Case Name: Freddie JOHNSON, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 2002-08-22
Citations: 824 So. 2d 297
Docket Number: No. 1D01-2675
Parties: Freddie JOHNSON, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
Judges: ALLEN, C.J., BROWNING and LEWIS, JJ., concur.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 824
Pages: 297–298

Head Matter:
Freddie JOHNSON, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
No. 1D01-2675.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, First District.
Aug. 22, 2002.
Nancy Daniels, Public Defender, and Paula S. Saunders, Assistant Public Defender, Tallahassee, for Appellant.
Robert A. Butterworth, Attorney General, and Kenneth D. Pratt, Assistant Attorney General, Tallahassee, for Appellee.

Opinion:
PER CURIAM.
The appellant in this direct criminal appeal challenges the sufficiency of the trial court's Faretta inquiry when it permitted him to waive his court-appointed counsel and proceed pro se at sentencing. Once a criminal defendant unequivocally exercises his Sixth Amendment right to waive court-appointed counsel and chooses to represent himself, the trial court must conduct an inquiry to determine whether the defendant is competent to make the choice and does so knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily. Fla. R.Crim. P. 3.111(d)(2); Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806, 95 S.Ct. 2525, 45 L.Ed.2d 562 (1975). After thoroughly reviewing the record in this case, we conclude that the trial court failed to sufficiently conduct the required inquiry when the appellant unequivocally expressed his desire to waive court-appointed counsel. The appellant's conviction is affirmed, but his sentence is vacated and this case is remanded for resentencing.
ALLEN, C.J., BROWNING and LEWIS, JJ., concur.