Category: Blog

Last week, CBS News published the following article regarding a significant change in the law pertaining to the charge of marijuana possession in California:   "California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on [September 30, 2010] signed into law a bill that reduces the charge for possession of up to an ounce of marijuana from a misdemeanor to a […]

           If you were to ask the Florida Department of Law Enforcement ("FDLE") to do a background check on either yourself or someone else, that department would search various state and federal databases for records of such things as arrests, warrants, and domestic violence injunctions.  An article that I wrote on […]

 A recent article by Will Hanlon, a Tampa criminal attorney, discusses a change to the sentencing process in Missouri's criminal courts which could come to Florida.  This change to the factors which judges could consider during sentencing is so important for Florida taxpayers that our lawmakers should examine it.   

           The Innocence Project has identified the six most common causes of wrongful convictions.  They are:   Eyewitness misidentification Unvalidated or improper forensic science False confessions or admissions Misconduct by the police or prosecutors Informants or snitches Bad lawyering             The Innocence Project found that of the first […]

           The Innocence Project has identified the six most common causes of wrongful convictions.  They are:   Eyewitness misidentification Unvalidated or improper forensic science False confessions or admissions Misconduct by the police or prosecutors Informants or snitches Bad lawyering             The Innocence Project found that of the first […]

           In the case of Anderson v. State of Florida, a judge denied Mr. Anderson's petition to seal his criminal record because he had already received a "break" from the criminal-justice system when adjudication was withheld in his case and when he was allowed to successfully terminate his probation early.  Anderson […]

           In a case from New York called People v. LeGrand, the issue was whether the trial judge was correct in refusing to admit expert testimony regarding the reliability of eyewitness identifications.  In refusing to admit such testimony, the judge in the LeGrand case ruled the same way that most judges […]

          A privileged communication is a statement that you cannot be forced to disclose in a legal proceeding because it was made in connection with a legally-protected relationship.  Some of the privileged communications recognized by Florida law are:   Journalist's privilege; Lawyer-client privilege; Psychotherapist-patient privilege; Sexual assault counselor-victim privilege; Domestic violence advocate-victim privilege; Husband-wife privilege; […]

          In the case of Edwards v. Arizona, the United States Supreme Court ruled that when the police question someone who is in custody and that person expresses a desire to deal with the police only through a lawyer, the police have to stop questioning that person unless he or she voluntarily initiates further communication […]

          One of the consequences of being convicted of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol (DUI) is that your driver's license is suspended for a certain period of time.  The amount of time depends upon how many times you've convicted of DUI in the past.  One of the most frequent questions that my DUI […]