Jeffries v. State

Appellant, a prisoner serving a thirty-five year sentence for a 1980 conviction for burglary with assault, was convicted of attempted escape and possession of a weapon by a prisoner and sentenced as an habitual offender. We affirm, finding that appellant did not present sufficient evidence warranting a jury instruction on the defense of necessity, and that the trial court correctly ruled appellant to be an habitual offender based upon the reasoning of Smith v. State, 584 So.2d 1107 (Fla. 2d DCA 1991). However, we certify the following question as one of great public importance:

UNDER THE…