Fl. R. Crim. P. 3.987

As amended through November 4, 2024

Rule 3.987 - MOTION FOR POSTCONVICTION RELIEF

MODEL FORM FOR USE IN MOTIONS FOR POSTCONVICTION RELIEF PURSUANT TO FLORIDA RULE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE 3.850

In the Circuit Court of the _______ Judicial Circuit, in and for County, Florida

State of Florida,	)
)
v.	)	Criminal Division
)
___________________	)	Case No.: __________________
(your name)	) (the original case number)
)
___________________	)

MOTION FOR POSTCONVICTION RELIEF

Instructions - Read Carefully

(1) This motion must be typewritten or hand-written in legible printed lettering, in blue or black ink, double-spaced, with margins no less than 1 inch on white 8 1/2 by 11 inch paper. No motion, including any memorandum of law, shall exceed 50 pages without leave of the court upon a showing of good cause. Any false statement of a material fact may serve as the basis for prosecution and conviction for perjury. All questions must be answered concisely in the proper space on the form.

(2) Additional pages are not permitted except with respect to the facts that you rely upon to support your grounds for relief. No citation of authorities need be furnished. If briefs or arguments are submitted in support of your legal claims (as opposed to your factual claims), they should be submitted in the form of a separate memorandum of law. This memorandum should have the same caption as this motion.

(3) No filing fee is required when submitting a motion for postconviction relief.

(4) Only the judgment of one case may be challenged in a single motion for postconviction relief. If you seek to challenge judgments entered in different cases, or different courts, you must file separate motions as to each such case. The single exception to this is if you are challenging the judgments in the different cases that were consolidated for trial. In this event, show each case number involved in the caption.

(5) Your attention is directed to the fact that you must include all grounds for relief, and all facts that support such grounds, in the motion you file seeking relief from any judgment of conviction.

(6) Claims of newly discovered evidence must be supported by affidavits attached to your motion. If your newly discovered evidence claim is based on recanted trial testimony or a newly discovered witness, the attached affidavit must be from that witness. For all other newly discovered evidence claims, the attached affidavit must be from any person whose testimony is necessary to factually support your claim for relief. If the required affidavit is not attached to your motion, you must provide an explanation why the required affidavit could not be obtained.

(7) Your motion must include an oath, under penalties of perjury, that contains the following:

(a) that you have read the motion or that it has been read to you;

(b) that you understand the contents of the motion; and

(c) that all of the facts stated in the motion are true and correct.

(8) You must also certify, under the threat of sanctions, the following:

(a) that the motion is being filed in good faith and with a reasonable belief that it is timely filed;

(b) that the motion has potential merit;

(c) that this motion does not duplicate previous motions that have been disposed of by the court; and

(d) that you understand English, or if you cannot understand English, that you have had the motion translated completely into a language that you do understand, along with the name and address of the person who translated the motion and a certification from that person that he or she provided you with an accurate and complete translation.

(9) When the motion is fully completed, the original must be mailed to the clerk of the court whose address is__________ (county where sentence was imposed) County Courthouse, _________ (address of clerk), or filed through the Florida Courts E-filing Portal, as stated in Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.420.

MOTION

1. Name and location of the court that entered the judgment of conviction under attack:

________________________________________________________________________________

2. Date of judgment of conviction:________________________________

3. Length of sentence:________________________________

4. Nature of offense(s) involved (all counts):________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

5. What was your plea? (check only one)

(a) Not guilty_________

(b) Guilty_________

(c) Nolo contendere_________

(d) Not guilty by reason of insanity ____________

If you entered one plea to one count and a different plea to another count, give details:

__________________________________________________________________

6. Kind of trial: (check only one)

(a) Jury _____________

(b) Judge only without jury _____________

7. Did you testify at the trial or at any pretrial hearing?

Yes___________ No___________

If yes, list each such occasion: ______________________

__________________________________________________________________

8. Did you appeal from the judgment of conviction?

Yes___________ No___________

9. If you did appeal, answer the following:

(a) Name of court:__________________________________

(b) Result:__________________________________

(c) Date of result:__________________________________

(d) Citation (if known):__________________________________

10. Other than a direct appeal from the judgment of conviction and sentence, have you previously filed any petitions, applications, motions, etc., with respect to this judgment in this court?

Yes___________ No___________

11. If your answer to number 10 was "yes," give the following information (applies only to proceedings in this court):

(a)

(1) Nature of the proceeding:___________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(2) Grounds raised:__________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(3) Did you receive an evidentiary hearing on your petition, application, motion, etc.?

Yes___________ No___________

(4) Result:________________________________

(5) Date of result:______________________________________

(b) As to any second petition, application, motion, etc., give the same information:

(1) Nature of the proceeding:_____________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(2) Grounds raised:___________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(3) Did you receive an evidentiary hearing on your petition, application, motion, etc.?

Yes___________ No___________

(4) Result:

(5) Date of result:

12. Other than a direct appeal from the judgment of conviction and sentence, have you previously filed any petitions, applications, motions, etc., with respect to this judgment in any other court?

Yes No

13. If your answer to number 12 was "yes," give the following information:

(a)

(1) Name of court:_________________________________________

(2) Nature of the proceeding:_________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(3) Grounds raised:________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(4) Did you receive an evidentiary hearing on your petition, application, motion, etc.?

Yes___________ No___________

(5) Result:_________________

(6) Date of result:_________________

(b) As to any second petition, application, motion, etc., give the same information:

(1) Name of court:_________________

(2) Nature of the proceeding:__________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(3) Grounds raised:_________________

__________________________________________________________________

(4) Did you receive an evidentiary hearing on your petition, application, motion, etc.?

