Florida Supreme Court Lets Stand Lower Court Ruling on Granting Early Release to Some Sex Offenders

After hearing arguments last year, the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday said it would not rule in a dispute about whether a man convicted of attempted sexual battery on a child is eligible to be considered for early release from prison.

The Florida Department of Corrections asked justices to take up the issue after the 1st District Court of Appeal in 2022 rejected longstanding legal precedent and said inmate McMillan Gould should be eligible for what is known as prison “gain time.” Appeals-court Judge Adam Tanenbaum, in a 22-page decision, wrote that state law bars gain time for people convicted of committing sexual battery — but not, as in the Gould case, for attempted sexual battery. Inmates may receive gain time based on factors such as their behavior and taking part in work programs.




Gould pleaded no contest to attempted sexual battery on a child under age 12. The Department of Corrections argued that the 1st District Court of Appeal decision conflicted with 5th District Court of Appeal decisions on the issue. “Approximately 540 inmates in the department’s custody were convicted of attempted sexual battery,” the department said in a 2022 brief filed at the Supreme Court.

“If the First District’s decision stands, all or most of those 540 inmates will become eligible for incentive gain-time, including retroactive incentive gain-time from 2014 onwards. The decision promises to have severe prospective effects, too, on future sentences.” Conflicting decisions from appeals courts are often a reason for the Supreme Court to take up cases.

In a 5-2 decision Thursday, the Supreme Court said it initially agreed to take up the gain-time case to resolve the conflict, but it said that upon “further consideration, and with the benefit of oral argument, we exercise our discretion to discharge jurisdiction. Accordingly, jurisdiction is discharged, and this proceeding is hereby dismissed.”

The majority opinion was shared by Chief Justice Carlos Muniz and Justices Charles Canady, Jorge Labarga, Renatha Francis and Meredith Sasso. Justice Jamie Grosshans, in a dissent joined by Justice John Couriel, said that “based on the recognized conflict and the significance of the conflict issue, we should have exercised our jurisdiction and decided the case on the merits.” Gould is an inmate at Lancaster Correctional Institution, according to the Department of Corrections website.

–News Service of Florida