Opinion ID: 1092846
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Out-of-State Crimes as Prior Violent Felony Aggravator

Text: I cannot concur with the majority's conclusion that an out-of-state crime must be a felony in that jurisdiction to qualify as a prior violent felony aggravator. Here, Carpenter previously had been convicted of a gross misdemeanor in Nevada for the crime of battery causing substantial bodily harm. As the majority correctly notes, the elements of this Nevada crime are equivalent to the elements of Florida's aggravated battery crime, a felony. I conclude that the trial court correctly held this Nevada conviction qualified as a prior violent felony aggravator under section 921.141(5)(b), Florida Statutes (1993). Article XVI, section 25 of the 1885 Constitution provided: The term felony, whenever it may occur in this Constitution or in the laws of the State, shall be construed to mean any criminal offense punishable with death or imprisonment in the State Penitentiary. This provision, with one substantive change, was carried forward as article X, section 10 of the 1968 Constitution. Article X, section 10 provides: The term `felony' as used herein and in the laws of this state shall mean any criminal offense that is punishable under the laws of this state, or that would be punishable if committed in this state, by death or by imprisonment in the state penitentiary. (Emphasis added.) Talbot Sandy D'Alemberte described the distinction between the above-quoted provisions of the 1885 and the 1968 Constitutions as follows: The addition extends the definition of `felony' to include criminal offenses committed outside this state which, if they were committed in this state, would be punishable by death or by imprisonment in the state penitentiary. 26A Fla.Stat.Ann. 409 (1995) (commentary by Talbot Sandy D'Alemberte). The First District has stated this new provision to the constitutional felony definition unmistakably encompasses crimes committed against other sovereigns, which if committed in Florida would be punishable by a Florida court as a felony. Shields v. Smith, 404 So.2d 1106, 1109-10 (Fla. 1st DCA 1981). The First District also opined that they are compelled to use the constitutional definition of felony whenever the word felony appears in the Florida Statutes. See id. at 1109. I agree with the majority that our previous jurisprudence requires an element-by-element analysis to determine the equivalent Florida crime when reviewing an out-of-state conviction. See Forehand v. State, 537 So.2d 103, 104 (Fla.1989); see also Dautel v. State, 658 So.2d 88, 91 (Fla.1995) (only elements of an out-of-state crime and not underlying facts may be used when determining applicable Florida crime). Where I depart from the majority is in their conclusion that an out-of-state crime must be considered a felony in that jurisdiction before it qualifies as a prior violent felony aggravator under section 921.141(5)(b). I conclude that this is not in accord with article X, section 10 of the Florida Constitution. Article X, section 10 is an explicit definition of the term felony from which neither this Court nor the Legislature may depart. I would conclude that Carpenter's Nevada conviction may be used as an aggravator under section 921.141(5)(b) during a new penalty phase because, as the majority already has noted, Carpenter's Nevada conviction for battery causing substantial bodily harm is equivalent to the Florida felony for aggravated battery.