Johnson v. State
The Third DCA affirmed convictions for second-degree murder and felon-in-possession following a bifurcated retrial, rejecting both an unpreserved ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim and a challenge to the Brown colloquy accompanying the felon-status stipulation. The court held that unpreserved IAC claims are not cognizable on direct appeal absent fundamental error, and that the defendant's written and personally-acknowledged stipulation to his felon status, combined with an on-the-record colloquy, satisfied Brown's requirements.
Key facts
- Johnson was convicted of second-degree murder and felon-in-possession following a bifurcated retrial in the trial court.
- Johnson appealed, raising an unpreserved ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim and challenging the Brown colloquy that accompanied his stipulation to felon status.
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Why it matters
This opinion reinforces the narrow pathway for raising ineffective-assistance claims on direct appeal under Steiger, reminding practitioners that such claims almost always belong in a 3.850 motion absent an… — full analysis with a trial
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