Opinion
No. 2D20-3052
10-13-2021
Mark AGENOR, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
Mark Agenor, pro se.
Mark Agenor, pro se.
Mark Agenor appeals the partial denial of his motion to correct sentence filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.800(a). We reverse insofar as the order rejected Agenor's assertion that his sentence for count III of circuit court case number 2015-CF-7225 should reflect his entitlement to a judicial review.
In that count Agenor was convicted of a burglary with an assault or battery, committed when he was seventeen years old. The trial court sentenced him to twenty-five years in prison. In 2020, Agenor filed a postconviction motion seeking to have his sentences on several counts in two cases corrected to reflect that he is entitled to a judicial review of his sentences under sections 775.082 and 921.1402, Florida Statutes (2015) (providing for judicial review for juvenile offenders for certain offenses and sentence lengths). The State opposed the motion as to the count at issue here, arguing that burglary with an assault or battery is a "simple first[-]degree felony" to which the review statutes did not apply. The postconviction court, apparently persuaded by the State's argument, denied Agenor any relief on count III.
But the State's argument and the postconviction court's ruling were incorrect. Section 810.02(2)(a), Florida Statutes (2015), plainly categorizes burglary with an assault or battery as a "felony of the first degree, punishable by imprisonment for a term of years not exceeding life imprisonment." See also Bowers v. State , 679 So. 2d 340, 341 (Fla. 1st DCA 1996) ("[B]urglary with assault is a first[ ]degree felony punishable by life."). In turn, sections 775.082(3)(c) and 921.1402(2)(d) provide that a person under the age of eighteen, who commits any felony punishable by life (other than those listed in the murder statute, section 784.02) and who is sentenced to a term of more than twenty years, is entitled to a review of that sentence after the first twenty years are served. See also Graham v. State , 286 So. 3d 800, 803 (Fla. 1st DCA 2019) (explaining the different classifications of offenses eligible for review under section 921.1402 ). Clearly, Agenor's conviction and twenty-five-year sentence on count III qualify for a twenty-year review.
Therefore, we reverse the order on appeal as to count III of case number 2015-CF-7225. On remand, the court shall amend Agenor's sentence on this count to reflect that he is entitled to a judicial review after twenty years in accordance with this opinion and the cited statutes. We affirm the order in all other respects.
Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded.
LaROSE and KHOUZAM, JJ., Concur.