Aric A. Williams v. State of Florida
Annotate this Case
Download PDF
Supreme Court of Florida ____________ No. SC96672 ____________ ARIC A. WILLIAMS, Petitioner, vs. STATE OF FLORIDA, Respondent. [January 11, 2001] LEWIS, J. We have for review Williams v. State, 738 So. 2d 1032 (Fla. 5th DCA 1999), which expressly and directly conflicts with the opinion in State v. Cotton, 728 So. 2d 251 (Fla. 2d DCA 1998), quashed, 769 So. 2d 345 (Fla. 2000). We have jurisdiction. See Art. V, § 3(b)(3), Fla. Const. Williams challenges his five-year prison sentence under the Prison Releasee Reoffender Act1 (the Act ) on several grounds, all of which have been addressed 1 See § 775.082(8), Fla. Stat. (1997). by this Court in other opinions. See McKnight v. State, 769 So. 2d 1039 (Fla. 2000) (holding that a defendant has the right both to present evidence to prove that the defendant does not qualify for sentencing under the Act, and to challenge the State s evidence regarding the defendant s eligibility for sentencing as a prison releasee reoffender); Grant v. State, 25 Fla. L. Weekly S1032 (Fla. Nov. 2, 2000) (rejecting an ex post facto challenge to the Act and holding that the Act does not violate the single subject rule for legislation, nor does it violate principles of equal protection or subject defendants sentenced under it to double jeopardy); Ellis v. State, 762 So. 2d 912 (Fla. 2000) (recognizing that, [a]s to notice, publication in the Laws of Florida or the Florida Statutes gives all citizens constructive notice of the consequences of their actions ) (quoting State v. Beasley, 580 So. 2d 139, 142 (Fla. 1991)); State v. Cotton, 769 So. 2d 345 (Fla. 2000) (holding that the Act does not violate separation of powers, is not void for vagueness, and does not violate principles of due process by allowing a victim veto precluding application of the Act). Accordingly, the decision in Williams is approved to the extent it is consistent with Cotton,2 Ellis, McKnight, and Grant. It is so ordered. 2 The district court, in affirming Williams sentence, cites to Speed v. State, 732 So. 2d 17 (Fla. 5th DCA), review granted, 743 So. 2d 15 (Fla. 1999). In Cotton, we disapproved the decision in Speed to the extent that it was inconsistent with our opinion in Cotton. -2- WELLS, C.J., and SHAW, HARDING, ANSTEAD and PARIENTE, JJ., concur. QUINCE, J., dissents with an opinion. NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE REHEARING MOTION, AND IF FILED, DETERMINED. QUINCE, J., dissenting. I dissent for the reasons stated in my dissent in State v. Cotton, 769 So. 2d 345, 358-59 (Fla. 2000). Application for Review of the Decision of the District Court of Appeal Statutory Validity Fifth District - Case No. 5D99-362 (Seminole County) James B. Gibson, Public Defender, and Lyle R. Hitchens, Assistant Public Defender, Seventh Judicial Circuit, Daytona Beach, Florida, for Petitioner Robert A. Butterworth, Attorney General, and Kellie A. Nielan, Carmen F. Corrente, and Kristen L. Davenport, Assistant Attorneys General, Daytona Beach, Florida, for Respondent -3-
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
