State v. N. B.
State v. N. B.
Opinion of the Court
The lower court entered an order quashing several indictments returned against appellees on the grounds that appellees were juveniles, had not been certified as adults, and that speedy trial time had expired prior to the return of the indictments. The state appeals. We reverse.
We disagree with the lower court. Appellees, previously convicted as adults, were not entitled to the procedural safeguards of Chapter 39 or the Juvenile Rules of Procedure prior to their indictments as adults for the six alleged life felonies. Section 39.02(5)(c), Florida Statutes (1977), imposes no conditions to certification of a child to the adult division of the court when an indictment charging the child with a violation of law punishable by death or by life imprisonment is returned by the grand jury. The statute is clear that when such an event occurs, the juvenile division is divested of jurisdiction “and the child shall be handled in every respect as if he were an adult.” Cf. A.D.T. v. State, 318 So.2d 478 (Fla. 1st DCA 1975); Woods v. State, 323 So.2d 609 (Fla. 1st DCA 1975). If, however, the child is not indicted for a capital or life felony, the juvenile division shall exercise jurisdiction over the child until he has been appropriately certified to the adult division. E.H.N. v. Willis, 350 So.2d 829 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977).
The fact that more than 90 days
Subsection (b)(1) of the rule also provides that speedy trial time shall commence when the person is taken into custody as a result of the conduct or when the charge is filed, whichever is earlier. We agree with the trial court that appellees were taken into custody on August 24,1976, when they were advised of their Miranda rights, questioned about the incidents, and advised that charges would probably be filed, although they were not then formally arrested. We consider this case is controlled by Deloach v. State, 338 So.2d 1141 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976), where we held that a defendant was taken into custody for speedy trial purposes at a hospital and, although not placed in actual custody, was informed he was under arrest and subject to the officer’s directions. While Snead v. State, 346 So.2d 546 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976), and State ex rel. Dean v. Booth, 349 So.2d 806 (Fla. 2d DCA 1977), both held that defendants were not in custody following questioning after having been given their Miranda rights, both cases are distinguishable from the present in that the defendants involved in those cases were allowed to leave without being placed under formal arrest. We therefore hold that the two year speedy trial period provided by subsection (b)(1) applied and began to run from August 24, 1976.
The court’s order discharging defendants and quashing the indictments is reversed and the cause remanded for further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion.
. Fla.R.Juv.P. 8.180 provides in part:
(a) Every case in which a petition has been filed alleging a child to be delinquent, ungovernable or dependent shall be brought to an adjudicatory hearing without demand within ninety (90) days of the earliest of the following dates:
11) The date the complaint is filed with the intake officer as provided by statute.
(2) . The date the child was taken into custody.
(3) The date the petition was filed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- STATE of Florida v. N. B., a child, and G. O., a child
- Cited By
- 10 cases
- Status
- Published