JOSEPH DEJESUS v. STATE OF FLORIDA

Appellant Joseph DeJesus (“Appellant”) appeals the trial court’s final judgment adjudicating him guilty of grand theft and burglary. We write solely to address Appellant’s challenge as to whether the trial court properly denied his motion for judgment of acquittal on both counts. 1 As discussed below, we reverse the trial court’s denial of Appellant’s motion and vacate the judgment.

Background

The State charged Appellant with grand theft and burglary of a dwelling. According to the State, Appellant burglarized the victim’s home, stealing numerous pieces of property from her. The jury returned a…