Maine v. State
Maine v. State
Opinion of the Court
ORDER ON MOTION TO QUASH
The circuit court issued two orders which denied appellant’s request for transcripts in this direct criminal appeal. We grant appellant’s motion to quash those orders.
Appellant violated probation, accepted a plea bargain and received a sentence less than that provided for by the criminal punishment code. The circuit court found appellant to be indigent and required the state to pay all costs necessary for the prosecution of the appeal, except for the transcripts. The court stated that appellant had waived his right to appeal except for the legality of his sentence and found the sentence to be legal. The court stated that because appellant had no right to appeal a legal sentence, the costs of the transcripts for purposes of the appeal, if appellant insisted on pursuing it, should be borne by him and not by the state.
Appellant moves to quash the circuit court’s orders stating that he has complied with all pleading requirements to obtain a transcript. Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.140(b) allows for this appeal from the revocation of probation and imposition of sentence. Appellant states that the fact that he entered a plea does not preclude him from pursuing his direct appeal with a record on appeal. See State v. Trowell, 739 So.2d 77 (Fla. 1999); Ford v. State, 575 So.2d 1335 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991). The state takes no position on appellant’s motion.
In a direct criminal appeal, an indigent is entitled to have all proceedings transcribed at public expense that are necessary to support the appellant’s claims. See Griffin v. Illinois, 351 U.S. 12, 76 S.Ct. 585, 100 L.Ed. 891 (1956) (holding that as a matter of equal protection, the state must provide indigent defendants with the basic tools of an adequate defense or appeal, when those tools are available for a price to other defendants). A trial court cannot withhold transcripts based on a belief that no reversible error occurred below. See Eskridge v. Washington State Bd. of Prison Terms and Paroles, 357 U.S. 214, 216, 78 S.Ct. 1061, 2 L.Ed.2d 1269
Without a transcript, this court will not be able to evaluate, among other things, whether the oral pronouncement of sentence comported with the written sentence. Here, although the trial court is convinced that the sentence imposed is legal, that is a judgment for the appellate court to make, after a review of the record, including the transcripts. To hold otherwise would provide a defendant who has the financial means to pay for a transcript a greater review than an indigent defendant. “Destitute defendants must be afforded as adequate appellate review as defendants who have money enough to buy transcripts.” Griffin, 351 U.S. at 19, 76 S.Ct. 585. Accordingly, we quash the orders of the trial court with directions to enter all such orders as are necessary for appellant to obtain a transcript of the plea and sentencing hearing.
MOTION GRANTED; ORDERS QUASHED WITH DIRECTIONS.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.