State's Right to Appeal Motion in Limine
In this case, the State filed a motion in limine seeking to admit a statement made by the victim to a police officer as an excited utterance. The State admitted that it did not intend to call the victim as a witness. The defense, on the other hand, argued the admission of the statement would violate the defendant's confrontation rights as explained in Crawford. The county court entered an order denying the State's motion and entered an amended order denying the motion and certifying a question as one of great public importance. Because this nonfinal order of the county court was an order suppressing evidence in limine,FN3 the order was appealable to the circuit court under rule 9.140(c)(2). Thus, contrary to the district court's assertion, the order in question is appealable to the district court of appeal under rule 9.030(b)(4)(B) because it is an order from the county court certifying a question as one of great public importance and it is “otherwise appealable to the circuit court under rule 9.140(c).”
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[5] In determining that it did not have jurisdiction to review the type of nonfinal order entered by the county court, the district court relied on the fact that the type of order being appealed, the denial of a motion in limine, was not an authorized motion that the State could directly appeal to a district court of appeal. The court further opined that section 924.07 could not be used to expand the list of appealable orders delineated in rule 9.140(c)(1). We need not reach this issue, however, because it is clear that section 924.07 is constitutional as applied to appeals from the county court to the circuit court because the Legislature has the authority to determine the appeals that may be taken to the circuit court. See art. V, § 5(b), Fla. Const.
CONCLUSION
For the reasons stated above, we hold that the district courts of appeal have jurisdiction to hear appeals from the type of county court order entered in this case, which certified a question of great public importance, because the underlying order was otherwise appealable to the circuit court under rule 9.140(c)(2). We therefore reverse the decision of the district court of appeal and remand to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
State v. Ratner L 63641, *3 -4 (Fla.,2007)
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[5] In determining that it did not have jurisdiction to review the type of nonfinal order entered by the county court, the district court relied on the fact that the type of order being appealed, the denial of a motion in limine, was not an authorized motion that the State could directly appeal to a district court of appeal. The court further opined that section 924.07 could not be used to expand the list of appealable orders delineated in rule 9.140(c)(1). We need not reach this issue, however, because it is clear that section 924.07 is constitutional as applied to appeals from the county court to the circuit court because the Legislature has the authority to determine the appeals that may be taken to the circuit court. See art. V, § 5(b), Fla. Const.
For the reasons stated above, we hold that the district courts of appeal have jurisdiction to hear appeals from the type of county court order entered in this case, which certified a question of great public importance, because the underlying order was otherwise appealable to the circuit court under rule 9.140(c)(2). We therefore reverse the decision of the district court of appeal and remand to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
State v. Ratner L 63641, *3 -4 (Fla.,2007)
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