Category: Blog

I often receive telephone calls from people asking if I can help them get their criminal record expunged.  I ask them if they are eligible to have their criminal record expunged or merely sealed.  The response is usually silence since most people do not realize that there is a distinction in Florida law between getting […]

Is Lethal Injection Unconstitutional?  The United States Supreme Court is set to decide this very important question.  The following article discusses the death penalty case that the High Court will rule upon in deciding whether lethal injection passes constitutional muster: Public Defender Builds Injection Case Published: 1/1/08, 12:45 PM EDT By BRETT BARROUQUERE FRANKFORT, Ky. […]

The following story appears in the Palm Beach Post newspaper.  Although it originates in South Florida, the story could happen anywhere. DNA TESTING ON TRIAL By Susan Spencer-Wendel Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Sunday, December 23, 2007 WEST PALM BEACH — Exonerations using DNA evidence have topped 200 cases now, corroding confidence in the American […]

            Sometimes when a man is arrested for the crime of domestic battery in Palm Beach County Florida, the judge who sets his bond orders him to have no contact with the alleged victim (which is usually the man's wife or girlfriend).  Often the judge enters such a "no-contact" order […]

Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the federal guidelines on sentencing for cocaine violations are advisory only, rejecting a lower court ruling that they are effectively mandatory. Judges must consider the Guideline range for a cocaine violation, the Court said, but may conclude that they are too harsh when considering the disparity […]

BODY: I previously authored a post entitled "Disparity in Sentencing and Crack Cocaine."  Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court addressed this same issue in two different cases.  The result was a resounding win for both defendants.  In his blog entitled "Sentencing Law and Policy," Professor Douglas A. Berman summarizes the two cases as follows: […]

If you are arrested for domestic battery in Palm Beach County Florida, the good news is that you will probably be able to get out of jail either by paying a monetary bond or else by agreeing to be supervised by certain government employees who have been designated by the Court to perform that task.  The […]

FORT PIERCE — A jury deliberated for more than four hours Wednesday and will return today to mull the fate of two men accused of orchestrating a complex scheme that prosecutors say defrauded elderly investors out of millions of dollars. The jurors will meet at the federal courthouse at 9:30 a.m. to resume deliberations in […]

All police interrogations should be tape recorded so that there is an accurate record of what was said both by the suspect and by the police.  The following story about one particular interrogation illustrates this point:  NEW YORK (AP) -- A teenage suspect who secretly recorded his interrogation on an MP3 player has landed a […]

Where can convicted sex offenders live?  This is becoming an increasing problem as laws are continually being passed that limit where convicted sex offenders can live.  For instance, in Florida, persons convicted of certain sex offenses are not permitted to live within 1,000 feet of any school, day care center, park, or playground. The following […]