Brian Jolly v. State of Florida
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
Date FiledMarch 17, 2023
Docket2D21-2162
StatusPublished
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Full Opinion
DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF FLORIDA
SECOND DISTRICT
BRIAN JAMES JOLLY,
Appellant,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA,
Appellee.
No. 2D21-2162
March 17, 2023
Appeal from the Circuit Court for Sarasota County; Thomas W. Krug,
Judge.
Howard L. Dimmig, II, Public Defender, and William L. Sharwell,
Assistant Public Defender, Bartow, for Appellant.
Ashley Moody, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Donna S. Koch, Senior
Assistant Attorney General, Tampa, for Appellee.
LABRIT, Judge.
Brian Jolly pleaded no contest to trafficking in methamphetamine
(count one), possession of a controlled substance (count two), possession
of drug paraphernalia (count three), and two counts of carrying a
concealed weapon (counts four and five). The trial court sentenced him
to three years in prison followed by twenty-four months of probation, and
time served for counts three, four, and five. Mr. Jolly reserved the right
to appeal two trial court orders denying his motions to suppress and to
dismiss. After Mr. Jolly filed his notice of appeal, the trial court entered
an amended order which added $52,500 in costs and fees, due to the
inclusion of a mandatory fine and surcharge.
We find no error in the denial of the motions to suppress and to
dismiss and we affirm without comment the original judgment and
sentences. We reverse the amended order due to the trial court's lack of
jurisdiction.
Motion to Correct Sentencing Error
The trial court signed the original judgment and sentences on July
7, 2021, and they were recorded on July 14. Mr. Jolly filed his notice of
appeal on July 16. On July 27, the trial court entered the amended
order. While the appeal was pending, Mr. Jolly filed a motion to correct
sentencing error pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure
3.800(b)(2), arguing that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to add the
monetary penalties because the amended order was filed after his notice
of appeal. Additionally, Mr. Jolly argued that the statutory bases for
each of the costs and fines were not identified.
The court granted the motion to the extent the statutory bases were
not provided but stated that because the fine was mandatory and not
discretionary, it was not necessary to orally pronounce it at the
sentencing hearing. The court also claimed that the date the written
order was rendered is irrelevant. On appeal, Mr. Jolly contends that the
court was without jurisdiction to amend the sentence while the case was
on appeal, so it makes no difference that the fine at issue was
mandatory. We agree.
While a case is on appeal, the trial court lacks jurisdiction to
amend the judgment and sentence. See Caruso v. State, 264 So. 3d 361,
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362 (Fla. 2d DCA 2019). This is true even for minor clerical corrections.
See Denman v. State, 328 So. 3d 1096, 1097 (Fla. 2d DCA 2021).
We affirm the trial court's original judgment and sentences. On
remand, the amended order entered without jurisdiction must be
vacated. See id.; Caruso, 264 So. 3d at 361. Once its jurisdiction is
restored, the trial court may conduct any necessary procedures to amend
the original sentencing document.
Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded with instructions.
KELLY and LaROSE, JJ., Concur.
Opinion subject to revision prior to official publication.
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