STREET LAW MOCK TRIAL PROBLEM
FALL 2012
Professor Robert F. Diaz
Professor Michael Rocque
Nova Southeastern University
Shepard Broad Law Center
3305 College Avenue
Davie, Florida 33314
1
IN AND FOR BROWARD
COUNTY, FLORIDA
THE STATE OF FLORIDA
INFORMATION FOR
Vs.
AGGRAVATED BATTERY
RICARDO ROBERTS,
Defendant.
______________________________/
Lisa Ratz, State Attorney of the Seventeenth Judicial
Circuit of Florida, as Prosecuting Attorney for the State of
Florida in the County of Broward, by and through her undersigned
Assistant State Attorney, charges that
___________________ RICARDO ROBERTS ____________________________
on the 19th day of February, A.D. 2012 in the County and State
aforesaid did intentionally or knowingly cause great bodily
harm, permanent disability, or permanent disfigurement to April
Walker___, to wit: by intentionally touching or striking said
April Walker with his fist, breaking her nose, contrary to F.S.
784.045(1a)(1).
LISA RATZ, STATE ATTORNEY
Seventeenth Judicial Circuit
By: _____________________________
Assistant State Attorney
2
Prosecution Witnesses
April Walker
Detective Sylvester "Sly" Smith
Defense Witnesses
Sabrina Hooper
Ricardo Roberts
3
ALL HEARSAY WILL BE ADMISSABLE IN THIS TRIAL. NO
EXCEPTIONS TO THE HEARSAY RULE WILL BE NEEDED.
4
Essential Facts
On Tuesday, February 19, 2011 at approximately 11:30 p.m.,
Detective Sylvester "Sly" Smith responded to the parking lot of
the Spaghetti Grill in regards to a disturbance.
Upon arrival,
Detective Smith found the victim, April Walker, bleeding from an
apparent broken nose.
He called fire rescue to provide medical
treatment for Miss Walker, who was laying on the ground, saying,
"He
punched
me.
He
punched
me,"
while
pointing
at
Ricardo
Roberts. Mr. Roberts was being hugged by Sabrina Hooper, his
present
girl-friend.
The
Detective
asked
Mr.
Roberts
what
happened, to which Ricardo replied, "She's crazy, and I won't
talk to you without my lawyer present."
At this point, Sabrina
Hooper said, "She started it. She's just jealous."
Roberts
then
told
Ms.
Hooper
to
"Shut
up,
he's
Ricardo
a
cop."
Detective Smith then placed Ricardo Roberts under arrest for
Aggravated Battery.
5
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SEVENTEENTH JUDICIAL
CIRCUIT IN AND FOR BROWARD COUNTY, FLORIDA
THE STATE OF FLORIDA
CASE NO: 12-12345CF10A
JUDGE: LEARNED JURIST
Vs.
RICARDO ROBERTS,
Defendant.
______________________/
ORDER ON DENNIS-PETERSON PRE-TRIAL
STAND YOUR GROUND MOTION
THIS CAUSE having come before the Court upon Defendant’s Dennis-Peterson Pre-trial Stand
Your Ground Evidentiary Motion, and the Court having heard the testimony of both State and Defense
witnesses, heard arguments, reviewed all applicable cases and statutes, and being otherwise fully advised
in the premises, makes the following findings
1. Fla. Stat.Ch. 776.032 (1)(2005) states: a person who uses force as permitted in s. 776.012, or s.
776.013, or s. 776.031 is justified in using such force and is immune from criminal prosecution
and civil action for the use of such force, unless the person against whom the force was used is a
law enforcement officer.
2. This Court reviewed the relevant Florida statutes, heard evidence and heard the testimony of all
witnesses, and finds the Defendant Ricardo Roberts did not meet the burden for immunity from
prosecution.
3. The Defendant shall be able to assert the affirmative defense of “Self defense” in the trial.
THIS COURT ORDERS AND ADJUDGES that the Defendant’s Stand Your Ground Motion is hereby
RESPECTFULLY DENIED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that neither the State nor the Defense shall mention or comment on
the Court’s Ruling on this motion in the presence of the jury.
