Criminal Defense that helps you know your rights and defend your freedom
When you are arrested, you are not allowed to leave the scene. Even if you are not arrested, you could be confined or held for a brief timeframe. This will happen if a police officer or other individual trusts you might be associated with a crime. For instance, an officer may keep you if circumstances warrant a reason for suspicion. Business owners may also detain you if they believe you are involved in a theft. Regardless of whether you are arrested or confined, it’s not a requirement that you answer questions. You must only give your name and address and show identification upon request.
Arrest warrant is often issued for your arrest if you are to be arrested from inside your home. If you flee from the law, destroy evidence, or threaten someone’s life or property, immediate action may be needed. This is done by law enforcement, and an arrest may be made in your home without an arrest warrant.
Arrest warrants are signed by a judge or magistrate. Judges must have a valid reason to believe that the arrest warrant is needed because you have committed a crime. There is not usually a time limit on using a warrant to make an arrest. Any law enforcement officer can arrest you, regardless of the warrant, once the warrant has been issued. It is your right to see the arrest warrant at the time of your arrest, if the law enforcement officer has the warrant. If the law enforcement officer does not have the warrant, you should be able to see the warrant when it’s practical.
Law enforcement must knock, identify themselves, and inform you that you are going to be arrested before they enter. Law enforcement officers may break down your door or enter through a window, if you refuse to open the door.
Arrest warrants cover a search of the area within your reach. This is important if you are arrested outdoors, as law enforcement officers may not search your home or car in this situation.
It is a crime to resist arrest or detention. Doing so puts you and your personal safety at risk. It’s likely you will be charged with a misdemeanor or felony in addition to the original crime for which you are being arrested. It’s also likely the officer may use whatever force is necessary. This can include deadly force, to detain you or keep you from causing bodily injury to anyone.
If you have an unlawful blood alcohol level (0.08% or above), your driving privilege will be suspended for six (6) months for the first offense. If your driving privilege has been previously suspended, this can be one (1) year. All such suspensions are effective as of the date of the arrest.
In Actual Physical Control” is defined as follows: the individual has had the capability and power to dominate, direct or regulate the vehicle, regardless of whether or not he or she was exercising that capability or power at the time of the alleged offense. This means that an individual who is sitting behind the wheel with the keys in the ignition may qualify as being “in actual physical control” of a vehicle even when the vehicle is not moving.
Expungement (expunction) is different than sealing of a criminal record. It is defined as the physical destruction of all records as they relate to your criminal case held by any criminal justice agency. Only one copy of your criminal history in the case of an expungement is confidentially retained by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Clerk of the Court. Neither of these records are open to the public. The law provides that your record may only be expunged if the State Attorney has dropped all the charges or the court dismisses your case completely.
If your plea and adjudication of guilt was withheld or went to trial and you were found not guilty of the charges brought against you, the law only permits for a sealing of your criminal record.
If you have spent ten years after the sealing of your criminal record trouble free, you may request that your criminal record be expunged.
Felony offenses are eligible for sealing and expunging in Florida. Although some specific offenses are not eligible for sealing or expunging.
As a citizen or non-citizen of our country, in Florida you have certain rights if you are arrested. At the time of your arrest the legal authority should disclose that you have the following rights:
The U.S. Constitution guarantees these rights, referred to as the Miranda rights. If you are not given these warnings, anything statement given to the police will not be used against you. But this does not necessarily imply that your case will be dismissed. This may not make a difference on the off chance that you volunteer data to law enforcement without being questioned.
It’s important to know who can arrest or detain you. In Florida any of the following law enforcement officers can detain, arrest, and question you, whether they are off duty. This includes police officers, county sheriff officers, investigators in a State Attorney’s Office. As well as the Attorney General’s Office, highway patrol officers, and probation or parole officers.
