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Carr v. State

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District
Oct 3, 1986
495 So. 2d 282 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1986)
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Summary

holding that a prisoner seeking post-conviction relief must first prepare and file his motion before he may secure those portions of the record relevant to that motion

Summary of this case from Gray v. State
See 5 Summaries

Opinion

No. 86-2190.

October 3, 1986.

Appeal from the Circuit Court, Pinellas County, John S. Andrews, J.

LEHAN, Judge.

Steven Carr appeals the summary denial of his "motion for transcripts." Carr, an indigent prisoner, sought free copies of transcripts and other documents relative to his felony convictions to assist him in preparation of a motion for post-conviction relief. The trial court found that the motion "does not contain sufficient allegations to entitle movant [to the] relief requested." We affirm.

Indigents who wish to appeal their convictions are not required to pay the costs of preparing the record on appeal. However, "[a] transcript of record need not be provided just for perusal or curiosity, nor for the purpose of merely enabling the prisoner to comb the record in hope of discovering some flaw." Cassoday v. State, 237 So.2d 146, 147 (Fla. 1970). Rather, a prisoner seeking post-conviction relief must first prepare and file his motion before he may secure those portions of the record relevant to that motion. Dorch v. State, 483 So.2d 851 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986); Griffith v. State, 363 So.2d 622 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978). In preparing the motion "[h]e must simply do the best he can from his recollection of the trial." Dorch, 483 So.2d at 852.

Availability of a transcript is, accordingly, not necessary for the preparation of a legally sufficient motion for post-conviction relief. And Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 and the forms at Rule 3.987, are designed to assist pro se filings without the requirement of legally precise pleadings or detailed legal memoranda. Allegations which constitute a prima facie showing of entitlement to relief generally will require an evidentiary hearing unless refuted by the record; the burden of combing the record in that regard is, of course, not on the defendant.

Affirmed.

RYDER, A.C.J., and CAMPBELL, J., concur.

Summaries of

Carr v. State

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District
Oct 3, 1986
495 So. 2d 282 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1986)

holding that a prisoner seeking post-conviction relief must first prepare and file his motion before he may secure those portions of the record relevant to that motion

Summary of this case from Gray v. State

In Carr v. State, 495 So.2d 282 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986), we held that, although an indigent defendant has a right to transcripts without payment of costs for a direct appeal, there is no right to free transcripts for use in preparation of a post-conviction motion.

Summary of this case from Roesch v. State

In Carr, the Second District Court of Appeal cited the First District Court of Appeal's decision in Dorch, and recognized with respect to pending motions under Fla.R.Crim.P. 3.850 and 3.987 that the defendant is required only to put forth a prima facie case, and that "the burden of combing the record... is, of course, not on the defendant."

Summary of this case from Kyser v. State

In Carr v. State, 495 So.2d 282 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986), we held that, although an indigent defendant has a right to transcripts without payment of costs for a direct appeal, there is no right to free transcripts for use in preparation of a post-conviction motion.

Summary of this case from Yanke v. State

In Carr v. State, 495 So.2d 282 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986), this court reaffirmed that a prisoner is not entitled to obtain unlimited free transcripts preparatory to filing a 3.850 motion.

Summary of this case from Ferro v. State
Case details for

Carr v. State

Case Details

Full title:STEVEN WAYNE CARR, APPELLANT, v. STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Court:District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District

Date published: Oct 3, 1986

Citations

495 So. 2d 282 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1986)

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See Dorch v. State, 483 So.2d 851 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986) (where court, in dictum, stated that the trial record…

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