Gerald Lee Rogers v. State of Florida
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
Date FiledAugust 14, 2026
Docket6D2025-1465
StatusPublished
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Full Opinion
SIXTH DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL
STATE OF FLORIDA
_____________________________
Case No. 6D2025-1465
Lower Tribunal No. 2022-CF-016655
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GERALD LEE ROGERS,
Appellant,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA,
Appellee.
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Appeal from the Circuit Court for Lee County.
Bruce Kyle, Judge.
August 14, 2026
WOZNIAK, J.
Gerald Lee Rogers appeals the final order revoking his community control
and sentencing him to the statutory maximum 60-month sentence. Revocation was
based upon the trial court’s finding that he willfully and substantially violated two
conditions of his community control 1—that he changed his residence without the
consent of the officer overseeing his community control in violation of Condition 3,
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Rogers was on community control at the time of his violation, his probation
having been converted to community control following a prior violation.
and that he failed to report to the probation office within 24 hours of his release in
violation of Condition 9. The State properly concedes error in the trial court’s finding
related to Condition 3 because the State presented only hearsay evidence to support
that violation. See Russell v. State, 982 So. 2d 642, 646 (Fla. 2008) (“It is undisputed
that hearsay evidence is admissible in a probation revocation hearing to prove a
violation of probation. However, the hearsay evidence may not form the sole basis
for revocation.”). We find no error in the trial court’s conclusion that Rogers
willfully and substantially violated Condition 9.
Because the record is not clear that the trial court would have imposed the
same sentence based on a violation of a single condition of community control
(Condition 9), we reverse and remand for the trial court to reconsider, based only on
the single violation, whether community control should be revoked and, if so,
whether the same sentence should be imposed. See Bean v. State, 388 So. 3d 300,
305 (Fla. 6th DCA 2024) (“The State must prove only one violation of probation in
order for a probationer to be found in violation. However, when it is unclear from
the appellate record whether the trial court would have revoked probation and
imposed the same new sentence had it considered only valid violations, the appellate
court must remand for the trial court to reconsider whether probation should be
revoked and, if so, whether the same sentence should be imposed.” (citations
omitted)).
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REVERSED and REMANDED for further proceedings.
SMITH and KAMOUTSAS, JJ., concur.
Blair Allen, Public Defender, and David L. Redfearn, Assistant Public Defender,
Bartow, for Appellant.
James Uthmeier, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and William C. Shelhart, Senior
Assistant Attorney General, Tampa, for Appellee.
NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE MOTION FOR REHEARING
AND DISPOSITION THEREOF IF TIMELY FILED
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