C.D., a Juvenile v. the State of Florida
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
Date FiledApril 29, 2020
Docket3D19-2309
StatusPublished
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Full Opinion
Third District Court of Appeal
State of Florida
Opinion filed April 29, 2020.
Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.
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No. 3D19-2309
Lower Tribunal No. 19-895B
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C.D., a Juvenile,
Appellant,
vs.
The State of Florida,
Appellee.
An appeal from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Yery Marrero,
Judge.
Carlos J. Martinez, Public Defender, and Susan S. Lerner, Assistant Public
Defender, for appellant.
Ashley Moody, Attorney General, and Luis Enrique Rubio, Assistant
Attorney General, for appellee.
Before EMAS, C.J., and SALTER, and MILLER, JJ.
MILLER, J.
UPON PARTIAL CONFESSION OF ERROR
We affirm the finding of delinquency under review, save the written
disposition of the case. See Art. X, § 9, Fla. Const. (“Repeal of a criminal statute
shall not affect prosecution for any crime committed before such repeal.”); see also
Hicks v. State, 277 So. 3d 153, 170 (Fla. 1st DCA 2019) (“If a new rule of law is
substantive, it is not retroactive, and a party is not entitled to the benefit of the new
rule unless it preceded the crime or cause of action.”) (citation omitted); R.A.M. of
S. Fla. v. WCI Cmtys., Inc., 869 So. 2d 1210, 1216 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004) (“[T]he task
of interpreting the statute is guided by the rule of statutory construction which
establishes a presumption against the retroactive application of substantive law—as
distinct from procedural or remedial law-in the absence of a clear expression of
legislative intent that the statute be given retroactive effect.”) (citations omitted);
J.S. v. State, 691 So. 2d 20, 20 (Fla. 3d DCA 1997) (“We find unmeritorious
defendant's claim of error in his adjudication of delinquency. It is not necessary for
the state to prove the identification of marijuana by chemical or scientific means.”)
(citations omitted); A.A. v. State, 461 So. 2d 165, 166 (Fla. 3d DCA 1984) (“It is
generally held that an officer with adequate experience in the narcotics field, and
marijuana in particular, can identify a substance as marijuana by its appearance and
odor.”) (citations omitted). Pursuant to the State’s commendable partial confession
of error and our independent review of the record, because the written adjudicatory
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order does not conform with the court’s oral pronouncement at the time of the
adjudicatory hearing, we reverse and remand with directions for the trial court to
enter a written order which so conforms. See Catalan v. State, 911 So. 2d 203, 204
(Fla. 3d DCA 2005) (“Where there is a difference between the court's oral
pronouncement and a written order, the oral pronouncement controls.”) (citation
omitted).
Affirmed in part; reversed in part.
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