Adams v. State
Adams v. State
Opinion of the Court
Frank L. Adams, Jr. appeals the denial of his motion for return of personal property seized during his criminal prosecution. We reverse.
The State charged Adams with one count of possession of sexual performance by a child, one count of tampering with physical evidence, four counts of video voyeurism, and one count of interception of oral communications. During the course of its investigation, Putnam County law enforcement seized Adams's personal property pursuant to multiple search warrants. A jury acquitted Adams on the charge of possession of sexual performance by a child but found him guilty on the remaining charges. This Court affirmed Adams's conviction and issued a mandate on September 20, 2013. See Adams v. State,
On October 17, 2016, more than three years after this Court issued its mandate, Adams filed a motion for return of personal property based on section 95.11(3)(i), Florida Statutes (2010). In his motion, Adams identified seventeen items that law enforcement seized pursuant to the search warrants as well as one additional item. He alleged that the seized property was his personal property, was not the fruit of criminal activity, and that the State was not holding the items as evidence. The trial court summarily denied Adams's motion.
On appeal, Adams argues that the trial court reversibly erred by entering the order "without first ordering a response by the State, attaching portions of the record conclusively refuting [his] claim, or conducting an evidentiary hearing in the matter." The State responds that Adams's motion is governed by section 705.105(1), Florida Statutes (2010), and that the trial court properly denied it because it was untimely.
This Court reviews an order summarily denying a motion for return of seized property de novo. Peterson v. State,
Section 95.11(3)(i), under which Adams moved, governs actions to recover specific personal property and imposes a four-year statute of limitations for such actions. Section 705.105, which the State relies upon, governs the disposition of "unclaimed evidence" and requires a defendant to move within sixty days of the conclusion of the proceeding, i.e., when "the mandate issues *197from the appellate court on a direct appeal of a defendant's judgment and sentence." Davis v. State,
Section 705.105 applies where the seized property is "intended for use in a criminal or quasi-criminal proceeding ." § 705.101(6), Fla. Stat. (2010) (emphasis added). Section 95.11(3)(i) applies where law enforcement did not seize the property as evidence or pursuant to a lawful investigation, such as where a defendant's property is held for safekeeping upon arrest. See Stevenson v. State,
When summarily denying a motion pursuant to section 705.105(1), the trial court must determine the statute's applicability and "is obliged to attach portions of the record showing that the property was seized pursuant to a lawful investigation or held as evidence ." White v. State,
Where a defendant untimely moves under section 95.11(3)(i), the trial court may summarily deny the motion and is not required to attach records to its order. E.g., Poux v. State,
Here, because Adams filed a facially sufficient motion for return of seized property, the trial court had inherent authority and jurisdiction to effectuate its return. E.g., Scott v. State,
On remand, the court must determine which statute applies. See White,
If the court determines that Adams's property is not subject to section 705.105(1), then section 95.11(3)(i) applies. In that case, because Adams filed his motion before the expiration of the applicable four-year limitations period, his property should be returned so long as the State is "unable to connect the items to specific criminal activity, and no one else can be identified who can demonstrate a superior possessory interest in the property." Clinton v. State,
REVERSED and REMANDED with instructions.
EVANDER, C.J., COHEN and EDWARDS, JJ., concur.
If Adams filed his motion outside of the four-year limitations period in section 95.11(3)(i), such attachments would not be required. See Poux,
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.