IN RE: STANDARD JURY INSTRUCTIONS IN CRIMINAL CASES—REPORT 2018-13. (2019)

The Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions in Criminal Cases (Committee) has submitted proposed changes to the standard jury instructions and asks that the Court authorize new and amended standard instructions. We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 2(a), Fla. Const.

The Committee proposes amending standard criminal jury instructions 3.6(a) (Insanity), 3.6(e)(1) (Involuntary Intoxication Negating Specific Intent), 3.6(e)(2) (Involuntary Intoxication Resulting in Insanity), and 3.6(j) (Entrapment). In addition, the Committee proposes the following new instructions: 3.14 (Scoresheet Findings); 7.7(b) (Unnecessary Killing to Prevent an Unlawful Act); and 7.7(c) (Assisted Self-Murder). All of the proposals were published in The Florida Bar News. No comments were received by the Committee. After the Committee filed its report, the Court did not publish the proposals for comment.

Having considered the Committee's report, we amend the standard jury instructions as proposed by the Committee and authorize for publication and use new and amended instructions 3.6(a), 3.6(e)(1), 3.6(e)(2), 3.6(j), 3.14, and 7.7(c). We discuss the more significant amendments below. We do not authorize proposed instruction 7.7(b) for publication and use at this time and will separately refer this instruction back to the Committee for further consideration at a later date.

First, instruction 3.6(a) is updated to ensure that the jurors understand that the insanity defense applies to lesser-included crimes as well by deleting the phrase “the crime” and replacing it with “(crime alleged or lesser-included crimes of the crime alleged).”

Next, instructions 3.6(e)(1) and 3.6(e)(2) are revised to reflect that intent is an essential element of not only the crime charged but also an appropriate lesser-included offense and that the defenses of involuntary intoxication negating specific intent and involuntary intoxication resulting in insanity may also apply to a lesser-included offense.

In instruction 3.6(j), language is added to reflect that the defense of entrapment applies to applicable lesser-included offenses as well as the offense charged, and a definition for “inducement” is added based upon Farley v. State, 848 So. 2d 393, 395 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003), and Marreel v. State, 841 So. 2d 600, 603 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003).

New instruction 3.14, Scoresheet Findings, is added in recognition of the necessity for certain findings of fact, i.e., those which increase the required minimum sentence, be made by the jury. See Alleyne v. United States, 570 U.S. 99, 133 S.Ct. 2151, 186 L.Ed.2d 314 (2013).

Lastly, new instruction 7.7(c) is added to instruct upon the offenses of assisting self-murder. See § 782.08, Fla. Stat. (2018).

The amended criminal jury instructions, as set forth in the appendix to this opinion, are hereby authorized for publication and use.¹ New language is indicated by underlining, and deleted language is indicated by struck-through type. In authorizing the publication and use of these instructions, we express no opinion on their correctness and remind all interested parties that this authorization forecloses neither requesting additional or alternative instructions nor contesting the legal correctness of the instructions. We further caution all interested parties that any comments associated with the instructions reflect only the opinion of the Committee and are not necessarily indicative of the views of this Court as to their correctness or applicability. The instructions as set forth in the appendix shall be effective when this opinion becomes final.

It is so ordered.

APPENDIX

FOOTNOTES

1.   The amendments as reflected in the appendix are to the Criminal Jury Instructions as they appear on the Court's website at www.floridasupremecourt.org/jury_instructions/instructions.shtml. We recognize that there may be minor discrepancies between the instructions as they appear on the website and the published versions of the instructions. Any discrepancies as to instructions authorized for publication and use after October 25, 2007, should be resolved by reference to the published opinion of this Court authorizing the instruction.

PER CURIAM.

CANADY, C.J., and POLSTON, LABARGA, LAWSON, LAGOA, LUCK, and MUÑIZ, JJ., concur.