18-4289
The Second District affirmed Carrion's convictions but addressed whether it could correct an unpreserved scrivener's error in the judgment (which incorrectly reflected a guilty plea rather than a jury verdict). The majority held that, under section 924.051(3) and Thomas v. State, an unpreserved, non-fundamental scrivener's error cannot be corrected on direct appeal even where the State concedes the error, and that a rule 3.800(b) motion is the required preservation vehicle for such errors. The court affirmed without prejudice to Carrion filing a postconviction motion, certified conflict with the Fifth DCA's recent Rivas decision, and certified a question of great public importance to the Florida Supreme Court regarding appellate courts' authority to note and remand unpreserved scrivener's errors.
Key facts
- Defendant Carrion was convicted by jury, but the written judgment incorrectly reflected a guilty plea instead of a jury verdict.
- Carrion appealed his convictions, and the appellate court identified the scrivener's error in the judgment but Carrion had not preserved the error through trial objection or a rule 3.800(b) motion.
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Why it matters
This opinion is important for criminal appellate practitioners because it sharply defines (and creates inter-district conflict on) the limits of appellate courts' authority to correct unpreserved scrivener's errors in… — full analysis with a trial
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