Ronald A. Thomas Jr. v. State of Florida
Ronald A. Thomas Jr. v. State of Florida
Opinion of the Court
The appellant challenges the denial of his motion to correct illegal sentence filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a). For the reasons discussed below, we reverse and remand for the trial court to give the appellant an opportunity to file his claim in a facially sufficient rule 3.850 motion.
The appellant alleges that one of his prior convictions was scored improperly on his scoresheet. Because the motion was filed pursuant to rule 3.800(a) and did not meet the pleading requirements of rule 3.850, the trial court applied the “could-have-been-imposed” test and denied relief.
If treated as a rule 3.850 motion the appellant may have been entitled to relief
. We do not address the merits of appellant’s challenge to his scoresheet.
Dissenting Opinion
dissenting.
I respectfully dissent for I do not believe our decision in Kelsey v. State supports reversal in this instance. The rule 3.800(a) motion in Kelsey was sworn, and the post-conviction court expressly concluded that, had the claim been raised in a rule 3.850 motion, resentencing would be required. 97 So.2d at 979. Neither circumstance occurred here. The appellant in this case chose a rule 3.800(a) motion as the vehicle for challenging his sentence. The motion “is not sworn and does not otherwise comply with the technical requirements of [rule 3.850].” (Maj. op. at 160.) The lower court correctly applied the “could-have-been-imposed” test to the appellant’s motion and correctly denied it. Consequently, we should affirm the order on appeal.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.