Opinion ID: 1713763
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Venireperson Sthilaire

Text: Appellant argues that the trial court improperly granted the State's peremptory strike against Ms. Sthilaire because the race-neutral reason provided by the State was factually incorrect. During voir dire, the prosecutor asked Ms. Sthilaire for two or three things that she believed caused people to commit crimes. Ms. Sthilaire responded, Mystery question. Really. I don't really, I can't answer you because I believe that it all depends on the individual. Different cases and different situations. I really couldn't answer. The prosecutor also asked her about her previous trial experience, in which she was a juror. Ms. Sthilaire stated that she was not able to reach a verdict in that case. Later, when asked about her views on the death penalty and whether she could recommend a sentence of death, Ms. Sthilaire answered that she could recommend a sentence of death. The prosecutor subsequently moved to strike Ms. Sthilaire. Parker's attorney objected and asked for a race-neutral reason for the peremptory strike. [12] The prosecutor responded: [F]irst one would be when I asked her with regards to the death penalty, she said that's the mystery question. She didn't have an answer. More importantly, number two, she sat on a case before, was a hung jury. The court overruled the objection, finding both reasons to be race-neutral, made in good faith and not pretextual. Neither defense counsel objected to the reasons provided or notified the court that the prosecutor had misquoted the juror. Once the twelve members of the jury were selected, neither defendant objected to the panel as selected. This issue was not preserved for appellate review because appellant accepted the jury as selected and did not renew an objection concerning Ms. Sthilaire prior to the jury being sworn. See Franqui v. State, 699 So.2d 1332, 1334 (Fla.1997); Joiner v. State, 618 So.2d 174 (Fla.1993). It is reasonable to conclude that by not renewing the objection prior to the jury being sworn, appellant abandoned any prior objection he may have had and was satisfied with the selected jury. See Joiner, 618 So.2d at 176 ([C]ounsel's action in accepting the jury led to a reasonable assumption that he had abandoned, for whatever reason, his earlier objection. It is reasonable to conclude that events occurring subsequent to his objection caused him to be satisfied with the jury about to be sworn.). Appellant also failed to preserve this issue for review because he did not challenge the State's race-neutral reason for the strike. In Melbourne v. State, 679 So.2d 759 (Fla.1996), we explained the process for objecting to a peremptory strike on racial grounds as follows: A party objecting to the other side's use of a peremptory challenge on racial grounds must: a) make a timely objection on that basis, b) show that the venireperson is a member of a distinct racial group, and c) request that the court ask the striking party its reason for the strike. If these initial requirements are met (step 1), the court must ask the proponent of the strike to explain the reason for the strike. At this point, the burden of production shifts to the proponent of the strike to come forward with a race-neutral explanation (step 2). If the explanation is facially race-neutral and the court believes that, given all the circumstances surrounding the strike, the explanation is not a pretext, the strike will be sustained (step 3). The court's focus in step 3 is not on the reasonableness of the explanation but rather its genuineness. Throughout this process, the burden of persuasion never leaves the opponent of the strike to prove purposeful racial discrimination. Id. at 764 (footnotes omitted) (emphasis added). This Court added that reviewing courts should keep in mind two principles when enforcing the above guidelines. First, peremptories are presumed to be exercised in a nondiscriminatory manner. Second, the trial court's decision turns primarily on an assessment of credibility and will be affirmed on appeal unless clearly erroneous. Id. at 764-65 (footnote omitted). We further noted that [t]hroughout this process, the burden of persuasion never leaves the opponent of the strike to prove purposeful racial discrimination. Id. at 764. In Floyd v. State, 569 So.2d 1225 (Fla. 1990), the defendant failed to challenge the State's asserted reason for the peremptory strike, which the trial court had accepted as supported in the record but later turned out to be not true. In rejecting the defendant's challenge on appeal, we stated: It is the state's obligation to advance a facially race-neutral reason that is supported in the record. If the explanation is challenged by opposing counsel, the trial court must review the record to establish record support for the reason advanced. However, when the state asserts a fact as existing in the record, the trial court cannot be faulted for assuming it is so when defense counsel is silent and the assertion remains unchallenged. Once the state has proffered a facially race-neutral reason, a defendant must place the court on notice that he or she contests the factual existence of the reason. Here, the error was easily correctable. Had defense counsel disputed the state's statement, the court would have been compelled to ascertain from the record if the state's assertion was true. Had the court determined that there was no factual basis for the challenge, the state's explanation no longer could have been considered a race-neutral explanation, and Juror Edmonds could not have been peremptorily excused. Because defense counsel failed to object to the prosecutor's explanation, the Neil issue was not properly preserved for review. Id. at 1229-30; see also State v. Fox, 587 So.2d 464 (Fla.1991). Likewise, here, the factual accuracy of the reason offered by the State could easily have been determined by reviewing the record. The trial court in this instance cannot be faulted for accepting the facial reason offered by the State, especially where the State's factual assertion went unchallenged by the defense. Accordingly, we conclude that appellant has failed to preserve this issue for appellate review.