Herrin v. State

In Herrin v. State, 568 So. 2d 920 (Fla. 1990), the court held that a downward departure based upon a defendant's substance abuse, standing alone, is invalid. It held that where a defendant's sentence is reduced to provide treatment for a dependency, there must also be a finding based upon competent substantial evidence that there is a reasonable possibility that the treatment will be successful. Expert testimony is helpful but is not required where there is other evidence to support the conclusion. In Herrin, the trial court said that the defendant was amenable to treatment but did not make a finding that there was a reasonable possibility that the treatment would work. The supreme court upheld the trial court's downward departure, however, because the evidence showed that there was a reasonable possibility that the treatment would work.