CopyCited 1 times | Published | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal | 2010 Fla. App. LEXIS 11102, 2010 WL 2976933
...Seliger, Assistant Public Defender, Tallahassee, for Appellee. ROWE, J. The State appeals the trial court's order granting Clifford Cutwright's motion to dismiss the information against him. The information charged Mr. Cutwright with failure to comply with the residence registration requirements of section 775.261, Florida Statutes, The Florida Career Offender Registration Act (the Act)....
...Cutwright was not required to register under the Act because he lacked a permanent or temporary residence. The court rejected the State's argument that irrespective of whether Mr. Cutwright was homeless, he was required to register any changes in his residence pursuant to section 775.261(4)(d) of the Act....
...We review the trial court's order granting a motion to dismiss under the de novo standard. State v. Sholl,
18 So.3d 1158, 1160 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009). On April 25, 2003, Mr. Cutwright was deemed a habitual violent felony offender. Habitual violent felony offenders are career offenders subject to registration under the Act. §
775.261(2)(a), Fla....
...Cutwright had never lived with him. On March 30, 2009, Mr. Cutwright was located, arrested, and charged with failure of a career offender to report a change in his temporary or permanent residence on his driver's license within 2 days of a change in residence, in violation of section 775.261(4)(d). Under section 775.261(4)(a), a career offender must register with the Florida Department of Corrections within 2 days of establishing a permanent or temporary residence. A "permanent residence" as defined by section 775.261(2)(f) means "a place where the career offender abides, lodges, or resides for 14 or more consecutive days." A "temporary residence" as defined by section 775.261(2)(g) means: 1....
...A place where the career offender routinely abides, lodges, or resides for a period of 4 or more consecutive or nonconsecutive days in any month and which is not the career offender's permanent residence, including any out-of-state address. In addition, under section 775.261(4)(d), a career offender must report in person to a Florida driver's license office "[e]ach time a career offender's driver's license or identification card is subject to renewal and within 2 working days after any change of the caree...
...Cutwright is correct that the Career Offender Registration Act does not similarly provide for the registration of a transient residence for homeless career offenders, that does not end our analysis. Mr. Cutwright's argument ignores the language in section 775.261(4)(d) that requires a career offender to report to a Florida driver's license office within 2 working days "after any change of the career offender's residence." (Emphasis added.) We agree with the State's argument that under the plain language of section 775.261(4)(d), Mr. Cutwright was required to report the change in his residence when he no longer resided at his former address. While a change of residence includes establishing a new residence, it also includes abandoning a previous residence. The section 775.261(4)(d) requirement that a career offender must report any change in residence is independent of the section 775.261(4)(a) requirement to register a new residence. Mr. Cutwright failed to comply with the reporting requirement of section 775.261(4)(d) by failing to report that he no longer resided at his previously reported residence. It is apparent from the language in section 775.261(4)(i) that the Legislature intended for career criminal offenders to maintain registration under the Act: "A career offender must maintain registration with the department for the duration of his or her life...." In light of the expre...
...mmunities in avoiding being victimized by a career offender. The Legislature intends to require the registration of career offenders and to authorize law enforcement agencies to notify the public and communities of the presence of a career offender. § 775.26, Fla. Stat. (2009). Thus the safety of the public is the primary purpose of this legislation. That Mr. Cutwright's whereabouts were unknown for some five months not only hampered law enforcement, but also endangered the public. Section 775.261(4)(d) aims to prevent such a situation by requiring a career offender to present himself or herself at a driver's license office and report any change of residence within 2 working days after the change occurs. This, as the majority opinion astutely points out, includes a change resulting in the career offender having neither a permanent residence nor a temporary residence as defined in section 775.261(2)(g)....
