Juan Matta v. State of Florida
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
Date FiledAugust 13, 2026
Docket3D2025-2122
StatusPublished
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Full Opinion
Third District Court of Appeal
State of Florida
Opinion filed August 13, 2026.
Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.
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No. 3D25-2122
Lower Tribunal No. F18-16083
________________
Juan Matta,
Appellant,
vs.
State of Florida,
Appellee.
An Appeal under Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.141(b)(2) from
the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Cristina Miranda, Judge.
The Post-Conviction Alliance and Rook E. Ringer (Brandon), for
appellant.
James Uthmeier, Attorney General and Daniel Colmenares, Assistant
Attorney General, for appellee.
Before SCALES, C.J., and LOGUE and GORDO, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
Affirmed. See § 921.0024, Fla. Stat. (“Adult-on-minor sex offense: If the
offender was 18 years of age or older and the victim was younger than 18
years of age at the time the offender committed the primary offense, and if
the primary offense was an offense committed on or after October 1, 2014,
and is a violation of s. 787.01(2) or s. 787.02(2), if the violation involved a
victim who was a minor and, in the course of committing that violation, the
defendant committed a sexual battery under chapter 794 or a lewd act under
s. 800.04 or s. 847.0135(5) against the minor; s. 787.01(3)(a) 2. or 3.; s.
787.02(3)(a) 2. or 3.; s. 794.011… the subtotal sentence points are multiplied
by 2.0. If applying the multiplier results in the lowest permissible sentence
exceeding the statutory maximum sentence for the primary offense under
chapter 775, the court may not apply the multiplier and must sentence the
defendant to the statutory maximum sentence.”); Millien v. State, 336 So.
3d 354, 357 (Fla. 4th DCA 2022) (“[§ 921.0024(1)(b), Florida Statute’s] use
of the semi-colons and the final ‘or’ indicates that each portion between the
semi-colons is a separate category.”); Davis v. State, 51 Fla. L. Weekly
D1224, D1224 (Fla. 1st DCA June 17, 2026) (declining to adopt any
requirement “that there must be a kidnapping or false imprisonment for the
[section 921.0024(1)(b)] multiplier to apply” because “each portion between
the semi-colons is a separate category”); Igwe v. City of Miami, 208 So. 3d
2
150, 154–55 (Fla. 3d DCA 2016) (“Each category is independent, as the list
is separated by the use of semicolons and by the word ‘or,’ which as used in
a statute, is a disjunctive article indicating an alternative.” (citation modified)).
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