Case Name: The STATE of Florida, Petitioner, v. John M. BUTLER, Respondent
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 1991-10-29
Citations: 587 So. 2d 1391
Docket Number: No. 91-703
Parties: The STATE of Florida, Petitioner, v. John M. BUTLER, Respondent.
Judges: Before FERGUSON, COPE and GERSTEN, JJ.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 587
Pages: 1391–1395

Head Matter:
The STATE of Florida, Petitioner, v. John M. BUTLER, Respondent.
No. 91-703.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District.
Oct. 29, 1991.
Robert A. Butterworth, Atty. Gen., and Avi J. Litwin, Asst. Atty. Gen., for petitioner.
John M. Butler, in pro. per.
Before FERGUSON, COPE and GERSTEN, JJ.

Opinion:
FERGUSON, Judge.
Florida Game and Fresh' Water Fish Commission officers visited the unem ployed respondent's mobile home to investigate circumstances surrounding his acquisition of two alligators and request for a permit to possess them as pets. When the officers arrived they found both alligators in the respondent's bed. Respondent was bleeding from an injury caused by one of the animals. The officers photographed the scene, concluded that the respondent's home lacked proper facilities for the animals, cited the respondent for violations of Florida Administrative Code provisions which regulate the possession of wildlife, and seized the two alligators. It was learned in the course of the investigation that one animal was taken from the wild and the other was purchased.
At the initial hearing, where there was no appearance by the State, the county court dismissed the charges for lack of prosecution. The court then granted the respondent's motion for return of the alligators. On rehearing, a county court judge set aside the order granting the return of the property. He ruled that the respondent had no right to possess the alligators without a state-issued permit.
An appeal to the circuit court resulted in a reversal of the county court order. As grounds for its holding, the circuit court reasoned:
The alligators were seized and kept without providing Mr. Butler a due process hearing, in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and Article I, Section 9 of the Florida Constitution.
We quash the opinion of the circuit court as a clear departure from the essential requirements of law, and reinstate the order of the county court.
An essential element of a claim that the due process clause has been violated is a showing that the complaining party has been deprived of a constitutionally protected interest; absent such a right or interest, and a deprivation, there can be no denial of due process. Economic Dev. Corp. v. Stierheim, 782 F.2d 952 (11th Cir.1986). Whether there is a property interest in wildlife is a matter of state law. See Davis v. Scherer, 468 U.S. 183, 104 S.Ct. 3012, 82 L.Ed.2d 139 (1984).
It is a long-standing common-law principle that title to wildlife is vested in the State, as trustee for all citizens, and that the State has both the authority and the right to regulate and protect wildlife resources. Alford v. Finch, 155 So.2d 790 (Fla.1963); State v. Lee, 41 So.2d 662 (Fla.1949); Hamilton v. Williams, 145 Fla. 697, 200 So. 80 (1941). It is also codified that, "all wild animal life within the jurisdiction of the State of Florida is the property of the State." Fla.Admin.Code Rule 39-1.002.
Florida's Constitution vests responsibility in the Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission to regulate wildlife resources. Art. IV, § 9, Fla. Const. Within the scope of its constitutional and statutory authority, the Commission defines the conditions under which state wildlife may be possessed as lawful private property. The American alligator is designated as a wildlife species of special concern which may not be held for sale without a state license, or possessed without a permit issued under the authority of the Commission. Fla.Admin.Code Rule 39-27.005(19).
In this case there was no dispute that the respondent did not have the required license and permit and there was no challenge to the administrative requirements for the issuance of a permit. For purposes of this appeal, we must presume that Butler's possession of the alligators was unlawful. Bare possession of the animals without the required license and permit was insufficient to establish any right to a pre-seizure hearing with notice and a right to be heard. The circuit court ruling that the respondent was entitled to possess the wild animals simply because he had been denied adequate notice and an opportunity to be heard was erroneous.
Certiorari granted.
GERSTEN, J., concurs.
. Section 39-25.002(1), Fla.Admin.Code, sets forth the general provisions for the taking, possession, and sale of reptiles, and provides:
No person shall buy, sell, take or possess any alligator, crocodile, or any part thereof, or the nests or eggs of any alligator or crocodile except under permit from the executive director or as otherwise provided by these rules.
Section 39-6.011(1) is entitled "Possession of Wildlife in Captivity; Permit Requirements", and states: "Except as otherwise provided in this title, no person shall possess any native or non-native wildlife in captivity except as authorized by permit.... "
. Fuentes v. Shevin, 407 U.S. 67, 92 S.Ct. 1983, 32 L.Ed.2d 556 (1972), which invalidated Florida's prejudgment replevin statute for its failure to provide a hearing prior to the seizure of chattel from its possessor, is distinguishable because there the court found "[cjlearly, their pos-sessory interest in the goods, dearly bought and protected by contract, was sufficient to invoke the protection of the Due Process Clause." 407 U.S. at 87, 92 S.Ct. at 1997, 32 L.Ed.2d at 573. No property rights exist in per se contraband, the mere possession of which constitutes a crime. See One 1958 Plymouth Sedan v. Pennsylvania, 380 U.S. 693, 699, 85 S.Ct. 1246, 1250, 14 L.Ed.2d 170 (1965); § 933.14, Fla.Stat. (1989).
It is unnecessary to reach the question of an entitlement to a post-seizure hearing for three reasons: (1) it was not raised by the petitioner and was not a basis for the circuit court's decision, (2) there were no other exigent circumstances to wárrant a hearing such as a pendency of related criminal charges, compare State v. Laiser, 322 So.2d 490 (Fla.1975), and (3) there was a post-seizure hearing where the county court found that the petitioner did not have a permit to possess the alligator.
. Our conclusion on the constitutional claim does not dispose of the case to a finality. The respondent may still pursue the issuance of a permit. There has not been a formal ruling on his application for a permit to possess the two deformed alligators.