Opinion ID: 1960375
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: distinct and independent criminal acts

Text: Few cases from this Court have enunciated guiding principles to apply in making the determination of when a criminal episode involving the taking of property from a single victim gives rise to distinct and independent acts resulting in separate crimes for double jeopardy purposes. In Hearn, 55 So.2d at 560, we addressed whether the defendant could be convicted of multiple counts of larceny for the theft of livestock, and, citing Green v. State, 134 Fla. 216, 183 So. 728 (1938), we recognized the longstanding principle in this State that where property is stolen from the same owner or from different owners at different times or places or as a result of a series of acts, separated in either time, place or circumstances, one from the other each taking is a separate and distinct offense.... If the converse is true, then it should follow that where several articles are taken at the same time and place as one continuous act, though owned by different people, the offense is a single larceny. Each case of this nature must be determined by the facts and circumstances of the particular case. There is some conflict in the cases, but the clear weight of authority is to the effect that the stealing of several articles at the same time and place as one continuous act or transaction is a single offense, even though the property belongs to different owners, for the reason that it is only a single act or taking. Id. Although the stolen livestock in Hearn belonged to different owners, we observed that the nine cows and the two calves were all on the same open range, were rounded up at the same time, were placed in the same truck by the defendants at the same time from the same loading pen. The cattle were all grazing in and around the same area, and apparently were not too far separated by distance, because the act of rounding up, loading, etc., consumed only a few minutes of time. Id. at 560. We held that it would be a violation of the double jeopardy protections of the United States and Florida Constitutions to convict the defendant of multiple offenses and impose multiple punishments because only one criminal act had taken place. See id. at 561. We determined that the defendant stole property belonging to different owners at the same time, from the same place, and under the same circumstances with the same intent. Id. Therefore, in Hearn, the fact that the property belonged to different owners was not dispositive. The Court in Hearn adopted the single larceny rule by concluding that it was the fact that the taking of the property occurred at the same time, same place, and under the same circumstances that prohibited charging the defendants with multiple counts of larceny: We will align ourselves with the majority rule in this country because we feel that to permit the dividing into several larcenies of objects which are the subject of larceny, although belonging to separate owners, when stolen at the same time, from the same place, and under the same circumstances with the same intent, would be violative of the spirit of the Constitution of the United States and the State of Florida that a man should not be put in jeopardy twice for the same offense. Id. (emphasis supplied) [8] . Two years later, the Court distinguished Hearn in Hall v. State, 66 So.2d 863 (Fla. 1953). In Hall, the defendant stole cattle belonging to two separate owners from two separate pastures. We reaffirmed the holding of Green, that the takings of articles belonging to different owners at different times or from different places constitute distinct and independent larcenies. Id. at 864. Consequently, we rejected the defendant's argument that there was only one crime committed. See id.