Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

December 22, 2008

Jacksonville Jaguar Player Arrested on DUI Driver’s License Suspension

Jacksonville Jaguar, Tararous Bain, was arrested on Sunday for driving on a suspended license. His license was suspended due to a prior DUI charge. A Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence (DUI) charge can result in a suspended driver’s license. The Jacksonville DUI License Laws are as follows:

For the first Jacksonville DUI conviction, your Florida driver’s license is suspended for 6 months.
For a second Jacksonville DUI conviction, there is a 5 year Florida driver’s license suspension if the second Jacksonville DUI occurred within 5 years of the first DUI. If not, the DUI will only result in a 6 month suspension.
For a third Jacksonville DUI conviction that occurs within 10 years of a prior DUI, your Florida driver’s license will be suspended for 10 years. If the third Jacksonville DUI occurs outside of this 10 year period, the suspension is only for 6 months. Remember, if two of those Jacksonville DUI cases are within 5 years of each other, the Florida driver’s license will be suspended for 5 years.
For a fourth Jacksonville DUI, your driver’s license will be suspended permanently.

You may be eligible for a Florida hardship license (unless you have a fourth Jacksonville DUI). To learn more about Jacksonville DUI cases, contact a Jacksonville DUI lawyer.

December 19, 2008

More Evidence in Anthony’s Florida Child Murder Case

by David M. Goldman

There is new evidence in the murder case of Caylee Anthony, a Florida missing child. At the start of this Florida missing child case, many suspected that her mother, Casey Anthony murdered the child in Florida. However, Casey Anthony was not charged with the Florida murder until months after the child’s disappearance, due the need for more evidence. In October, she was charged with the Florida murder of her missing child. Today, more circumstantial evidence in the Florida child murder case was discoveredand is likely being reviewed by her Florida criminal lawyer and the Florida prosecutor. The remains are just another piece of evidence that her Florida criminal defense lawyer will need to rebut.
Continue reading

December 17, 2008

Seal a Florida Criminal Record

by David M. Goldman

We all make mistakes or do something that we later regret. As a Jacksonville criminal lawyer, I see this all to often. A Florida resident commits a minor crime, and his Florida criminal background haunts him. Sealing a Florida criminal record can help. By obtaining a seal on a Florida record, it is not open to the public. A Florida record seal prevents most people from viewing your criminal record.

For more information on how to seal a Florida criminal background, contact a Florida Record Sealing Attorney or visit www.jacksonvillelawyer.pro. Our Florida law firm charges only $395.00, plus a fee of $75.00 for the FDLE application process. See our Cost of Sealing a Florida Criminal record page.

December 16, 2008

Sharon Osbourne Investigated for Battery

by David M. Goldman

Rock of Love Charm School host and rock star wife, Sharon Osbourne, is being investigated for battery. Allegations have been made that she attacked one of the reality show’s contestants, Megan Hauserman. Depending on the results of a police investigation, she could be charged with battery in California.

Under Florida law, Jacksonville battery occurs when a person intends to (1) touch another person against that person’s will or (2) cause bodily harm to another. Jacksonville battery is a first degree misdemeanor, so it is punishable by up to one year in jail. If the battery between Osbourne and Hauserman had occurred in Jacksonville, Osbourne could face jail time.

To learn more about Jacksonville battery, contact a Jacksonville battery attorney or visit www.jacksonvillelawyer.pro.

December 16, 2008

Expunging a Florida Criminal Record

by David M. Goldman

As a Jacksonville Criminal Attorney, I have represented many criminal defendants in Jacksonville, Florida. Many people think that a Jacksonville Criminal Attorney must represent “bad” people, but this is not always the case. Bad things can happen to good people, so they need a Jacksonville Criminal Attorney to work hard for them. However, even if the charges are dropped, the arrest can result in a Florida criminal record. A Florida criminal record can haunt a person forever.

A Jacksonville Criminal Attorney can help by expunging a Florida criminal record. A Florida criminal record can be expunged if the Florida charges were dropped, dismissed, or never filed. You can expunge a Florida criminal record if it been sealed for 10 years.

December 14, 2008

Jacksonville Criminal Attorneys are Needed at Bond Hearing

by David M. Goldman

In Jacksonville Florida’s first appearance court (also known as bond hearing), most Jacksonville Criminal Defendants are not represented by a Jacksonville criminal lawyer. Under Florida law, a Jacksonville Criminal Defendant is entitled to appear before a judge within 24 hours of his arrest. Due to this Florida law, Duval County first appearance court is held twice a day, every day.

As a Jacksonville Criminal Lawyer, I have spent a lot of time in Duval County first appearance court for bond hearings. I have seen many Jacksonville Criminal Defendants stand before a judge without representation. While there is a Jacksonville Public Defender present in the room, this is only one Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer to represent one hundred or so Jacksonville Criminal Defendants in one day. It is not possible for a Jacksonville Criminal Attorney to adequately represent that many people at one time.