DONE AND ORDERED IN CHAMBERS, Fort Lauderdale, Broward County, Florida this 15th
day of May, 2012.
_________________________
LEARNED JURIST
Circuit Court Judge
6
STATEMENT OF APRIL WALKER
My name is April Walker, and I am 21 years old.
I am in my
second year of school at the Central Campus of Broward Community
College.
I am majoring in Physical Education and on scholarship
for basketball, volleyball, and soccer. I am proud to be the
captain on all of our school's women's teams, and was voted the
athlete of the year for two years in a row.
My athletic ability
is enhanced by my size.
In stocking feet I stand 6'2" tall and
weigh about 155 pounds.
When I'm not in class, I work out with
weights at the Scandinavian Health Club on University Drive.
I
manage to work out 4 or 5 times a week for about 4 hours at a
time.
I'm stronger than some of the men at the gym, and pride
myself on my toughness.
On Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights,
I work at the Spaghetti Grill in Plantation as a waitress.
I
make good money on tips, which pays for all my living expenses.
I think my manager is going to fire me if the trial makes it
look like I caused this incident.
Ricardo was my boyfriend from
October of 2009, till the beginning of February, 2011.
him at the gym where I work out.
I met
When we started dating he
didn't seem to mind that I was bigger and stronger than him.
After about a month of dating, Ricardo started saying people
thought
he
protect him.
him.
was
a
"wimp"
for
having
a
girlfriend
who
could
I told him he was a "wimp" if he let people bother
After that, he started to boss me around and try to tell
me what to do.
Things got steadily worse until one day I picked
him up by his shirt and pinned him against the wall when he came
to see me at work.
I told him I would “beat him senseless” if
7
he told me what to do again.
embarrassed and angry.
of this incident.
I let him down and he left,
This was about a month before the night
We never went out again after that night.
still had feelings for him until he did this to me.
he gets what he deserves.
5'6"
tall,
and
only
Now I hope
He just had a complex because he was
weighed
156
lbs.
This
new
girlfriend,
Sabrina Hooper, seems to have as many complexes as he has.
said
I
was
jealous
of
her
All
my
teams
ridiculous.
of
I
that
night,
always
beat
which
her
is
She
totally
teams
at
the
Broward Community North Campus. She is a mediocre athlete from
what I can see, and now she's with a "wimp of a man who would
hit a woman."
What's there to be jealous of?
On February 19, 2011, Ricardo came into the Spaghetti Grill
with
Sabrina
about
10:30
p.m.
The
hostess
sent
me
a
text,
telling me he was here with a girl. I couldn't believe they sat
at one of my tables.
Ricardo signaled me over and said, "Hurry
up, we're hungry", in a very arrogant tone. After taking their
order, I brought water to them and Ricardo said, "This glass is
dirty, get me another one."
“isn’t
she
cute”
with
a
He then sent me a text which said
picture
of
Sabrina
started to seethe, but held my temper.
in
a
bikini.
With a new, clean glass
of water, I brought back their food and placed it down.
said,
"I
idiot."
ordered
a
baked
potato,
not
I
french
fries,
Sabrina
you
big
I picked up the plate and poured the hot fries into
Ricardo's lap.
He stood up and said, "I ought to smack you."
"You're not big enough or man enough," I replied, and went to
get another waitress to take the table.
When they were leaving,
Ricardo walked by, raised his fist to me and said, "You're lucky
8
you're working."
I couldn't take any more from either of them.
When he got to his car, I was three feet behind him.
Ricardo
turned and raised his fists and let out a growl as he came
towards me.
I thought he was going to hurt me, so I used my
instincts and hit him in the face before he had a chance to hit
me.
I think I landed 5 or 6 punches to his face and neck before
Sabrina screamed and I looked at her.
It was then I felt my
nose splatter blood and I went to the ground.
I had seen
Ricardo's fist coming at me just before I went to the ground.
I
couldn't block the punch because Sabrina had pulled on my arms.
When the Detective arrived I was still on the ground, and kept
saying, "He punched me."
I still can't believe Ricardo is such
a coward that he would hit a woman.
unless
he
tried
to
hurt
me
I would never have hit him
first.
permanently to right side of my face.
