Background
Steven Joseph Brown appealed a county-court judgment and sentence entered after a jury found him guilty as a principal to petit theft.
Brown raised two issues on appeal. He challenged the denial of his motion for judgment of acquittal and argued that conviction by a six-person jury violated the Sixth Amendment.
The Court’s Holding
The Second District Court of Appeal affirmed. It held that Brown’s challenge to the denial of his motion for judgment of acquittal lacked merit.
The court also rejected Brown’s Sixth Amendment challenge to a six-person jury, relying on Williams v. Florida and its own prior decision in Serrano-Delgado v. State. The court noted that the U.S. Supreme Court had granted certiorari in a separate case presenting a related twelve-person-jury question, but did not alter its disposition of Brown’s appeal.
Key Takeaways
- The court affirmed Brown’s conviction and sentence for principal to petit theft.
- The court found no reversible error in the denial of Brown’s motion for judgment of acquittal.
- Under controlling precedent cited by the court, a six-person jury did not violate the Sixth Amendment.
Why It Matters
The decision maintains the Second District’s adherence to Williams and Serrano-Delgado on six-person criminal juries. Although the court flagged pending Supreme Court review of a related issue, it treated existing precedent as dispositive.