You can be arrested even if law enforcement does not have arrest warrant. In the event that they have reasonable justification or valid justification to trust you submitted a felony offense. A felony offense is a wrongdoing of a more serious nature than a misdemeanor. Typically deserving of imprisonment for over a year. Whereas punishment for a misdemeanor offense is typically a fine or prison term of less than one year. Law enforcement does not need to see you commit a felony to arrest you. But they do need to see you commit a misdemeanor.
Bail is defined as an amount of money or security deposited with the court. This ensures that you appear for all proceedings during the prosecution of your criminal case. Bail is set by a predetermined schedule for each county. There are some cases with traffic citations when you may be notified by the court that you can forfeit or give up your bail instead of making a court appearance. If you are ever in doubt about whether you need to appear, go to court. This will prevent a new warrant being issued for your failure to appear.
Scheduling a bond hearing isn’t any easy undertaking. First a Motion to Set Bond has to be drafted and filed with the Clerk of the Court. Then the motion requesting the bond change must be scheduled in the front of the proper judge. Determining the correct judge may be difficult for someone without much experience in dealing with the court system as the correct judge is determined by events such as whether the charges have been formally filed, if the case is a misdemeanor or felony, or even a violation of probation charge. After the correct judge has been determined, the bond motion hearing must be coordinated and scheduled. This is done with the the clerk of the court, the judge, the judicial assistant, and the prosecutor.
DUI (driving under the influence) is when a person is driving or in actual physical control of a vehicle within the state. The person under the influence of alcoholic beverages or any chemical or controlled substance set forth under the applicable statutes when affected to the extent that his or her normal faculties are impaired. Or when the person has a blood alcohol level of 0.08% or higher. Although commonly referred to as “Drunk Driving”, this is a misnomer. It is important to note that all individuals who drive while drunk are considered DUI, an individual does not need to be drunk to be DUI.
If you have an unlawful blood alcohol level (0.08% or above), your driving privilege will be suspended for six (6) months for the first offense. If your driving privilege has been previously suspended, this can be one (1) year. All such suspensions are effective as of the date of the arrest.
You have ten (10) days from the date your license was seized or suspended to request a formal review hearing before the Bureau of Administrative Review with the Florida DHSMV. During this hearing you can challenge the legality of your driver’s license suspension.
The United States Constitution sets forth our rights as citizens for the courts to hold a presumption of guilt against a defendant. Our government must prove its case beyond and to the exclusion of every reasonable doubt. However, if the prosecutor is able to prove in court that you had 0.08% or more by weight of alcohol in your blood and you were operating a motor vehicle, then the court will determine that prima facie evidence exists to prove that you were under the influence.
When you are issued a Florida Driver’s license, you accept the privilege extended by the laws of the state to operate a motor vehicle. You give your consent to submit to an approved chemical or physical test of your breath for the purpose of determining the alcoholic content of your blood.
You also submit to a urine test for the purposes of detecting the presence of drugs. If you are ever lawfully arrested for any offense allegedly committed while driving, or in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcoholic beverages, chemical substances, or controlled substances.
When you refuse to submit to such tests, you subject yourself to additional costs. Florida law provides the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles may suspend your privilege to drive a motor vehicle for a period of one (1) year for a first refusal, or a period of eighteen (18) months for a second or subsequent refusal.
Your refusal to comply with a request for chemical, physical, breath, or urine testing by a law enforcement officer, may also be admissible in any criminal proceeding against you. Also, in the event you have previously refused this testing, you may be charged with an additional misdemeanor upon a second refusal.
Yes. There are very tight regulations, processes, and procedures and strict maintenance which apply to the machines used by law enforcement to determine if an individual is tested over the legal limit in a DUI case. Failure to properly maintain the equipment, or conduct tests in accordance with standard testing procedures can result in the testing being inadmissible in court proceedings.
Here are some benefits to having your criminal record sealed or expunged:
You can seal or expunge multiple charges which are related to the same arrest.
The Fletcher Law Practice is a Tampa Bay and St. Petersburg criminal defense and personal injury litigation firm that focuses on ensuring every person has an opportunity to present his or her case in court. I will do everything within my power for you to help you get the best possible outcome.
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