Recently, the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeals ruled on a protective-sweep search of a Florida residence in a Florida Possession of Cocaine, Marijuana, and Paraphernalia case. The Florida Court held that the search of a bedroom was unlawful which occurred during an arrest of a woman, Mary Rogers, in…
In general, Jacksonville police officers cannot search a house without a warrant. However, there are exceptions to the rule. On exception to the Jacksonville Florida requirement that a warrant is need for a search is the “protective sweep.” When police officers make an arrest in a house, they “may as…
This Friday night, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office will be conducting a DUI inspection of vehicles (Jacksonville DUI Checkpoint). Jacksonville First Coast News reports that “the safety checkpoint will last for four hours in the 7000 block of Powers Avenue — between University and Old Kings — Friday night starting at…
On July 15, 2010, Nicholas Highsmith, a Clay County resident, was arrested for the battery, rape, robbery, and attempted murder of a woman in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. He was tried this week on all four charges. The jury returned a not guilty verdict as to the rape and attempted murder…
Yesterday, a man robbed a Walgreen’s Pharmacy in St. Augustine, Florida. According to the Florida Times Union, he walked in to the store’s pharmacy and handed the pharmacist a note demanding medications, threatening him if he didn’t comply. He lifted his shirt to show a handgun tucked in his belt,…
The Fifth Amendment is applied to Florida, and all the other States, through the Fourteenth Amendment. It protects a person from self-incrimination and is meant to “assure that an individual is not compelled to produce evidence which later may be used against him as an accused in a criminal action.”…
When a Jacksonville Court is deciding whether or not to issue a Jacksonville Restraining Order by granting a petition for an injunction against domestic violence, the court will look to the factors listed in Florida Statute Section 741.30(1)(a). This Florida law states that the court should consider whether the Respondent:…
Today, I argued in favor of the Respondent at a Jacksonville Injunction Hearing. An injunction is often referred to as a Jacksonville Restraining Order. In this case, the wife (petitioner) filed for a an injunction against her husband (respondent). Without a hearing, the judge issued a temporary restraining order. After…
Today, I argued in favor of a Jacksonville Petition to Expunge a Sexual Battery Record. Originally, I filed the Petition asking the court to expunge my client’s Jacksonville record. He was charged with sexual battery and the charge was dropped. Without a hearing on the matter, the Duval County Circuit…
Florida Statute Section 943.0585 clearly states “that it “does not confer any right to the expunction of any criminal history record, and any request for expunction of a criminal history record may be denied at the sole discretion of the court.” VDF v. State, 19 So. 3d 1172, 1174 –…