FL Criminal Trial Specialist cheat sheet

Florida categorizes crimes into felonies (punishable by death or imprisonment in state prison) and misdemeanors (county jail); degrees (capital, life, first, second, third) set statutory maximums under Fla. Stat. § 775.082.

The prosecution must prove every element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt; the defendant bears no burden of production or persuasion except for affirmative defenses such as alibi (notice required) and insanity (clear and convincing evidence under Fla. Stat. § 775.027).

Speedy trial: Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.191 gives 175 days for felonies and 90 days for misdemeanors from arrest/notice; recapture periods apply after a demand for speedy trial, and failure to try timely results in discharge unless exceptions (e.g., defendant's unavailability) apply.

Double jeopardy under the Fifth Amendment and Florida Constitution bars retrial after acquittal or conviction, but does not bar retrial after a mistrial declared over defense objection absent manifest necessity, nor does it bar separate sovereign prosecutions.

Discovery in criminal cases is governed by Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.220: the state must disclose witness lists, statements, and evidence; reciprocal discovery applies to the defense, and Brady material must be produced regardless of rule obligations.

Pretrial release is governed by Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.131 and Fla. Stat. § 907.041; nonmonetary conditions are presumed for most offenses, but preventive detention is authorized for enumerated dangerous or flight-risk cases after a hearing.

The exclusionary rule applies to evidence obtained through unconstitutional searches or seizures; Florida's good-faith exception (Fla. Stat. § 933.13) is narrower than federal law and does not excuse reliance on a facially deficient warrant in all circumstances.

Criminal jurisdiction in Florida is territorial: the state may prosecute offenses committed within its borders, and venue lies in the county where the offense occurred, with statutory exceptions for multi-county offenses (Fla. Stat. § 910.005).

Arraignment must be held within 24 hours of arrest if the defendant is in custody (Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.130); counsel may waive formal arraignment and enter a written plea.

A motion to suppress under Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.190(h) must be filed before trial and is heard by the court; the defendant bears the initial burden of alleging a constitutional violation, after which the state must prove compliance by a preponderance.

Notice of alibi (Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.200) must be filed at least 10 days before trial unless the court permits later filing for good cause; the state must then disclose rebuttal witnesses.

A motion for statement of particulars (Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.190(c)) is used when the charging document is vague; a motion to dismiss under 3.190(c)(4) requires the state to file a traverse or the motion is granted.

Bail bond forfeiture and reinstatement are governed by Fla. Stat. § 903.26–.28; the surety may be exonerated if the defendant is surrendered or if failure to appear is excused.

The state may seek pretrial detention under Fla. Stat. § 907.041 for enumerated offenses; the hearing must occur within 5 days of filing, and the court must find probable cause plus clear and convincing evidence of risk.

Demand for speedy trial (Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.191) triggers a 15-day recapture period during which the state must bring the defendant to trial or the defendant is discharged.

Discovery sanctions for rule violations range from a continuance to exclusion of evidence or dismissal; the court must consider prejudice and whether the violation was willful (Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.220(n)).

Jury selection in Florida uses a six-member jury for noncapital felonies and misdemeanors, and twelve for capital cases; peremptory challenges are limited to 6 for capital, 6 for life felonies, and 3 for other felonies (Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.350).

A Batson challenge requires the opponent to show a prima facie case of discriminatory strike, then the proponent must offer a race-neutral explanation, and the court decides whether purposeful discrimination occurred.

Opening statements are not evidence; counsel may state what the evidence will show, and the defense may reserve opening until after the state's case.

Direct examination must be limited to matters within the witness's personal knowledge; leading questions are generally improper except for hostile witnesses, preliminary matters, or child witnesses.

Cross-examination may exceed the scope of direct at the court's discretion, but Florida follows the wide-open rule for cross-examination of a defendant who testifies.

Closing argument may not comment on the defendant's failure to testify, misstate evidence, or appeal to passion and prejudice; improper comments require a contemporaneous objection and a motion for mistrial to preserve error.

The jury must be instructed on the elements of each offense and any lesser-included offenses supported by the evidence; the standard jury instructions are presumptively correct but the court must give requested special instructions if supported.

Verdicts must be unanimous in Florida for both guilt and sentence in capital cases; a hung jury results in a mistrial, and the state may retry unless double jeopardy bars it.

Relevance under Fla. Stat. § 90.401 means evidence tending to prove or disprove a material fact; relevant evidence may be excluded under § 90.403 if its probative value is substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice, confusion, or waste of time.

Hearsay is an out-of-court statement offered for the truth of the matter asserted (§ 90.801); exceptions include excited utterance, present sense impression, and statements for medical diagnosis (§ 90.803).

The Confrontation Clause bars testimonial hearsay unless the declarant is unavailable and the defendant had a prior opportunity to cross-examine (Crawford); nontestimonial hearsay is governed by forfeiture and reliability doctrines.

Character evidence is generally inadmissible to prove conduct, but the defendant may open the door to reputation or opinion testimony about a pertinent trait, after which the state may rebut (§ 90.404).

Evidence of other crimes or bad acts is admissible under § 90.404(2) if relevant to motive, intent, absence of mistake, identity, or a common scheme, and the probative value must not be substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice.

The best evidence rule (§ 90.952) requires the original writing, recording, or photograph to prove its content unless an exception applies, such as the original being lost or destroyed without bad faith.

Expert testimony is admissible under § 90.702 (Daubert standard as adopted in Florida) if the expert is qualified, the testimony is based on sufficient facts, the product of reliable principles, and reliably applied.

Privileges in Florida include attorney-client, spousal, psychotherapist-patient, and clergy; the attorney-client privilege survives the client's death and may be waived only by the client or holder.

Florida Bar Rule 4-3.8 imposes special duties on prosecutors: disclose evidence tending to negate guilt or mitigate offense, refrain from prosecuting charges not supported by probable cause, and make timely disclosure to the defense.

Rule 4-3.3 prohibits counsel from knowingly making false statements of fact or law to a tribunal; the duty to disclose adverse legal authority is mandatory, and candor toward the court overrides client confidentiality in limited circumstances.

Rule 4-1.6 confidentiality applies to information relating to representation; disclosure is permitted to prevent a client from committing a crime or to rectify a fraud on the tribunal, but not to prevent merely financial harm.

Conflicts of interest under Rule 4-1.7 require informed consent confirmed in writing; concurrent conflicts involving directly adverse representation or material limitation are generally nonconsentable when the lawyer cannot reasonably believe the representation will not be adversely affected.

The duty of competence under Rule 4-1.1 requires legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness, and preparation reasonably necessary for the representation; mental impairment or substance abuse may trigger Rule 4-1.16 withdrawal obligations.

Rule 4-8.4(c) prohibits conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation; this applies to all lawyers, including prosecutors and defense counsel, both inside and outside the practice of law.

Fee agreements in criminal cases must be reasonable under Rule 4-1.5; contingent fees are prohibited in criminal matters, and advance fees must be held in trust until earned.

The duty to report professional misconduct under Rule 4-8.3 is mandatory for lawyers who know of a violation that raises a substantial question as to honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness, except for confidential information protected by Rule 4-1.6.