Now
my
nose
is
bent
I am embarrassed and
ashamed of how I look, and the doctors can't do anything about
it.
I know he hit me with his right hand, that's why my nose is
bent to the right.
I was facing him.
9
STATEMENT OF DETECTIVE SYLVESTER "SLY" SMITH
My name is Detective Sylvester "Sly" Smith.
I am 50 years
old and have been with the Beach City Police Department for 15
years. My detective duties started when I was promoted 10 years
ago, after 5 years as a patrol officer.
My career as a police
officer started 20 years ago with another agency.
I was a
detective with that agency after only 2 years, but was fired for
"moonlighting" as a private investigator while working my other
duties.
The newspapers said I was working on the "sly" and the
nickname stuck.
than
my
Since then I have not worked anything other
assigned
incident.
I
duties.
was
That
working
a
is
until
"private
the
duty"
night
detail
of
this
at
the
Spaghetti Grill which is usually only worked by patrol officers.
Detectives
are
not
supposed
to
take
these
supposedly make enough money without them.
jobs
because
we
The manager was a
friend whom I knew from eating at the restaurant so often. I
also knew the poor victim, April Walker, as she was my waitress
many times when I ate there.
When the manager told me he'd pay
me twice the going rate on my off night, I figured no one would
find out.
Besides, he said I could dress in plainclothes if I
kept order in the place, and could eat anything off the menu for
free. In all the times I ate at the restaurant, I never saw any
incidents which would require a police officer.
It looked like
easy money in the bank for me until this Ricardo Roberts came
and committed this Aggravated Battery.
It's his fault I got
caught doing the private detail, and now I have a reprimand
letter in my personnel file.
On February 19, 2011, my duties
10
were to start work at 6:00 p.m. and handle any problems until
the money was put in the safe at 12:00 midnight.
I was paid
$200 per night, and would be working on Friday and Saturday
nights.
The extra $400 per week, plus the free meals, was
something I was counting on.
At 7:00 p.m., I had a big plate of
lasagna with garlic rolls which was served by April Walker.
She
was a hardworking waitress, but always managed to sit and talk
with me when I was in the restaurant.
We talked for awhile
about her school and athletics, and then I heard the story about
her ex-boyfriend, Ricardo the "wimp."
She even pointed him out
to me when he came in with the other girl.
From her description
of him and his actions, I hoped there wouldn't be any trouble. I
watched from across the room as April served the Defendant's
table.
He seemed to be angry and sounded nasty to her, even
though I couldn't hear what he said.
I saw him jump up from the
table and April walking away at one point.
happened.
it."
I called April over and she said, "He's asking for
Ricardo
leave.
I don't know what
and
his
girlfriend,
Sabrina
Hooper,
got
up
to
I watched him approach April, but his back was to me and
I couldn't see if he did or said anything.
As he walked out the
door, I saw April head out the door behind them.
walked as quickly as I could out the door.
I got up and
I was about 200 feet
away when I saw April fall back onto the ground.
I put my 240
pound body into motion and ran as fast as I could.
I found
April lying on the ground bleeding from her nose and Ricardo
Roberts standing over her with numerous red marks on his face
and
neck.
screaming,
Sabrina
"She's
Hooper
jealous.
was
She
11
hugging
started
Mr.
Roberts
it."
and
Ricardo
was
told
Sabrina to "shut up, he's a cop."
I asked him what happened.
Ricardo said, "She's crazy and I won't talk without a lawyer,
because you're her friend." I said, "With you being a male, and
her
bleeding,
Battery."
I'm
placing
you
under
arrest
for
Aggravated
Ricardo said, "She hit me first." I told him, "Only
wimps hit females, and you're going downtown."
rescue to come treat April for her nose.
I called fire
I could see her nose
bent off to the right side, bleeding and broken.
I went to the
hospital emergency room after I cleared the scene saw the X-rays
of her broken nose.
There was no doubt it was broken.
was bent all the way to the right side of her face.
worked any off-duty details since this incident.
12
Her nose
I have not
STATEMENT OF SABRINA HOOPER
My
name
is
Sabrina
Hooper
and
I
am
24
years
old.