Yes___________ No___________

(5) Result:

(6) Date of result:

(c) As to any third petition, application, motion, etc., give the same information:

(1) Name of court:________________________

(2) Nature of the proceeding:________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(3) Grounds raised:_____________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

(4) Did you receive an evidentiary hearing on your petition, application, motion, etc.?

Yes___________ No___________

(5) Result:____________________________________

(6) Date of result:____________________________________

14. State concisely every ground on which you claim that the judgment or sentence is unlawful. Summarize briefly the facts supporting each ground. If necessary, you may attach pages stating additional grounds and the facts supporting them.

For your information, the following is a list of the most frequently raised grounds for postconviction relief. Each statement preceded by a letter constitutes a separate ground for possible relief. You may raise any grounds that you may have other than those listed. However, you should raise in this motion all available grounds (relating to this conviction) on which you base your allegations that your conviction or sentence is unlawful.

DO NOT CHECK ANY OF THESE LISTED GROUNDS. If you select one or more of these grounds for relief, you must allege facts. The motion will not be accepted by the court if you merely check (a) through (i).

(a) Conviction obtained by plea of guilty or nolo contendere that was unlawfully induced or not made voluntarily with understanding of the nature of the charge and the consequences of the plea.

(b) Conviction obtained by the unconstitutional failure of the prosecution to disclose to the defendant evidence favorable to the defendant.

(c) Conviction obtained by a violation of the protection against double jeopardy.

(d) Denial of effective assistance of counsel.

(e) Denial of right of appeal.

(f) Lack of jurisdiction of the court to enter the judgment or impose sentence (such as an unconstitutional statute).

(g) Sentence in excess of the maximum authorized by law.

(h) Newly discovered evidence.

(i) Changes in the law that would be retroactive.

A. Ground 1: ___________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

Supporting FACTS (tell your story briefly without citing cases or law):

_____________________________________________________________

B. Ground 2: ____________________________

Supporting FACTS (tell your story briefly without citing cases or law):

_____________________________________________________________

C. Ground 3: _____________________________

Supporting FACTS (tell your story briefly without citing cases or law):

_____________________________________________________________

D. Ground 4: ____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

Supporting FACTS (tell your story briefly without citing cases or law):

_____________________________________________________________

15. If any of the grounds listed in 14 A, B, C, and D were not previously presented on your direct appeal, state briefly what grounds were not so presented and give your reasons they were not so presented:

_____________________________________________________________

16. Do you have any petition, application, appeal, motion, etc., now pending in any court, either state or federal, as to the judgment under attack?

Yes __________ No ___________

17. If your answer to number 16 was "yes," give the following information:

(a) Name of court:____________________________________

(b) Nature of the proceeding:

(c) Grounds raised:____________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

(d) Status of the proceedings:_____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

18. Give the name and address, if known, of each attorney who represented you in the following stages of the judgment attacked herein.

(a) At preliminary hearing:____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

(b) At arraignment and plea:____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

(c) At trial:____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

(d) At sentencing:____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

(e) On appeal:____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

(f) In any postconviction proceeding:____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

(g) On appeal from any adverse ruling in a postconviction proceeding:____________________________

_____________________________________________________________

WHEREFORE, movant requests that the court grant all relief to which the movant may be entitled in this proceeding, including but not limited to (here list the nature of the relief sought):

1.___________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

2. Such other and further relief as the court deems just and proper.

OATH

Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have read the foregoing motion, or had it read to me, that I understand the motion's content, and that all of the facts alleged in the motion are true and correct.

/s/_______________________________

Name_______________________________

DC#_______________________________

Certifications and Acknowledgment

I certify that the motion is filed in good faith, that I have a reasonable belief that the motion is timely filed, has potential merit, and does not duplicate previous motions that have been disposed of by the court.

I certify that [choose one]

_________I understand English and have read the foregoing motion, or had the motion read to me; or

_________I cannot understand English and the foregoing motion was translated completely into a language that I understand and read to me by .....(name).....,whose address is .....(address)....., and whose certification of an accurate and complete translation is attached to this motion.

I understand that I am subject to judicial or administrative sanctions, including but not limited to forfeiture of gain time, if this motion is found to be frivolous, malicious, made in bad faith or with reckless disregard for the truth, or an abuse of the legal process.

/s/__________________________

Name______________________

DC#________________________

Certificate of Mailing

(Must use Certificate of Mailing OR Certificate of Service)

I certify that I placed this document in the hands of .... .(here insert name of institution official)..... for mailing to .... .(here insert name or names and addresses used for service)..... on .....(date)......

/s/__________________________

Name__________________________

Address__________________________

DC#__________________________

Certificate of Service

(Must use Certificate of Mailing OR Certificate of Service)

I certify that the foregoing document has been furnished to . . . . .(here insert name or names, addresses used for service and mailing addresses)..... by (e-mail) (delivery) (mail) (fax) on ....

.(date)......

/s/__________________________

Attorney

Certificate of an Accurate and Complete Translation (To be used if translation of the motion was necessary.)

I certify that a complete and accurate translation of this motion was provided to the Defendant in this case on .....(date). . ....

/s/__________________________

Name__________________________

Address__________________________

DC#__________________________

Fl. R. Crim. P. 3.987

Amended by 320 So. 3d 34, effective 7/1/2021; amended by 46 FLW S165, effective 7/1/2021; amended June 10, 2021 by No. SC20-1564, effective 7/1/2021; amended by 794 So.2d 457, effective 1/1/2001; amended by 630 So.2d 552, effective 1/1/1994; added by 353 So.2d 552, effective 1/1/1978.