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Parker v. State
Citations: 465 So. 2d 1361; 10 Fla. L. Weekly 785Docket: AY-438
Court: District Court of Appeal of Florida; March 25, 1985; Florida; State Appellate Court
Darrell Earl Parker appealed a sentence imposed for burglary of a structure, arguing that the trial court incorrectly declined to apply the presumptive range under Florida's Rule 3.701 sentencing guidelines. After failing to appear at a scheduled sentencing in August 1983, Parker was taken into custody, and a sentencing hearing occurred in April 1984. At this hearing, Parker chose to proceed under the Rule 3.701 guidelines. The State argued that the guidelines should not apply since they were not effective when Parker missed the initial hearing. Nonetheless, the court sentenced him beyond the presumptive guidelines, citing his earlier failure to appear. The appellate court found this reasoning erroneous. It established that a defendant's failure to appear for a pre-guideline sentencing does not preclude that defendant from electing to use the guidelines after their effective date. Citing precedents (Harms v. State, Query v. State, Knight v. State), the court emphasized that exceeding the presumptive sentence based solely on a failure to appear contradicts the intent of the guidelines, which should not be bypassed in this manner. Thus, the court ruled that Parker was entitled to the application of the Rule 3.701 guidelines and remanded the case for resentencing, reversing the original order. Judges Thompson and Wigginton concurred with the decision.