I
received my four year degree from the University of Florida
where I majored in Communications.
professional
representative.
basketball
team
I work for the Miami Heat
as
a
public
relations
I work with individual players by getting them
involved in the community with benefits or appearances at local
events.
It's a fun job, but doesn't pay very well.
I hope to
be a sportscaster for one of the local television stations, so
I'm just waiting for my big break.
I met Ricardo Roberts sometime in January of 2011.
He was
at a carnival where I was appearing with Lebron James. He caught
my eye because he was so cute.
that girl, April Walker.
When he got there, he was with
I didn't know her then, but I saw she
was much taller than he was.
That only made him cuter to me.
I
kept an eye on him until she was over at the snack booth, and
then I made my move.
I gave him my card and my cell phone
number and told him he could get free tickets to the Miami Heat
games if he sent me a text by the next day. It worked, because
he sent me a text, asking me to meet him for lunch. I agreed and
called him and flirted with him on the phone. He said he did
want the tickets I promised, but I knew when he saw me again, he
would be mine. After our lunch, Ricardo told me he was going to
break up with April that night.
worked and tell her.
He said he'd go by where she
I was very happy I was going to see him
again.
13
The next time I saw Ricardo, he was smiling and carrying
flowers at my office door.
It had been 3 days since he was
going to tell April their relationship was over.
We started
dating that night, and have been dating ever since.
I realize
Ricardo is only 20 years old and I'm 24, but he treats me very
well, and would never hit a woman unless he had to.
Ricardo is
5'6" tall while I am 5'11" tall, yet it hasn't interfered with
our relationship.
me.
In fact, he likes to feel like he can protect
He also says he is 5'9" tall, but I know he's five inches
shorter than me.
Since
the
carnival,
I
had
not
seen
April
Walker
until
Ricardo and I went to the Spaghetti Grill on February 19, 2011.
Ricardo didn't tell me before we went there that April worked
there.
The less I knew about her the better.
I honestly don't
like female athletes at all since they are so rough and tough.
They all have chips on their shoulders, and it shows.
After I
played junior college basketball, volleyball, and softball at
Broward Community College North, I realized I did not want to
hang around female athletes.
I went to Gainesville and never
picked up any kind of ball in my last two years of school.
Even
so, we always beat the Central Campus of the college in all
sports.
When we sat down in the restaurant, April came over and
showed anger when she saw it was Ricardo at the table.
She gave
us the menus without saying a word, but I could see the tears
well up in her eyes.
I asked Ricardo why we came here, and he
said, "It’s about time she knew how much of a man I am."
didn't know what he meant at the time.
14
I
When April brought the
water to the table and asked for our order, Ricardo told her his
water glass was dirty, and could she please get him another one.
He then started texting on his phone, but to who I don’t know.
She then took our order and didn't bring the water back until
the food was ready. I looked at my plate and saw french fries
instead of a baked potato.
I said, "I wanted a baked potato."
April said, "Why didn't you say so you big idiot."
Ricardo
started to get up, but April dropped the hot french fries on his
lap.
Ricardo said, "What's the matter with you?"
"You're
not
big
enough
or
man
enough,"
and
left
April said,
our
table.
Another waitress finished serving us and we left.
I went to the ladies' room on the way out and Ricardo was
waiting for me as I came out.
to go home.
We went out into the parking lot
All of a sudden I heard thundering footsteps behind
us and April was right there.
I backed up a couple of steps to
see what she was going to do.
She let out a scream and started
punching Ricardo in the face and neck.
I tried to break them up
by grabbing her arms to stop her from hitting him.
Just as I
got her arms down to her sides, Ricardo was swinging to defend
himself and hit her square in the nose.
blood splattered everywhere.
I pulled Ricardo back just as
April's cop friend came running up.
it, she's was just jealous.
April went down and the
I told him April started
I was going to explain everything,
but Ricardo told me to "be quiet, he's a cop."
Instead of
owning up to starting the fight, April lay on the ground saying
"he punched me."
Ricardo.
Detective Smith then said some nasty things to
Ricardo even told him April hit him first.
