STATE OF FLORIDA v. ROODY DHAITI, 21-1538

Defendant charged with third-degree felony possession of alprazolam; pleaded no contest and sought alternative sentencing under Fla. Stat. § 948.20 (drug offender probation).
At plea, defendant admitted chronic substance abuse and willingness to undergo treatment; defense requested withholding adjudication and placement on drug offender probation.
State objected, asserting Fla. Stat. § 775.08435 bars withholding adjudication for a third-degree felony when the defendant has two or more prior withholds of adjudication for unrelated felonies.
Trial court found defendant a chronic substance abuser, withheld adjudication, imposed two years of drug offender probation, and encouraged appellate review.
On appeal, the court reviewed the statutory-construction issue de novo, held the defense preservation argument waived, and ultimately affirmed the trial court’s decision.

Issue	State's Argument	Dhaiti's Argument	Held
Whether the trial court erred by withholding adjudication and imposing drug offender probation under §948.20 when defendant had two or more prior withholds under §775.08435	§775.08435 forbids withholding adjudication for a third-degree felony after two+ prior withholds; §948.20 is not an exception	§948.20 is a specific, later-enacted statute governing drug-offender treatment and therefore controls over the more general §775.08435; ambiguity favors accused under lenity (and preservation argument was waived)	Affirmed. §948.20’s specific, later enactment controls; policy favors treatment and rule of lenity resolves ambiguities for the defendant

Pinkard v. State, 185 So. 3d 1289 (Fla. 5th DCA 2016) (de novo review of legal statutory-construction issues)
Jones v. State, 813 So. 2d 22 (Fla. 2002) (specific drug-offender statute is an alternative sentencing scheme that controls over general provisions)
Johnson v. State, 602 So. 2d 1288 (Fla. 1992) (criminal statutes strictly construed; ambiguities resolved in accused's favor)
Anthony v. Gary J. Rotella & Assocs., P.A., 906 So. 2d 1205 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005) (preservation/waiver principles)