Jacksonville Criminal Defendants that hire a Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer for a bond hearing have the benefit of one lawyer for one client. Also, an experienced Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer will give the judge favorable and valuable information about the the Jacksonville Criminal Defendant to the judge at the bond hearing. The reason a Jacksonville Criminal Attorney presents this information is to achieve a lower bond for the Jacksonville Criminal Defendant.

December 12, 2008

Florida Confession Does Not Mean Conviction

by David M. Goldman

As a Jacksonville Florida Criminal Defense Lawyer, I have represented thousands of criminal defendants in Jacksonville. Normally, the worse piece of evidence against a Jacksonville criminal defendant is a confession to the crime. However, Florida law is interesting when it comes to criminal defendant’s confessions. Florida law does not allow a confession by a criminal defendant to be entered into evidence unless the Jacksonville prosecutor has proven the corpus delicti of the crime. Corpus Delicti is “the body of the crime.” The Jacksonville prosecutor must present sufficient direct or circumstantial evidence that a crime was committed and the Jacksonville criminal defendant committed that crime. If this does not occur, the Jacksonville criminal defendant’s confession cannot be admitted into evidence.

For example, in a Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence case, the prosecutor must show that the Jacksonville criminal defendant was (1) driving, (2) under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and (3) impaired by the drugs or alcohol. If the only evidence that the Jacksonville criminal defendant was driving is his confession, that confession cannot be entered into evidence. If the Jacksonville criminal defendant’s confession is not entered into evidence, the prosecutor cannot prove the “driving” element required in Jacksonville DUI cases. The end result is case dismissed!

December 11, 2008

Jacksonville DUI Attorney: Videos Can Make or Break the Case

by David M. Goldman

A Florida DUI Video can make or break a Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence Case. In some Jacksonville Police Cars ( DUI units), the vehicle is equipped with a dash camera. When an Jacksonville officer turns on his emergency lights to stop a vehicle, the camera activates. The camera records the stop and everything that occurs after the stop.

As a Jacksonville DUI lawyer, I have seen many Florida DUI videos. Most of the time, the recordings are favorable to a Florida DUI defendant. In the DUI video, the Jacksonville driver will exit the vehicle without a problem, speak properly, and not appear to be impaired at all. To the contrary, the Jacksonville police officer will state, in his report, that the person had trouble exiting the vehicle, speaking, and walking. The police officer will say that these are all signs of impairment in a Jacksonville DUI case, and that the DUI defendant exhibited these signs. However, the Driving Under the Influence video does not lie. Instead, when comparing the video to the officer’s testimony, it appears that the Jacksonville driver was not impaired, and the police officer is not being truthful.

To learn more about Jacksonville DUI videos and how they can be beneficial to a Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence case, contact a Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence Attorney.

December 9, 2008

Two Possible Suspects in the Ponte Vedra Burglaries

by David M. Goldman

Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida was recently hit with a string of burglaries. The are two possible suspects in the Ponte Vedra Burglaries. According to recent reports, two men were caught on video using a credit card that was stolen during the burglaries at a Jacksonville Wal-Mart.

At first glance, it would appear that these two men committed the Ponte Vedra burglaries. However, that may not be the case. St. John’s County police officers found a television and laptop near of one Ponte Vedra Beach home, and they obtained fingerprints from the television. The prints may not belong to the two men. If the Ponte Vedra burglars left a television and a laptop after the burglary, it is possible that they left the credit cards as well. The two men may have found the credit card or another person may have given it to them. While they should not have used the card, they are not necessarily guilty of burglary in Ponte Vedra.

As a Jacksonville Burglary Attorney, the first thing that I would look at is the time between the Ponte Vedra burglary and the Jacksonville Wal-Mart purchase. The longer the time period, the more likely it is that the two men received the card at a later time and did not obtain it by burglary.

December 9, 2008

String of Burglaries in Ponte Vedra Florida

by David M. Goldman

Recently, there has been an increase in burglaries in Ponte Vedra Beach. St. John’s County police officers have been responding to calls from Ponte Vedra residents complaining that their homes were burglarized and their property has been stolen. St. John’s County police are investigating these cases, and they do have a lead. St. John’s County police have video surveillance of two men buying a television with a credit card that was stolen from a burglarized Ponte Vedra home.

In Jacksonville and the surrounding areas (such as Ponte Vedra), burglary happens often. In many Jacksonville burglary cases, the culprit is not apprehended. It is difficult for police to solve a Jacksonville area burglary without any kind of “lead” in the case. In my experience as a Jacksonville Burglary Lawyer, police usually get a lead for a Jacksonville burglary from events that occur after the burglary. In the Ponte Vedra burglaries, police will investigate the men that used the credit cards, and those men may be charged with burglary in Ponte Vedra.

As a Jacksonville Burglary Attorney, I have seen many criminal defendants charged with burglary and dealing in stolen property at the same time. For example, Jacksonville police officers will find stolen items from a Jacksonville burglary at pawnshops and find out who pawned the items. They arrest the suspect and charge him with burglary and dealing in stolen property in Jacksonville, Florida. The good news is they found the Jacksonville burglary victim’s property. The bad news is, without any other proof, Jacksonville police may have arrested the wrong man.