Title: Christopher Lee Allen v. State of Florida

State: florida

Issuer: Florida Supreme Court

Document:

Supreme Court of Florida 
 
 
____________ 
 
No. SC07-763 
____________ 
 
CHRISTOPHER LEE ALLEN,  
Petitioner, 
 
vs. 
 
STATE OF FLORIDA,  
Respondent. 
 
[March 19, 2009] 
 
PER CURIAM. 
 
We have for review Allen v. State, 951 So. 2d 1035 (Fla. 4th DCA 
2007), in which the Fourth District Court of Appeal relied upon its decision 
in Yisrael v. State, 938 So. 2d 546 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006) (en banc), 
disapproved in part, 993 So. 2d 952 (Fla. 2008), and affirmed the trial court 
without further elaboration.  At the time that petitioner sought to invoke this 
Court’s discretionary jurisdiction, Yisrael was pending review.  We have 
jurisdiction.  See art. V, § 3(b)(3), Fla. Const.; Jollie v. State, 405 So. 2d 
418, 420 (Fla. 1981). 
 
We stayed proceedings in this case pending our disposition of Yisrael, 
in which we:  (1) approved the decision of the First District in Gray v. State, 
910 So. 2d 867 (Fla. 1st DCA 2005), and (2) disapproved the reasoning and 
rule of law articulated by the Fourth District in its underlying decision, but 
ultimately approved the result reached by that court on other grounds.  See 
Yisrael v. State, 993 So. 2d 952, 960-61 (Fla. 2008).  We subsequently 
issued an order directing the State to show cause why we should not accept 
jurisdiction, summarily quash the decision under review, and remand for 
reconsideration in light of our decision in Yisrael.  In response, the State 
asserts that documents submitted during sentencing complied with this 
Court’s Yisrael decision.  However, the full appellate record is not before 
the Court, and the Fourth District is a more appropriate forum in which to 
raise these factual contentions that were not addressed within the four 
corners of the district court’s opinion below.  
 
Accordingly, we grant the petition for review, quash, and remand to 
the Fourth District Court of Appeal for reconsideration upon application of 
our decision in Yisrael. 
 
It is so ordered.  
QUINCE, C.J., and PARIENTE, LEWIS, CANADY, and POLSTON, JJ., concur. 
LABARGA, J., recused. 
 
 
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NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE REHEARING MOTION, AND 
IF FILED, DETERMINED. 
 
 
Application for Review of the Decision of the District Court of Appeal - Direct 
Conflict of Decisions 
 
 
Fourth District - Case No. 4D04-4972 
 
 
(Palm Beach County) 
 
Carey Haughwout, Public Defender, and John M. Conway, Assistant Public 
Defender, Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, West Palm Beach, Florida, 
 
 
for Petitioner 
 
Bill McCollum, Attorney General, Tallahassee, Florida, Celia a. Terenzio, Bureau 
Chief, August A. Bonavita and Richard Valuntas, Assistant Attorney General, 
West Palm Beach, Florida, 
 
 
for Respondent