Third District Court of Appeal
State of Florida
Opinion filed September 14, 2022.
Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.
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No. 3D21-1055
Lower Tribunal No. 18-1479
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J.D., a juvenile,
Appellant,
vs.
The State of Florida,
Appellee.
An Appeal from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Dawn
Denaro, Judge.
Carlos J. Martinez, Public Defender, and Maria E. Lauredo, Chief
Assistant Public Defender, and Jennifer Thornton and John Eddy Morrison,
Assistant Public Defenders, for appellant.
Ashley Moody, Attorney General, and David Llanes, Assistant Attorney
General, for appellee.
Before LINDSEY, GORDO and LOBREE, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
The State charged Appellant, J.D., a juvenile, by petition for
delinquency with third-degree grand theft of a vehicle (Count 1), and burglary
of an unoccupied conveyance (Count 2). J.D. was adjudicated delinquent
as to Count 1, and Count 2 was nol-prossed by the State. As a result, the
trial court placed J.D. on probation.
Prior to the adjudicatory hearing, J.D. filed an “Objection to Remote
Trial.” Because the trial court did not make case-specific findings as to why
proceeding with the adjudicatory hearing remotely was necessary, over
objection, J.D. was denied her right to due process. See, K.M. v. State, 47
Fla. L. Weekly D1557 (Fla. 3d DCA July 20, 2022) (reversing the trial court’s
overruling of juvenile’s objection to a remote hearing because trial court did
not make any case-specific findings of necessity for proceeding in this
manner); M.D. v. State, 47 Fla. L. Weekly D1409, D1410 (Fla. 3d DCA June
29, 2022) (“[D]ue process requires a case-specific finding of necessity before
a trial court may conduct a remote juvenile adjudicatory hearing over
objection . . . .”); J.T.B. v. State, 47 Fla. L. Weekly D1401, D1404 (Fla. 3d
DCA June 29, 2022) (“[T]he failure to render case-specific findings of
necessity justifying conducting the juvenile adjudicatory hearings remotely
resulted in a denial of due process.”). Accordingly, we reverse and remand
for a new adjudicatory proceeding.
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Reversed and remanded.
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