Tampa Bay Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

September 22, 2023

When Police in Florida Can — and Can’t — Perform a Warrantless Search of Your Possessions Following an Arrest

Certain types of alleged crimes — namely, drug and/or weapon charges — frequently arise from evidence that the police seized in a search performed without a warrant. The law generally falls on the side of disallowing warrantless searches, but the law also has many exceptions that the state can use to get items seized without a warrant into evidence. Many times, the key to a successful defense is countering those arguments and persuading the court that no exception applies and that the court should exclude the item(s) in dispute. Having a knowledgeable Tampa Bay criminal defense lawyer on your side can be crucial to doing that successfully.

Sometimes, the police have no justification at all for the search they performed. Oftentimes, though, as a recent weapons case from the Orlando area shows, the issue is whether or not the police exceeded the bounds of what a potentially applicable exception allows.

The accused man from Orange County, J.J., arrived home to find local deputies already there, having arrived to serve an arrest warrant. The suspect had two bags on his body: a backpack on his back and a “fanny pack” on his chest. After the man refused orders to stop and instead went into his garage, the deputies tackled and handcuffed him. After that, they removed both bags, placing the fanny pack on the hood of a car.

August 24, 2023

Avoiding a Probation Violation Based on a Requirement Your PO Imposed but the Court Didn’t

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

If you are placed on probation, you need to understand several things. One is that you should take your probation very seriously. Another is that you should take any alleged violation of your probation equally seriously. If a prosecutor successfully persuades a judge that you violated your probation, you could face many years (or decades) behind bars that you otherwise would have avoided. If you have questions about your potential violation of probation, make sure you’re getting reliable answers by seeking advice from a knowledgeable Tampa Bay probation violation lawyer.

If you are facing a probation violation case, you have multiple ways in which you can attack it. A recent local case illustrates a few of those avenues.

The probationer was a Tampa man named Angel who, after a 2013 arrest, entered an open plea to multiple sex crimes charges. (An open plea means that you’ve pled guilty without reaching a sentencing agreement with the prosecutor; rather, you plead guilty and essentially “throw yourself on the mercy of the court.”) The judge in Angel’s case sentenced him to 20 years’ probation.

July 25, 2023

Florida’s Domestic Violence Criminal Statutes Versus the State’s Assault/Battery Laws

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

The peculiar details of some domestic disturbances can generate less-than-serious coverage in the media. However, a domestic incident is always a serious legal matter in Florida, as it can potentially impact the lives of both the accused and the alleged victim in a myriad of ways. If you’re the accused, swiftly obtaining representation from an experienced Tampa Bay criminal defense lawyer can greatly help you in the pursuit of a fair outcome.

An incident to our north is an example. According to a report by The Smoking Gun, the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office responded to a home in The Villages earlier this month where the husband allegedly had battered his wife. According to the wife, the husband, who had been drinking, became upset about offensive content on a television show and declared “I’m not having that in my house.”

When the wife stood up from her chair, the husband grabbed her by both arms, forced her back down into the recliner, and refused to let her go. The police report indicated that the wife “had a minor injury of broken skin on her left inner forearm.”

June 23, 2023

‘Fruit of the Poisonous Tree’ and Getting Your Statements to Police Thrown Out in a Florida Case

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

In a 2001 episode of a highly popular courtroom drama, a criminal suspect is very excited. “Y’all ain’t got no probable cause… That’s poison from the fruit tree!” Garbled wording aside, the suspect was onto something… or he might have been had he not been on parole and subject to warrantless searches. While you may not know all the ins and outs of the “fruit of the poisonous tree” doctrine and its role in suppressing potentially incriminating evidence, your experienced Tampa Bay criminal defense lawyer has an in-depth knowledge of this rule and more, which is why it is so important to obtain the right legal counsel when you are facing charges or are under suspicion.

The “fruit of the poisonous tree” doctrine is an element of the exclusionary rule of evidence. It bars the use of proof that the police obtained via a search, seizure, or interrogation that violated your constitutional rights, such as the right to counsel or the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures.

In the recent sex crimes case of one Sarasota County man, the usefulness of the “fruit of the poisonous tree” rule was one the important lessons readers can learn. The other — as often is the case — is: avoid talking to the police without your attorney present.

May 23, 2023

How the Police Can Violate Your Fourth Amendment Rights in a Traffic Stop… and What It Potentially Can Mean to Your Florida Criminal Case

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

There are many ways in which law enforcement officers can overstep or misstep in conducting a warrantless search pursuant to a traffic stop. When they do, those errors may mean the search was unconstitutional and you are entitled to suppression of the proof they found. This blog post will look at a couple of ways that officers can err. Keep in mind that, when an officer missteps, a skilled Tampa Bay criminal defense lawyer can be essential to success in court when it comes to the suppression of evidence seized in an illegal search.

