In a recent felony driving with a suspended license case in Florida, the charge was thrown out because the court determined that the police officer illegally seized the defendant before he learned the defendant’s license was suspended. This is an important case because we see the same situation arise in…
A Florida man was arrested after Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) agents found child pornography pictures when searching his bag before a flight. In this case, the man checked a bag at the airport and proceeded to wait for his flight. Without his knowledge, TSA agents apparently randomly selected his luggage…
Police in Putnam County, Florida (which is about an hour south of Jacksonville, Florida) found a large indoor marijuana grow house after a vehicle crashed through a fence at the house, according to an article on News4Jax.com. Police arrived to investigate the crash and smelled the marijuana. At that point,…
A recent trafficking in cocaine case near Jacksonville, Florida was reversed because the state could not prove that the defendant was in constructive possession of the cocaine. In any possession or trafficking case, the state has to prove the defendant knew about and possessed the illegal drugs beyond a reasonable…
In a recent criminal case near Jacksonville, Florida where the defendant was charged with lewd or lascivious molestation for allegedly showing his penis to a 5 year old and enticing her to touch it, the state’s conviction of the defendant was reversed because the state improperly introduced evidence of the…
In Florida, when the police officer is conducting a DUI investigation, that officer is going to request that the driver submits to a field sobriety examination at some point. This is a very subjective and voluntary test which is supposed to be designed to see if the driver is intoxicated…
When police in Jacksonville and other cities in Florida stop a driver and suspect he/she is driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI), the police officer will ask the driver if he/she will submit to field sobriety tests, which are very subjective exercises that are supposed to be designed to…
In Florida, if a person has been convicted of a felony crime, it is thereafter illegal for that person to possess a firearm (or ammunition) or carry a concealed weapon. There are distinctions between those two crimes. The first part deals with possession and firearms (although it should be noted…
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…
There have been many cases in Florida and across the country that looked at whether police who have a search warrant to search one’s home can barge into the residence or must knock and announce themselves first. There have also been cases in Florida that discussed what the proper remedy…