Court Opinion

ID: 9656674
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-23 19:55:02.387151+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:13:34.321051
License: Public Domain

GROSS, C.J.,
concurring specially.
I acknowledge the line of cases cited by the majority opinion. It is the law. The effect of this law is to require judges to be careful what they say in sentencing.
Whether a criminal defendant is remorseful for what he or she has done has long been a proper factor for a judge to consider in imposing sentence. As we wrote in St. Val v. State, 958 So.2d 1146, 1146-47 (Fla. 4th DCA 2007),
[i]f a defendant is remorseful, it means that he is sorry he committed the crime for which he is to be sentenced. One who so regrets his acts may not commit such acts in the future. This is the type of factor that judges have historically taken into consideration in imposing sentence.
Given the state of the case law, careful judges will not discuss a defendant’s lack of remorse during a sentencing hearing.