J.R., a Child, Petitioner, v. STATE (2019)

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District.

J.R., a Child, Petitioner, v. STATE of Florida, Respondent.

No. 4D19-1538

Decided: August 28, 2019

Howard Finkelstein, Public Defender, and Lisa S. Lawlor, Assistant Public Defender, Fort Lauderdale, for petitioner. Ashley Moody, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Georgina Jimenez-Orosa, Senior Assistant Attorney General, West Palm Beach, for respondent.

We grant the petition for writ of prohibition because the circuit court lost jurisdiction over the petitioner, who turned 20 years old on May 13, 2019. Petitioner was sentenced without the comprehensive evaluation required by section 985.185(1), Florida Statutes (2018). Once his sentence was reversed, he was no longer “committed to the department” within the meaning of section 985.0301(5). Therefore, the circuit court was bound by section 985.0301(5)(a), which states that the court retains jurisdiction “until the child reaches 19 years of age.” To rule otherwise, would be to add words to the plain language of the statute.

Per Curiam.

Levine, C.J., Warner and Gross, JJ., concur.

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