Double Jeopardy Tuttle v. State Depending on which crime an individual is charged with determines the severity of penalties someone may face if ultimately convicted. As we have discussed in other posts, the prosecutor’s decision on which charge to file matters. In Tuttle v. State, Florida’s Second District Court of Appeals reviews a case inRead More
Category: Appeal
Florida Supreme Court | Recording Cannot Be Used As Evidence
Two-Party Consent Law The Florida Supreme Court ruled in McDade v. State of Florida, that secretly recorded statements by the victim of a crime cannot be used as evidence against the defendant; this applies even in cases of child sex abuse, or neglect. It was unanimously decided by the justices that the FloridaLegislature would haveRead More
Colorado v. Schaufele | Driving Under the Influence
Driving under the influence of alcohol is a common offense in the United States of America. Sobriety tests and blood analysis are two common ways of testing for alcohol consumption. The offense is a misdemeanor and therefore rarely gets to the Supreme Court. Recent questions have however arisen pertaining as to whether warrants to conductRead More
Drug Trafficking | State v. Sanchez
Drug Trafficking Charge Not All Charges Are Equal There are often completely different outcomes in similar criminal cases depending on the statute an individual is charged with. Prosecution must be accurate and precise in their charging decisions. Charging someone with the wrong crime can result in charges being dropped; cases are lost all the timeRead More
Necessity Defense
Florida’s Take On The Necessity Defense In The Context Of A DUI Charge Under certain circumstances, any individual charged with DUI in Florida may argue that they were justified in driving under the influence due to an emergency situation. As explained by the Fifth District Court of Appeal in Florida in Driggers v. State, thereRead More
Drug Conspiracy Law In Florida – Hampton v. State
Interpretation Of Criminal Law Hampton v. State A conspiracy is defined in law as an agreement between two or more individuals to commit a crime. Although this may seem like a pretty straightforward definition, as with most criminal law, it is up to interpretation. The focus of this post will be to discuss Florida’s FifthRead More
Self-Defense and Florida’s New Perspective | Criminal Defense Law
Florida’s New Perspective on Self-Defense Florida Governor Rick Scott made it official that the use of defensive threats of force, such as “warning shots”, is considered self-defense. By signing HB89, Floridian’s are now allowed to use a defensive threat as a means of self-defense, without the fear of going to prison. An Affirmative defense isRead More
Search And Seizure | Appeals Court Decision
The Search and Seizure Law | When Does It Apply? The Fourth Amendment of the Constitution protects its citizens by placing limits on the power of law enforcement to search people and their property, seize objects, or make arrests. These checks and balances are put in place to ensure that we as American citizens haveRead More
Mistaken Police Officer
Mistaken Police Officer Now An Exception to Unreasonable Search The United States Supreme Court has ruled that a police officers good faith reasonable mistake on the law does not run afoul of the 4th Amendment to the constitution that bans unreasonable searches and seizures. In Heien v. North Carolina, the Court in a 8-1 decisionRead More