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Florida Statute Section 776.013 is also know as the Florida Stand Your Ground Law or the Florida Castle Doctrine. According to this Florida self-defense law:

“A person is presumed to have held a reasonable fear of imminent peril of death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another when using defensive force that is intended or likely to cause death or great bodily harm to another if:

(a) the person against whom the defensive force was used was in the process of unlawfully and forcefully entering, or had unlawfully and forcibly entered, a dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle, or if that person had removed or was attempting to remove another against that person’s will from the dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle; and (b) the person who uses defensive force knew or had reason to believe that an unlawful and forcible entry or unlawful and forcible act was occurring or had occurred.”

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In St. Augustine Florida DUI Cases, police officers look for indicators of impairment. They are looking for certain phyical symptoms that they believe show that a driver is impaired by drugs or alcoholic beverages. The most commom symptoms that they look for are:

  1. blood-shot, watery eyes;
  2. a flushed faced;
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Police Officers in St. Augustine, Florida received calls from concerned persons regarding a woman named Renee Birchall. As the St. Augustine Beach Police Department was in the process of searching for Ms. Birchall, one of the police officer’s vehicles was rear-ended. Police were suprised to discover that Ms. Birchall was the driver of that vehicle. Local reports stated, “the first arriving St. Augustine police officer who went to check on Birchall said she was sitting in her vehicle drinking from a bottle of vodka.” She was arrested for St. Augustine Florida Driving Under the Influence (DUI).

You do not need a St. Augustine DUI Lawyer to tell you that drinking a bottle of liquor while sitting in your vehicle is a good way to pick up a St. Augustine Driving Under the Influence charge. Likewise, rear-ending a police vehicle will not help your case either. There are some less obvious indicators of impairment that police look for (See St. Augustine Florida DUI Lawyer Shares What Police Look for in Driving Under the Influence Cases).

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Today, a 17-year-old boy, Eric Francis Sandefur, was charged with the stabbing death of a homeless man, Jason Jerome, in Jacksonville, Florida. His Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer and Public Defender entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf. His Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer may have pled not guilty for several reasons. The defendant may have requested that she do so, order for him to obtain a private Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer. Otherwise, his Public Defender likely needs more time to conduct an investigation. 

Jacksonville media reports that police have obtained a video that “shows a figure in what appears to be a jacket and tie holding a knife while Jerome backs away, his shoulders covered by a blanket… Sandefur, who was arrested two days later, made statements to investigators that he wanted to know what it felt like to kill someone.” Undoubtedly, his attorney will want to investigated his statement and review the video carefully.

If you are facing criminal charges in Jacksonville, Florida or the surrounding counties, contact a Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer to review your case, make the proper determinations, and make sure your rights are being protected.

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Once a Jacksonville Criminal Defendant is arrested and goes through his first appearance/bond hearing, the State Attorney’s Office will determine whether or not former charges will be filed. In most cases, charges are filed through an information, which is a formal charging document. If charges are filed, the Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer will enter a plea of guilty, no contest, or not guilty on the defendant’s behalf.

If the Jacksonville Criminal Defendant pleads guilty, he or she is admitting his guilt and will be sentenced. If the Jacksonville Criminal Defendant pleads no contest (nolo contendere), he or she is not admitting guilty, but is entering the plea as a matter of convenience. The defendant will still be sentenced as if he or she entered a guilty plea. Additionally, the no contest plea will have the same legal ramifications as a guilty plea. If the Jacksonville Criminal Defendant pleads not guilty, he will not be sentenced at this time. Instead, he will contest the charges and may change his guilty plea at a later date, depending on the circumstances of his Jacksonville Criminal Case.

Once a defendant pleads guilty, he or she has several decisions to make (read Jacksonville Criminal Attorney Discusses Pleading Not Guilty).

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Yesterday, Jacksonville news reports stated that the Jacksonville homicide rate dropped during the year of 2010. In fact, “the State Attorney’s Office said there were less homicides in the year 2010 than in decades. Investigators there said there were 99 homicides in 2010 in Jacksonville.” However, some organizations, such as Hurting Families with Children in Crime, question the accuracy of the Jacksonville crime statistics. It appears that the North and the Northwest sections of Jacksonville are not seeing a decrease in crime.

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A Florida man was arrested for attempted murder after stabbing his 6-year-old son. Jacksonville Florida News reports that Xavier Thomas has been accused of stabbing his on over 20 times on New Year’s Eve. The wounds were not life-threatening. A family member stated that Thomas is being treated for mental illness. Details of the case are still unfolding; however it is likely that his mental illness will play a role in his defense of this Florida attempted murder charge. Thomas’ mental illness may result in an insanity defense or negate the specific intent to commit this crime. Additionally, he may be incompetent to defend his Florida criminal case.

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Once a Jacksonville Criminal Attorney enters a plea of not guilty on behalf of a Jacksonville Criminal Defendant, she must diligently move forward with the case. This consist of acquiring discovery (evidence, witnesses, documents, recording, etc.) that the State Attorney has in his or her possession. A criminal defendant will enter a plea of not guilty for several reasons (listed below). 

  1. The obvious reason is that the defendant is not guilty. 
  2. A defendant will plead not guilty, because the case requires further investigation.  The Jacksonville Criminal Attorney needs time to review the evidence against her client, search for witnesses and exculpatory evidence, take depositions, and determine if there are any constitutional violations.  
  3. A Jacksonville Criminal Defendant may be overcharged. That is, he or she is guilty of a crime, but a lesser offense, not the crime charged. 
  4. The Jacksonville Criminal Attorney and the State Attorney may be in the process of negotiating a plea agreement.  They need time to agree upon a sentence, so there may be a negotiated disposition of the case.  

If you are facing criminal charges in Jacksonville, Florida or the surrounding counties, contact a Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer.

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As a Jacksonville Criminal Lawyer, I have seen hundreds of Jacksonville criminal cases involving illegal drugs and controlled substances. Jacksonville Florida is no stranger to drug crimes, such as arrests related to methamphetamine (Jacksonville Meth Lab Article). Florida Statute Section 893.13 makes it illegal to manufacture, possess, deliver, or sell controlled substances in Jacksonville. This law includes possession of methamphetamine (meth). 

Today, a major arrest occurred about two hours away from Jacksonville, Florida in Guyton, Georgia. The Savannah Morning News reported that a man was arrested for trafficking methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of counterfeit substances and possession of marijuana.

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According to a recent study, “More high school seniors this year used marijuana than smoked cigarettes in the past 30 days,” USA Today reports. Teenagers need to understand the ramifications involved with marijuana use. In Jacksonville, Florida, possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana is a misdemeanor. While possession of 20 grams or more of marijuana is a felony offense. A plea to a marijuana charge will also result in a driver’s license suspension. Jacksonville juveniles charged with possession of marijuana should be given the opportunity to get their charges dropped, whether through a pretrial intervention program or other source. Even though a Jacksonville juvenile may try marijuana as a teenager, he or she should not have to live with that criminal record as an adult. By entering a program and getting the charges dropped, the Jacksonville juvenile would get any needed assistance and be able to avoid a plea to Jacksonville possession of marijuana.

If you are facing Possession of Marijuana (Cannabis) charges in Jacksonville, Florida or the surrounding counties, contact a Jacksonville Possession of Marijuana Lawyer.

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