598 (Fla. 5th DCA 1999), review granted, 744 So.2d 452 (Fla. 1999).
He also contended that the sentence imposed on the attempted second-degree murder conviction was illegal.

Appellee's Arguments

The State conceded that the sentence for attempted second-degree murder was illegal because it exceeded the maximum authorized punishment for that offense.
The State maintained that the conviction for attempted second-degree murder was valid, relying on controlling decisions from the Florida Supreme Court and this Court.

Table of Precedents Cited

Precedent	Rule or Principle Cited For	Application by the Court
Brown v. State, 733 So.2d 598 (Fla. 5th DCA 1999), review granted, 744 So.2d 452 (Fla. 1999)	Whether attempted second-degree murder is a valid criminal offense.	The court noted that the Florida Supreme Court had resolved the issue against Badia’s contention, affirming the validity of the attempted second-degree murder conviction.
Brown v. State, 25 Fla. L. Weekly S792 (Fla. Oct. 5, 2000)	Florida Supreme Court decision affirming the validity of attempted second-degree murder as a crime.	Reinforced the court’s affirmation of Badia’s attempted second-degree murder conviction.
Rivero v. State, 752 So.2d 1244 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000)	Supporting precedent from this Court affirming the validity of attempted second-degree murder.	Supported the appellate court’s decision to affirm the attempted second-degree murder conviction.

Court's Reasoning and Analysis

The court first addressed Badia’s claim that attempted second-degree murder is a non-existent crime. It relied on the Florida Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown v. State and a prior decision from this Court in Rivero v. State, both of which rejected that contention. Consequently, the court affirmed the conviction for attempted second-degree murder.

Next, the court considered the legality of the sentence imposed for the attempted second-degree murder conviction. The State conceded that the forty-year sentence was improper because attempted second-degree murder is classified as a second-degree felony, which may be reclassified as a first-degree felony punishable by up to thirty years. Since the sentence exceeded this maximum, the court reversed the sentence and remanded for resentencing on that count alone.

The court found the other issues raised by Badia to be without merit and did not alter the remaining convictions or sentences.

Holding and Implications

The court affirmed Badia’s convictions for second-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and attempted second-degree murder. However, it reversed the sentence imposed on the attempted second-degree murder conviction and remanded for resentencing consistent with the statutory maximum for that offense.

The direct effect is that Badia will be resentenced on the attempted second-degree murder count with a sentence not exceeding the maximum allowed for a first-degree felony. No new legal precedent was established by this decision.

Show full summary ...

MANUEL M. BADIA, Appellant, v. THE STATE OF FLORIDA, Appellee.

PER CURIAM.

Appellant, Manuel M. Badia, challenges his convictions and sentences for second-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and attempted second-degree murder of another victim. He was sentenced to forty years in prison with a three-year mandatory minimum component on the second-degree murder conviction, forty years with a three-year mandatory minimum component on the attempted second-degree murder conviction, and fifteen years on the possession charge, all sentences to run concurrently. Badia argues that he cannot be convicted of attempted second-degree murder as that is a non-existent crime, citing Brown v. State, 733 So.2d 598 (Fla. 5th DCA 1999), review granted, 744 So.2d 452 (Fla. 1999). The Florida Supreme Court and this Court have resolved this issue adversely to Badia's contentions. See Brown v. State, 25 Fla. L. Weekly S792 (Fla. Oct. 5, 2000); Rivero v. State, 752 So.2d 1244 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000). Therefore, we affirm the attempted second-degree murder conviction.

The state, however, concedes error on Badia's alternative position that the sentence he received for the attempted second-degree murder conviction was illegal. The state acknowledges that attempted second-degree murder is a felony of the second degree, which can be reclassified upward to a felony of the first degree punishable for a maximum of thirty-years imprisonment. We therefore reverse the forty-year sentence imposed by the trial court on the attempted murder conviction and remand for resentencing on that conviction only. The other points raised by Badia are without merit.