Ayotte v. State

Appellant challenges his conviction, after jury trial, for trafficking in hydrocodone in violation of section 893.135(l)(c)l., Florida Statutes. Because the Standard Criminal Jury Instructions were not sufficient to inform the jury of the statutory exception raised by .the evidence, because the state argued to the jury that “knowing possession” was sufficient to support a conviction, and because the statutory exception for lawfully prescribed hydrocodone was Appellant’s only defense, we reverse.

The charge of trafficking in hydrocodone stemmed from an evening spent by Appellant with his…