Detective
Smith then arrested Ricardo. I bet the Detective gets to eat
15
free
food
at
the
restaurant
all
the
time
now.
He
did
no
investigation but just went on the statements of his friend,
April Walker.
16
STATEMENT OF RICARDO ROBERTS
My name is Ricardo Roberts, and I am 20 years old.
I am a
freshman at Broward Community College, Central Campus.
As a
full time student devoting all my time to studying, I do not
have a job at this time.
lbs.
I am 5'9" tall and weigh about 170
I look shorter and skinnier than I really am.
I work out
3 or 4 times a week at the gym, and sometimes box a few rounds
at another gym.
I pride myself on being tough enough and strong
enough to protect myself and my loved ones.
I started dating April Walker in October of 2009, and left
her for my new girlfriend, Sabrina Hooper, in January of 2011.
One day at the gym, I helped April lift some weights off of
a rack so she could use them.
We struck up a conversation, and
my charm just swept her off her feet.
She started to show up at
the gym whenever I was there, and would hang around.
Even
though she was a little bigger than me, we started to date.
When we would go out together, my friends would comment about
her size.
Ignoring the remarks became harder and harder to do.
Finally, someone asked if she protected me.
Needless to say, I
got into a fight, which I lost with that "bigmouth."
forget
his
words,
protect you."
"You're
a
wimp
who
needs
a
I'll never
girlfriend
to
When I told April about the fight, she said I
was a "wimp" if I let people bother me. This was the beginning
of the end for us.
I felt like she didn't respect me.
started to complain whenever I told her something.
to "chillax" because I was too bossy.
She
She told me
It got so bad that one
night after work, she was cleaning up some tables and I told her
17
to "hurry up and get finished or I'm leaving."
thought
I
had
said
something
terrible
to
You would have
her.
She
turned
around, picked me up by my shirt and pinned me against the wall.
I was so embarrassed and angry.
Yet, before she put me down she
said, "I'm going to beat you up in front of everybody if you say
another word."
I walked out of the restaurant and went to call
Sabrina Hooper, but her line was busy.
Watching television, I
only got angrier and angrier at April.
I was going to call
Sabrina as soon as I could. Instead I sent her a text and asked
her
to
lunch.
Sabrina
had
given
me
her
business
card
at
a
carnival sometime in January of 2011. She called me, and we made
a lunch date, I could tell she liked me a lot. It was the same
day I was going to tell April I didn't want to see her anymore.
It turns out I didn't have to tell April anything.
After she
embarrassed me that night, I wanted nothing to do with her.
Sabrina was much nicer and not as rough and tumble as April.
She was an athlete, with a good job, and a lot of time to spend
with me.
Sabrina didn't work out anymore after college, so she
was around for me when I finished working out.
Unlike April,
who always kidded me about my size and strength, Sabrina built
up my self esteem when I was around her.
me in front of other people.
April always picked on
Also, April never listened to what
I said; she always did things the way she wanted to.
At least
Sabrina didn't argue with me all the time.
On February 19, 2011, I took Sabrina to the Spaghetti Grill
so April could see my new girlfriend.
I figured I would get
back at her for embarrassing me in front of everybody.
She
wouldn't be able to do anything or say anything because she was
18
working.
her
be
My plan was to just let her see us together, and make
our
waitress.
I
wanted
to
watch
embarrassment until we had finished eating.
her
anger
and
When April came to
the table, she showed her surprise and anger right away.
I
could see it in her eyes. I pushed it a little bit by asking for
a different water glass and then sent her a text of my “hot”
girlfriend in a bikini. I could feel her anger at that point.
When April brought our food back, Sabrina said something about
her french fries.
idiot."
April turned to me and said I was a "big
I started to stand up and was half-way up when the
french fries were poured into my lap by April.
I said, "someone
ought to smack you," to which she said, "You're not big enough
or man enough."
Then she walked away.
Sabrina and I ate our
meal, which was delivered by another waitress, and left.
I
waited for Sabrina to come out of the ladies' room before we
walked by April.
At the waitress station, I stopped and said to
her, "You're lucky you're working."
