Opinion ID: 2897964
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Whether the Statute is Divisible

Text: Braun concedes that he was convicted of aggravated battery on a pregnant woman under FLA. STAT. § 784.045(1)(b). Ordinarily, our first step is to examine 7 Case: 13-15013 Date Filed: 09/08/2015 Page: 8 of 16 the statute of conviction and compare the elements of that crime to the “generic” (i.e., commonly understood) elements of the enumerated felonies. United States v. Howard, 742 F.3d 1334, 1345 (11th Cir. 2014); see also 18 U.S.C. § 924(e)(2)(B)(ii) (listing the enumerated felonies). This is referred to as the “categorical approach.” Howard, 742 F3d at 1345. However, the Government does not contend that this conviction contains the elements of one of the felonies enumerated in the ACCA (e.g., burglary). Thus, our first inquiry is whether the statute is divisible or indivisible. Id. The statute reads, “[a] person commits aggravated battery if the person who was the victim of the battery was pregnant at the time of the offense and the offender knew or should have known that the victim was pregnant.” Id. Under Florida law, the elements of this crime are (1) a battery, with (2) actual or constructive knowledge that the victim was pregnant. “The offense of battery occurs when a person: (1) [a]ctually and intentionally touches or strikes another person against the will of the other; or (2) [i]ntentionally causes bodily harm to another person.” FLA. STAT. § 784.03(1)(a). Both Braun and the Government contend that this statute is divisible. We agree. Descamps, 133 S. Ct. at 2284 (A divisible statute is one that “comprises multiple, alternative versions of a crime.”). Therefore, there are three ways to commit aggravated battery on a pregnant woman under Florida law: (1) actually and intentionally touching, against her will, a 8 Case: 13-15013 Date Filed: 09/08/2015 Page: 9 of 16 woman that you know or should know is pregnant; (2) actually and intentionally striking, against her will, a woman that you know or should know is pregnant; or (3) intentionally causing bodily harm to a woman that you know or should know is pregnant.