SC10-1852 – D.J. v. State of Florida

State: Florida

Docket No: SC10-1852

Case Date: 07/07/2011

Preview:Supreme Court of Florida
____________ No. SC10-1852 ____________ D.J., Petitioner, vs. STATE OF FLORIDA, Respondent. [July 7, 2011] QUINCE, J. We have for review the decision of the Third District Court of Appeal in D.J. v. State, 43 So. 3d 176 (Fla. 3d DCA 2010). In its opinion, the Third District affirmed a juvenile's conviction for trespassing upon the grounds of a school facility in violation of section 810.097(2), Florida Statutes (2009). We granted review to resolve a conflict between the T hird District's decision and the decision of this Court in State v. Dye, 346 So. 2d 538 (Fla. 1977), on the question of whether the prosecution must prove the identity of the individual who warned the defendant to leave the grounds of the school, and that individual's authority to

restrict access to the property, as essential elements of the trespass offense. 1 We conclude that the individual's identity and authority are essential elements of the offense and quash the decision of the Third District. Further, because in this case the State failed to present any evidence demonstrating that the petitioner was warned to leave by the school's principal or a designee of the principal, we find that the petitioner's conviction must be vacated. BACKGROUND The petitioner in this case is D.J., a juvenile. On January 14, 2009, a petition for delinquency was filed in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit charging the petitioner with a violation of section 810.097(2), Florida Statutes (2009). The statute provides: Any person who enters or remains upon the campus or other facility of a school after the principal of such school, or his or her designee, has directed such person to leave such campus or facility or not to enter upon the campus or facility, commits a trespass upon the grounds of a school facility and is guilty of a misdemeanor in the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

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