I knew this would really
get her mad because her boss was ready to fire her for the last
incident.
Just
Sabrina and I walked out the door to the parking lot.
as
I
unlocked
the
door
on
the
passenger
side
Sabrina, I heard footsteps and what sounded like a growl.
for
As I
turned, I saw April three feet away from me with a look in her
eyes I had never seen before.
She was in a rage or frenzy.
I
put my hands up to protect myself, but her longer reach got
through.
She punched me in the face about 10 times and tried to
scratch my neck.
up.
I did my best to protect myself by covering
When I thought she wouldn't stop, I decided, in a split
second, to show her I was man enough to smack her.
19
I thought I
needed to punch her before she hurt me.
I rose up from my
cover-up position and swung as hard as I could.
It was just a
coincidence that Sabrina had pulled April's arms down to her
sides as I started to swing.
my left hand.
I hit her right in the nose using
I felt the bone in her nose break and saw blood.
Just then, her cop friend, Detective Smith, came up.
Sabrina
was screaming and I told her to "shut up, he's a cop and her
friend."
The detective asked what happened and I said I wanted
a lawyer before I talked to him.
I said, "She hit me first."
You're going downtown."
to protect myself.
He said I was under arrest and
He said, "Only wimps hit females.
I would never hit April unless it was
I was only acting in self defense.
just jealous of Sabrina and our relationship.
20
She's
3.7 PLEA OF NOT GUILTY; REASONABLE DOUBT
AND BURDEN OF PROOF
The Defendant has entered a plea of not guilty. This means you
must presume or believe the defendant is innocent. The presumption
stays with the defendant as to each material allegation in the information
through each stage of the trial unless it has been overcome by the
evidence to the exclusion of and beyond a reasonable doubt.
Whenever the words “reasonable doubt” are used you must
consider the following:
A reasonable doubt is not a mere possible doubt, a speculative,
imaginary or forced doubt. Such a doubt must not influence you to
return a verdict of not guilty if you have an abiding conviction of
guilt. On the other hand, if, after carefully considering, comparing
and weighing all the evidence, there is not an abiding conviction of
guilt, or, if, having a conviction, it is one which is not stable but on
which wavers and vacillates, then the charge is not proved beyond
every reasonable doubt and you must find the defendant not guilty
because the doubt is reasonable.
A reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the defendant may arise from
the evidence, conflict in the evidence or the lack of evidence.
If you have a reasonable doubt, you should find the defendant not
guilty. If you have no reasonable doubt, you should find the
defendant guilty.
21
Justifiable use of Nondeadly Force
An issue in this case is whether the defendant acted in self-defense. It is a
defense to the offense with which Ricardo Roberts is charged if the injury to April
Walker resulted from the justifiable use of force not likely to cause death or great
bodily harm.
Ricardo Roberts would be justified in using force not likely to cause death or
great bodily harm against April Walker if the following two facts are proved:
1.
Ricardo Roberts must have reasonably believed that such conduct
was necessary to defend himself, against April Walker’s imminent
use of unlawful force against Ricardo Roberts.
2.
The use of unlawful force by April Walker must have appeared to
Ricardo Roberts ready to take place.
In deciding whether the defendant was justified in the use of force not likely
to cause death or great bodily harm, you must judge him by the circumstances by
which he was surrounded at the time the force was used. The danger facing the
defendant need not have been actual; however, to justify the use of force not likely
to cause death or great bodily harm, under the same circumstances would have
been so real that a reasonably cautious and prudent person under the same
circumstances would have believed that the danger could be avoided only through
the use of that force. Based upon appearances, the defendant must have actually
believed that the danger was real.
If you find that April Walker had a reputation of being a violent and
dangerous person and that her reputation was known to the defendant, you may
consider this fact in determining whether the actions of the defendant were those of
a reasonable person in dealing with an individual of that reputation.
In considering the issue of self-defense, you may take into account the
relative physical abilities and capacities of the defendant and April Walker.
If in your consideration of the issue of self-defense you have a reasonable
doubt on the question of whether or not the defendant was justified in the use of
force not likely to cause death or great bodily harm, you should find the defendant
not guilty.
22