Leroy R. Gadson v. State of Florida

Summary

The Fifth District Court of Appeal of Florida affirmed the denial of Leroy R. Gadson’s Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 motion based on an allegedly undisclosed plea offer. The court held that the newly discovered fact exception requires the fact to have been unknown to both the defendant and trial counsel, and therefore counsel’s knowledge of the offer precluded the claim. The court certified conflict with decisions of the Fourth and Second District Courts of Appeal.

Holdings

1. Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850(b)(1) requires that the facts supporting a newly discovered evidence claim were unknown to both the movant and the movant's attorney and could not have been ascertained through due diligence. Accordingly, counsel's knowledge of an unconveyed plea offer precludes treating that offer as newly discovered evidence under the rule.
2. Taylor v. State did not hold that counsel's knowledge of an undisclosed plea offer does not preclude a newly discovered evidence claim and therefore was not binding on that issue.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Rule 3.850(b)(1)'s newly discovered evidence exception requires the underlying fact to have been unknown to both the defendant and the defendant's attorney.
2. Whether Taylor v. State held that trial counsel's knowledge of an unconveyed plea offer does not preclude reliance on the newly discovered evidence exception.
3. Whether the Fifth District should follow Clark v. State and Tribbitt v. State or certify conflict with those decisions.

Disposition

affirmed