Case Name: Manatee Mobley BAKER, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 1988-08-22
Citations: 530 So. 2d 402
Docket Number: No. 87-435
Parties: Manatee Mobley BAKER, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
Judges: BOOTH, J., concurs.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 530
Pages: 402–403

Head Matter:
Manatee Mobley BAKER, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
No. 87-435.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, First District.
Aug. 22, 1988.
Michael E. Allen, Public Defender, Phil Patterson, Asst. Public Defender, for appellant.
Robert A. Butterworth, Atty. Gen., Bradford L. Thomas, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appel-lee.

Opinion:
WENTWORTH, Judge.
Appellant seeks review of judgments of conviction and a sentence which departed from the Fla.R.Crim.P. 3.701 guidelines recommendation. Among other assertions, appellant contends that his multiple convictions for both selling and possessing cocaine are prohibited by the double jeopardy analysis in Carawan v. State, 515 So.2d 161 (Fla.1987). However, the record indicates that after consummating the sale appellant subsequently obtained other cocaine which he thereafter possessed. Since these were separate and distinct acts, multiple convictions are permissible. See Carawan, supra, fn. 8; see also Gordon v. State, 528 So.2d 910 (Fla. 2d DCA 1988), fn. 2.
In departing from the guidelines recommendation the court referenced appellant's "gradual acceleration" of criminal behavior, describing his progression from misdemeanor possession of marijuana to the sale of cocaine. An escalating course of criminal conduct has been approved as a permissible reason for departing from a guidelines recommendation. See Keys v. State, 500 So.2d 134 (Fla.1986). Although the court also referenced other impermissible considerations, we are convinced that the absence of the invalid reasons would not have affected the sentence imposed.
Appellant's other assertions of error are without merit, and in accordance with Al-britton v. State, 476 So.2d 158 (Fla.1985), we affirm the orders appealed.
BOOTH, J., concurs.
ERVIN, J., concurs and dissents with written opinion.