Kidnapping is a very serious crime in Florida. Kidnapping can be committed in several different ways, but the most common method of kidnapping may be defined as forcibly imprisoning a person against his/her will with the intent to harm the person or commit a felony. In Florida, kidnapping is a…
To what extent is a police officer’s racial comment admissible in a criminal trial? It depends on the circumstances and type of case. However, in any trial, evidence that tends to prove that a witness is biased against one side or the other should be admissible at the trial. If…
In Florida, the crime of child abuse is committed when a person intentionally causes physical or mental injury to a child or does something that could reasonably be expected to cause a physical or mental injury to a child. Assuming the child is not seriously injured, child abuse is a…
In Florida, when a defendant is charged with a violent crime, such as battery, aggravated assault or murder, the defendant’s criminal defense lawyer may present evidence at the trial that the victim had a reputation for violence in the community. Normally, such evidence about a victim’s character is not admissible…
In a recent attempted second degree murder case near Bartow, Florida (which is about 3 1/2 hours southwest of Jacksonville, Florida), a defendant’s attempted second degree murder conviction was reversed because the judge did not properly instruct the jury about the defendant’s right to defend himself. In this case, the…
A Jacksonville, Florida man was recently arrested for the crime of murder by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) four years after he allegedly beat the victim, according to an article on News4Jax.com. Apparently, the suspect beat his girlfriend four years ago so badly that she was rendered a quadriplegic and…
When a person is arrested and charged with a crime of violence such as assault, battery aggravated assault, aggravated battery or a murder charge, the criminal defense lawyer for the defendant may attempt to introduce evidence of the alleged victim’s prior history of violence. Is this evidence of the alleged…
A man was caught trying to leave a Target store with stolen merchandise in Flagler County, Florida and ended up being charged with at least one very serious felony crime, according to an article on News4Jax.com. The article indicates that a police officer was called to the store to investigate…
Most experts would predict that crime rates would increase as economic times become worse. However, as Florida and the rest of the U.S. are suffering through a lengthy economic downturn, crime rates seems to be dropping across the country. According to FBI statistics, violent crimes such as murder and manslaughter…
In Florida, a person who has been arrested for a crime of violence, such as aggravated assault, cannot be prosecuted for that crime if he/she was justified in using force, i.e. committed the act in self-defense. In other words, Florida law provides that a person can use force against another…