STATE v. R.L.S., a Child, Appellee. (2019)

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District.

STATE of Florida, Appellant, v. R.L.S., a Child, Appellee.

Case No. 5D18-3959

Decided: December 06, 2019

Ashley Moody, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Rebecca Rock Mcguigan, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, for Appellant. James S. Purdy, Public Defender, and George D. E. Burden, Assistant Public Defender, Daytona Beach, for Appellee.

The State appeals an order that determined the child, R.L.S., to be incompetent. Based upon our review of the written order, we agree with the State that the trial court improperly shifted the burden of proof to the State in light of the fact that the child had not previously been declared incompetent. See King v. State, 387 So. 2d 463, 464 (Fla. 1st DCA 1980) (holding that the State does not bear the burden to prove competency absent a prior adjudication of incompetency). Accordingly, we reverse and remand for the trial court to make an independent determination of competency and enter an order with findings consistent with the proper burden of proof.

REVERSED and REMANDED.

PER CURIAM.

EVANDER, C.J., and HARRIS and GROSSHANS, JJ., concur.

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