Florida District Courts of Appeal, 1992

Atkins v. State

Atkins v. State
Florida District Courts of Appeal · Decided November 3, 1992 · Cope, Gersten, Nesbitt
606 So. 2d 773; 1992 Fla. App. LEXIS 11346; 1992 WL 317823 (Southern Reporter, Second Series)

Atkins v. State

Opinion of the Court

PER CURIAM.

Affirmed.

NESBITT and COPE, JJ., concur.

Concurring Opinion

GERSTEN, Judge,

specially concurring.

I specially concur.

A trial judge’s determination that a confession was freely and voluntarily made comes to this court with a presumption of correctness. Stone v. Stone, 378 So.2d 765 (Fla. 1979), cert. denied, 449 U.S. 986, 101 S.Ct. 407, 66 L.Ed.2d 250 (1980).

Here, appellant contends that his confession was not free and voluntary based on his age, level of education, and poverty. However, the voluntariness of a confession is judged not just on those specific factors, but rather on the totality of the circumstances. Kight v. State, 512 So.2d 922 (Fla. 1987), cert. denied, 485 U.S. 929, 108 S.Ct. 1100, 99 L.Ed.2d 262 (1988). These circumstances may include mental capacity, physical conditions, demeanor, coherence, articulateness, capacity to make full use of one's faculties, memory, level of education, level of reading skill, time of interrogation, and prior record or experience with the criminal justice system. State v. Crosby, 599 So.2d 138 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992).

Although appellant was young and lacked formal education, he was street-smart and had substantial experience with the criminal justice system. Accordingly, I agree that the trial court’s ruling should be affirmed.

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