2D03-4040 / Shepherd v. State

State: Florida

Court: Florida Southern District Court

Docket No: 2D03-4040

Case Date: 08/03/2005

Plaintiff: 2D03-4040 / Shepherd

Defendant: State

Preview:NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE REHEARING MOTION AND, IF FILED, DETERMINED IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF FLORIDA SECOND DISTRICT

MICHAEL SHEPHERD, Appellant, v. STATE OF FLORIDA, Appellee. Opinion filed August 3, 2005.

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Case No. 2D03-4040

Appeal from the Circuit Court for Pinellas County; Philip J. Federico, Judge. James Marion Moorman, Public Defender, and Jeffrey Sullivan, Special Assistant Public Defender, Bartow, for Appellant. Charles J. Crist, Jr., Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Anne Sheer Weiner, Assistant Attorney General, Tampa, for Appellee. CASANUEVA, Judge. Michael Shepherd appeals his convictions and sentences for two counts of lewd molestation of a child less than twelve years of age, a first-degree felony in violation of section 800.04(5), Florida Statutes (2001). He raises four issues; the State concedes error on one. We conclude there was no error on the first three issues and

decline to reach the fourth, the issue on which the State concedes error. We write briefly only to address the problem raised in the fourth issue. We affirm the first three issues that Mr. Shepherd raises because we find no basis to reverse (1) the court's decision to admit evidence of prior bad acts pursuant to section 90.404(2)(b)(1), Florida Statutes (2001); (2) the court's decision to limit crossexamination of the Williams1 rule witness; or (3) the court's order denying Mr. Shepherd's motion to suppress inculpatory statements he made to an investigating officer. It is the fourth issue, Mr. Shepherd's designation as a sexual predator, that presents a concern. See Coblentz v. State, 775 So. 2d 359 (Fla. 2d DCA 2000) (expressing uncertainty as to which vehicle of appellate review is available to defendants alleging improper designation as sexual predators). When a person is convicted of certain sexual crimes, the order designating that person a "sexual predator" pursuant to section 775.21, Florida Statutes (2001), is technically civil in nature. See Collie v. State, 710 So. 2d 1000, 1006 (Fla. 2d DCA 1998) (holding that sexual predator status is not a portion of the sentence and thus is a finding that is civil in nature). The plain language of the statute speaks for itself: "The designation of a person as a sexual predator is neither a sentence nor a punishment but simply a status resulting from the conviction of certain crimes."

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