Jacksonville Criminal Defense Attorney Blog

Misty Croslin, the babysitter on watch when Haleigh Cummings went missing, is trying to get a different sentence, according to an article in The Florida Times Union.  Misty was arrested on drug charges in St. Johns and Putnam counties, unrelated to the missing child.  Croslin entered a plea to the court to trafficking charges and was sentenced to twenty-five years in prison.  Croslin’s attorney filed a motion with the court to set aside her sentences and essentially start over.  She claims that her original St. Johns criminal attorney did not explain what the possible sentences could be and promised her she would receive six years in prison as a youthful offender.  Croslin’s original attorney denies this allegation and suggested that the twenty five year sentence was a win, considering that the judge could have sentenced her to twenty five years in prison consecutively on each charge.  This means that once one sentence is completed, the other would begin.  The trial judge now has to determine whether or not Croslin understood her options and possible punishments prior to entering her pleas to the Court.

Whenever someone enters a plea to a felony charge in Duval, Clay, Nassau or St. Johns Counties, the judge recites a plea colloquy.  This conversation/question and answer session is designed to make sure a defendant fully understands the consequences of their plea.  The judge advises the defendant of the nature of the charges, the minimum and maximum possible punishments, all the possible defenses to the charge and mitigation in each case.  Judges also make sure to ask whether or not the plea is voluntarily made and ask if defendant has been promised anything, other than a negotiated disposition, to enter the plea.  In addition to making sure the plea is freely made, judges also have to advise a defendant the rights they are giving up.  Every arrested person has the right to a trial, the right to be represented by a criminal defense lawyer, the right to present witnesses on their behalf, the right to require the prosecutor’s office to prove the case against them beyond all reasonable doubt and the right against self-incrimination.  Judges also remind defendants of the consequences of their plea, such as deportation.

If Duval county and others, there are forms that a defendant must read and sign prior to entering a plea to a felony charge.  It is important to consult with an experienced St. Johns County criminal attorney prior to entering plea to the judge or negotiating with the the state attorney’s office.

The use of the drug heroin is up in Duval, Clay and Nassau Counties, according to an article in the Washington Times.  There are new statistics showing the increase.  Heroin related overdoses have doubled from 2014 to 2015 and arrests where heroin is involved have increased recently.  Law enforcement attributes the uptick in heroin use to the shutting down of so many “pill mills” in our area. When people cannot get prescriptions for pills such as hydrocodone or Oxycontin, they may turn to the cheaper heroin for a similar high.

In Duval County and all over the state of Florida, possession of heroine, a controlled substance, is a third degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison.  Possession can be in one of two ways, either actual or constructive.  Actual possession is when a person has the drug in their hand, in a container on the person, or so close to the person only they can readily reach it. Constructive possession means that the drug is in a place and only the suspect can control.  For example, if the driver of a car is the only person in the car, they constructively possess a drug found in the backseat of the car.

Sale of heroin is considered more serious than simply possessing the drug.  If convicted of selling heroin in Jacksonville, a suspect is facing up to fifteen years in prison.  The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office typically runs “buy bust” operations to catch alleged drug sellers.  It is usually two undercover narcotic detectives posing as drug users/abusers.  They make contact with a potential seller through a tip or confidential informant to purchase some drugs.  When they meet, these drug detectives have recording devices on their clothes.  The recordings are usually audio, but sometimes contain video evidence.  Once the buy is made, the police will do a predetermined take-down signal and the suspect is arrested.

While investigating a misdemeanor theft case at a Clay County motel, police ended up finding an active methamphetamine lab.  That will mean serious felony charges for the two men involved, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. When police stopped the first man on the theft charge, they say they found methamphetamines on him, the newspaper reported. When police learned he was staying at the motel, they then found a second man and an active meth lab in the room, the newspaper reported.

The first man was charged with two misdemeanor counts – the initial theft charge police were investigating and a marijuana possession charge – and a felony possession of a controlled substance charge for the methamphetamines. The felony is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in state prison. The second man in this Clay County Drug Crimes Case was charged with manufacturing methamphetamines and possession of methamphetamines with intent to sell. Each of those charges is a second-degree felony with a maximum penalty of 15 years in state prison.

Charges and potential sentences in Clay County Drug Cases are based primarily on two main factors: the type of drug the person is a accused of possessing, and the amount of said drug. The difference is clear in the charges against the first man in this Clay County Drug Crimes Case. Police find marijuana and meth on him when they go to talk to him about the theft. He is facing no more than a year in the county jail for the marijuana charge, but up to five years for having methamphetamines. For the second man in this Clay County Drug Crimes Case, he likely had a larger amount of the drug, but not enough to constitute drug trafficking. Drug trafficking charges are based solely on the amount of the drug a person is accused of having – not on the physical selling of narcotics. Trafficking thresholds start low in Clay County Drug Crimes Cases involving methamphetamines and trafficking charges are first-degree felonies with maximum penalties of 30 years in prison a minimum mandatory sentences kicking in with as little as 14 grams of the drug.

A Jacksonville man was arrested on drug charges after police say detectives bought drugs from him twice and police found more drugs when they came to arrest him.  The 36-year-old man is facing several felony drug charges after being arrested this month, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. Police bought marijuana in December and January from the man at the auto repair business where he worked, the newspaper reported. When police went to make the arrest, they then found powder and crack cocaine, along with other narcotics and several thousand dollars in cash, the newspaper reported.

The man was charged with four separate charges of possession with intent to sell – one each for cocaine, opiates, marijuana and steroids. The charges involving cocaine and opiates are both second degree felonies with a maximum sentence of 15 years in state prison. The charges involving marijuana are third-degree felonies punishable by up to five years in state prison. In fact, the charge for actually selling marijuana to an undercover officer is also only a third-degree felony. So, having cocaine and planning to sell it can lead to 10 more years in prison than actually selling marijuana. This case exemplifies the fact that the charges in Jacksonville Drug Crimes Cases are based primarily on two main factors: the type of drug the person is accused of possession or selling, and the amount of the drug police allege the person possesses. The court system does not look at all drugs equally, and places much stricter penalties on crimes involving cocaine than it does on crimes involving marijuana.

In this Jacksonville Drug Crimes Case, though, the initial contact was around the sale of marijuana. In most Jacksonville Drug Crimes Cases involving the sale of drugs to undercover officers, detectives will have some sort of recording of the transaction, most likely an audio recording. That evidence will be critical to the case and there are several important policies and procedures police must follow in order for the recordings to be admissible in court. Our experienced Jacksonville Drug Crimes Attorney represents people accused of all types of Jacksonville Drug Crimes and can review the evidence the state plans to present and determine if it meets the strict standards of the court.