Shawn Thomas Gainey v. State of Florida
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
Date FiledApril 23, 2020
Docket1D19-4587
StatusPublished
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Full Opinion
FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL
STATE OF FLORIDA
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No. 1D19-4587
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SHAWN THOMAS GAINEY,
Petitioner,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA,
Respondent.
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Petition for Writ of Prohibition—Original Jurisdiction.
April 23, 2020
PER CURIAM.
Petitioner, Shawn Thomas Gainey, petitions this Court for a
writ of prohibition following the trial court’s denial of his motion
to dismiss the charge of aggravated battery with a firearm that the
State filed against him after he admittedly shot the victim
following an incident of road rage. Petitioner contends that he
should be deemed immune from prosecution under Florida’s
“Stand Your Ground” law because he acted in self-defense. See
§§ 776.012, 776.032, Fla. Stat. (2018). After an immunity hearing
during which conflicting evidence was put forth, the trial court
determined that the State presented clear and convincing evidence
to overcome Petitioner’s self-defense claim. Because competent,
substantial evidence supports the trial court’s determination, we
deny the petition for writ of prohibition on the merits. See Craven
v. State, 285 So. 3d 992, 994 (Fla. 1st DCA 2019) (“Because the
State met its burden by presenting clear and convincing evidence
that a reasonable person in Petitioner’s position would not have
used the same force as Petitioner, the trial court’s findings were
supported by competent substantial evidence.”); Ferrera-Discua v.
State, 276 So. 3d 520, 520 (Fla. 1st DCA 2019) (“Because . . . the
State presented clear and convincing evidence contradicting the
claim [of self-defense], the trial court did not err in finding that
Petitioner was not entitled to Stand-Your-Ground immunity.”);
Edwards v. State, 257 So. 3d 586, 588 (Fla. 1st DCA 2018) (“The
record in this case includes competent substantial evidence to
support the trial court’s determination that the State presented
clear and convincing evidence to overcome Appellant’s prima facie
case [that his use of force was justified] for the charge in
question.”); Mederos v. State, 102 So. 3d 7, 8 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012)
(“The record before us contains competent substantial evidence to
support the trial court’s findings that the facts here do not support
the application of immunity under the Stand Your Ground Law.”).
DENIED.
LEWIS, ROWE, and JAY, JJ., concur.
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Not final until disposition of any timely and
authorized motion under Fla. R. App. P. 9.330 or
9.331.
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Jeffrey P. Whitton, Panama City, for Petitioner.
Ashley Moody, Attorney General, and Daren L. Shippy, Assistant
Attorney General, Tallahassee, for Respondent.
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