Gilbert Dudley, Iii, Petitioner v. State of Florida, Respondent

Summary

The Court approved the en banc decision reinstating Dudley's sexual-battery convictions and held that the statutory term "mentally defective" is distinct from competence to testify and legal insanity. It further held that the term requires significantly diminished ability to appraise the nature of one's conduct, not a total or complete lack of mental capacity, and that the evidence was legally sufficient to support the jury's finding. Justice Lewis, concurring in result only, would have rejected the majority's view as too narrow and emphasized the statute's broad protective purpose.