Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

...[1] The State Credit Card Crime Act constitutes Part II of Florida Statutes, Chapter 817, Fraudulent Practices. It proscribes certain fraudulent uses of credit cards and deems the violation of each of its provisions either a first degree misdemeanor or a third degree felony and punishes accordingly. Section 817.68 provides that the act, "......

...State, supra . The Third District adopted the view of the Second District Court of Appeal in State v. McCurdy, 257 So.2d 92 (Fla.App.2d 1972) and McConnell v. State, 298 So.2d 550 (Fla.App.2d 1974). In Lore, the Fourth District Court of Appeal interpreted Section 817.68 of the Credit Card Crime Act to mean that if any part of any other criminal provision conflicted with any part of the act, the conflicting part would be supplanted by the terms of the act....

...as prescribed in the credit card act. The court reiterated this view in a companion case, Strada, and in the later case, Gordon v. State, 312 So.2d 809 (Fla.App. 4th 1975). In State v. McCurdy, supra , the Second District Court of Appeal interpreted Section 817.68 to require irreconcilable conflict between the act and another law before "denying a clear field of operation to either, at the election of the State." 257 So.2d at 94. The court noted that the intent of Section 817.68 is to make prosecution under the act non-exclusive, rather than exclusive....

...1975); Estevez v. State, 313 So.2d 692 (Fla. 1975), and Steele v. Mayo, 72 So.2d 386 (Fla. 1954). Traditionally, the legislature has left to the prosecutor's discretion which violations to prosecute and hence which range of penalties to visit upon the offender. Section 817.68 of the State Credit Card Crime Act suggests no legislative retreat from this practice....

...Unlike the vehicular homicide statute, the State Credit Card Crime Act provides that it "shall not be construed to preclude the applicability of any other provision of the criminal law ... unless such provision is inconsistent with [its] terms... ." Section 817.68, Florida Statutes (1973)....

...The mere fact that the general forgery statute embraced in Ch. 831 is broader than the credit card statute embraced in Ch. 817 is no reason for denying a clear field of operation to either, at the election of the State." The court also referred to § 817.68, F.S.A., which specifically provides that the State Credit Card Crime Act shall not be construed to preclude the applicability of any other provision of the criminal law of the state unless such provision is inconsistent with the terms of the Act....

Act, brought down in the compilations as F.S. § 817.68, F.S.A., provided as follows: “This part shall

...Multiple sentences are even allowed for conduct arising from the same incident. (Citation omitted.) Traditionally, the legislature has left to the prosecutor’s discretion which violations to prosecute and hence which range of penalties to visit upon the offender. Section 817.68 of the state Credit Card Crime Act suggests no legislative retreat from this practice....

...provisions are inconsistent with those which pertain to the offense defined by the earlier law. This holding was based solely on what we conceived to be the intent of the legislature as manifested by the State Credit Card Crime Act and specifically Section 817.68 thereof....

...provisions are inconsistent with those which pertain to the offense defined by the earlier law. This holding was based solely on what we conceived to be the intent of the legislature as manifested by the State Credit Card Crime Act and specifically Section 817.68 thereof....

...al provisions of the State Credit Card Crime Act should govern the sentence if such penal provisions are inconsistent with those which pertain to the offense defined by the earlier law. This was based upon a literal interpretation of the language of Section 817.68, Florida Statutes, which provides that the provisions of the State Credit Card Crime Act of 1967 are not exclusive “unless such provision [of another criminal statute] is inconsistent with the terms of this part.” Lore v....

...." We reject the appellant’s argument that the latter statute repeals by implication the former because — except to the extent hereinafter noted — neither one is inconsistent with the other. The State Credit Card Crime Act of which 817.62(2), F. S.1969, F.S.A., is a part, specifically provides in Section 817.68 thereof : “817.68 Part II not exclusive....

...alty provisions of Section 817.481, F.S. 1969, F.S.A., where — as here — the conduct of the defendant violates both statutes. We base this decision on what we believe to be the intent of the legislature as reflected by the emphasized language of Section 817.68, F.S.1969, F.S.A., supra, the latter being the last section in the State Credit Card Crime Act....