An example of one of the ways police can violate your rights comes from one of our sister states… California. The accused was a man driving in the Bay Area when the police pulled him over for two minor traffic violations. The time required to check for outstanding warrants, confirm the validity of the driver’s license, registration, and insurance, and decide whether or not to write a ticket took roughly 3 1/2 minutes.

But the stop didn’t end there. Allegedly, an officer suspected the driver of being under the influence of drugs, so he ordered him out of the car and conducted field sobriety tests, which the driver passed. This took roughly six additional minutes. But the stop didn’t end there, either.

April 25, 2023

What Florida Law Says About Warrantless Searches Police Perform Pursuant to a Baker Act Detention

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

A lot of criminal prosecutions — especially ones related to firearms or drug crimes — involve evidence seized as a result of a warrantless search. If that’s you, one of the most important parts of your defense is contesting the legality of the search and the admissibility of evidence seized in it. When it comes to suppressing evidence seized as part of a warrantless search, having representation provided by a skilled Tampa Bay criminal defense lawyer can be critical to your success.

One exception to the search warrant rule is something called a “search incident to an arrest.” If the officer has made a valid arrest, the officer can conduct a reasonable search to ensure his/her safety, such as searching for weapons.

Arrests are not the only reason that law enforcement officers involuntarily detain people. Each year, many thousands of people are involuntarily detained across Florida based on mental health concerns. According to research from the University of South Florida, officers performed roughly 200,000 of these mental health (a/k/a “Baker Act”) detentions in each of the last three years. This raises a question critical for many of those people: how much warrantless searching can the officer do?

March 27, 2023

Weapons Crimes and Sentence Enhancements for Repeat Offenders

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

Weapons crimes often can come with strict sentencing rules including, in some circumstances, sentence enhancements. If you are facing such a possibility, it is vital to have a skilled Tampa Bay criminal defense lawyer on your side to help you establish that you do not qualify for the enhanced sentence and should not be subject to a longer time behind bars.

Here’s an example from Florida of how these things can unfold. In 2013, federal authorities indicted F.S. for “possession of a firearm by a convicted felon” in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). Normally, this crime would carry with it a maximum sentence of 10 years.

F.S., however, received a sentence of more than 17-1/2 years, though. How? The federal court determined that a sentence enhancement under the Armed Career Criminal Act (18 USC § 924(e)) applied. That enhancement took F.S.’s crime from something with a maximum of 10 years to something with a minimum of 15 years.

March 22, 2023

Why Designated Drivers are Important

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

What is a Designated Driver?

Many methods are used to prevent drunk driving. One of the most important and successful methods is the designated driver concept.

In 1988, the Harvard Alcohol Project was introduced as a way to bring drunk driving fatalities down.⁷ The project introduced the Scandinavian concept of the designated driver to the United States.

February 27, 2023

When the Police in Florida Can — and Can’t — Search You Without Your Consent Based on a Non-Criminal Traffic Violation

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

Drug and weapons offenses represent some of the most commonly charged crimes in Florida. According to the FBI, drug crimes are the #1 basis for arrests, representing nearly 1 in 7 (14%) of all arrests. Sometimes, the way the police go about obtaining the proof necessary to make those arrests violates the law and your constitutional rights. To avoid becoming a statistic, you need a skilled Tampa Bay criminal defense lawyer on your side to get illegally obtained evidence excluded from your case.

One common scenario where this comes up is after the police have made a stop due to a non-criminal traffic violation. A recent Hillsborough case — although technically a delinquency matter — is very useful because it illustrates how the police can overstep and, when they do, how a criminal suspect can get evidence suppressed.

The case originated when law enforcement officers stopped O.W. (a Hillsborough County teen) and another person for riding their bicycles at night with no lights on them. The teen stopped when the officer asked him to. He also gave his name, address, and date of birth when asked.

January 23, 2023

Florida Law Regarding Stand Your Ground Immunity and People Engaged in Illegal Conduct

by Blake & Dorsten, P.A.

Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” has been the subject of much public discussion. Many misunderstandings and misconceptions are associated with this statute. If you are someone facing criminal charges and need to present an argument for Stand Your Ground immunity, make sure you have an experienced Tampa Bay criminal defense lawyer advocating for you.

One of the more common illustrations of a Stand Your Ground scenario involves an innocent bystander who is abruptly confronted and/or attacked. In reality, Stand Your Ground immunity may apply to a variety of circumstances, even if you were guilty of a criminal violation at the time.

A Manatee County attempted manslaughter case is a good example. R.J., a man who newspaper reports identified as a member of a Bradenton street gang, was part of a 2018 altercation involving a rival gang at a local bar. The bar fight spilled into the parking lot and, eventually, shots were fired. A member of a rival gang was dead, allegedly killed by R.J.’s ex-stepfather.