Articles Posted in Police

A Jacksonville Sheriff’s officer’s actions are being evaluated after detaining a young man for jaywalking and threatening to put him in jail.  According to an article in the Florida Times Union, the man did not obey a walk signal and the officer detained him.  After being stopped, the man began to record the interaction on his cell phone.  At first, the man did not go to the officer’s car as directed because he did not know what crime/infraction he committed.  When he did not listen right away, the officer threatened to arrest the man for resisting without violence, which is a first degree misdemeanor in Jacksonville.  The man eventually complied and was issued a citation for jaywalking and for not having a Florida ID card or a driver’s license on his person.  Once released, the man posted the video interaction with the officer on social media.

Crossing the street on a red hand is a civil infraction and you can be issued a ticket.  The problem is that the jaywalking law can be selectively enforced in Jacksonville.  It gives officers probable cause to stop or detain a citizen for a period of time.  Very often, in certain neighborhoods, people are stopped for jaywalking, blocking the sidewalk, or riding a bicycle without a light.  Once stopped, officers can say they observe a bulge resembling a weapon on the person, justifying a pat down search.  If they find no weapon, but do find drugs, that person is going to be arrested for possession of a controlled substance in Duval County, which is a felony.  But for the civil infraction, it would be illegal for the police to stop and search that person.

When an officer has the legal right to detain you, you cannot just walk away.  Resisting an officer without violence is a first degree misdemeanor in Florida, punishable by up to one year in jail.  In order to be convicted of resisting in Jacksonville, the state attorney’s office must prove that the person resisted, obstructed or opposed the officer who, at the time, was engaged in the execution of legal process or the lawful execution of a legal duty.  For example, if a police officer is dealing with a situation and an onlooker intervenes, they can be arrested for this crime if the officer claims their intervention impeded the investigation.  Even talking can be interpreted as resisting.

A Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office police officer has been fired after being arrested for beating a woman in custody, according to an article in the Florida Times Union.  The officer was at the base of the jail in the intake area with the woman who he arrested.  That area, as well as other areas in the jail, is video monitored.  The officer was surrounded by three other officers, who did nothing, as the woman was hit repeatedly while restrained.  The officer was arrested for misdemeanor battery in Jacksonville.

In Florida, a simple misdemeanor battery is defined as an intentional touching against someone’s will or intentionally hurting someone.  Even a touch on the shoulder could be considered a battery in Jacksonville if unwanted.  If the victim of the battery is pregnant, the crime is elevated to a third degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.  A simple battery can also be converted to a felony if there is great bodily injury caused by the touching.  Also, if there is a deadly weapon used to injure someone, it is considered a felony in Duval County.  The fired officer will have to face a county judge with his pending case.

Police officers are taught how to handle a “hostile” person in their custody.  There are many ways to restrain an already restrained person that poses little physical threat to the officer.  Presumably, that is why the man was arrested.  The sheriff’s office chose not to discipline the three male police officers who just stood and watched the rogue officer lose his temper on this woman.  The office claims that it is not a crime to witness a beating.  That statement is true in the civilian world, but aren’t police officers held to a higher standard when they witness a crime less than four feet in front of them? Don’t police officers have a duty to protect the community, which this woman is a part of, from present harm.  Harm they knew was illegal as evidenced by them reporting the incident “almost instantaneously”, according to the JSO.

In Baker County this week, a man was arrested for fleeing police and for kicking a police dog, according to an article in the Florida Times Union.  Officers claim that the man drove over 100 miles per hour while fleeing them.  Police also allege that the man intentionally drove his car at the them, which led to the added charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.  Once the car hit a tree, the man allegedly refused to exit the vehicle.  Police sent in a canine and the man allegedly kicked and hit at the dog.  The man was treated for injuries at a local hospital and medical staff apparently found a handcuff key up his anus.

The man now faces numerous felonies in Baker County.  The first is an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.  This crime is a third degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.  A car is considered a deadly weapon and when used to threaten someone with violence, it becomes “aggravated”  Simple assault in Florida is the intentional and unlawful threat, by word or act, to do violence to another person while having the ability to carry out that violence.  The victim of the assault must have a well-founded fear that the violence may occur.  In this case, the man was driving the car and “drove at” the police officer.  The officer is going to claim that he or she was in fear that they were about to get injured with the vehicle.

The man also was charged with battery on a law enforcement officer, which is also a third degree felony in Florida.  Many people may not know that a K-9 officer is considered a law enforcement officer, just as a human.  Battery is defined as intentionally touching someone against their will or intentionally injuring someone.  A simple battery becomes a felony when the victim is law enforcement.

Police arrested a Jacksonville corrections officer this month, following a tip that he received money to smuggle items into the jail for an inmate.  The investigation began with a tip in August and is still ongoing, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. The corrections officer is accused of meeting a woman to get cigarettes and pornographic magazines to be delivered – and receiving payment to make the delivery, the newspaper reported. Neither cigarettes nor pornography are permitted in the county jail and would be considered contraband. The corrections officer is charged with introducing or smuggling contraband into a detention facility, as well as conspiracy to introduce contraband to a detention facility. Because of the type of contraband, both charges are third-degree felonies with a maximum penalty of up to five years in state prison on each count.

The charges can be elevated in this Jacksonville Felony Case, depending on what the person is accused of bringing into a jail. For example, if the contraband were to be drugs, a weapon or a communications device such as a cell phone, the charge can be a second-degree felony. A second-degree felony is punishable by up to 15 years in state prison. Police did not identify the inmate or what he was initially charged with – though authorities did say it is a serious charge, the newspaper reported. The inmate was not been charged related to the contraband, nor has the woman accused of paying the corrections officer to deliver the items.  The corrections officer has been with the department almost three years and the tip to police came from an inmate, the newspaper reported. Police officers can get arrested and get in trouble just like anyone else and, in Jacksonville DUI Cases or others that sometimes occur, they can end facing discipline but still keeping their jobs. This Jacksonville Felony Case differs somewhat because the officer is accused of using his position of authority at the jail and profiting from it. The other main factor is the charge is a felony, and most law enforcement agencies do not allow convicted felons to be sworn officers. It’s also not beyond the realm of possibility to think the officer will get a stricter sentence from the judge based on his positon than the inmate would have had he snuck in the cigarettes and the magazines – or even if the girl involved did the same.

Our Jacksonville Criminal Defense Attorney represents people charged with all types of crimes – from misdemeanor theft and battery charges on up to serious drug and gun crimes. Our Jacksonville Felony Attorney will fully investigate the crime against you or your loved one so you can make an informed decision going forward.

A Jacksonville man who escaped while serving a nine-month sentence is now facing decades in state prison.  The man was reported as escaping in June, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. The man was finally captured after trying to flee from police during a traffic stop this month and is now facing multiple felony charges, the newspaper reported. The defendant ran from the vehicle and was caught on foot, the newspaper reported. For his alleged actions in leaving the detention facility in June, he is charged with escape, a second-degree felony with a maximum penalty of up to 15 years in state prison.

For the chase after the attempted traffic stop, the man is charged with fleeing and eluding a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer without violence, reckless driving and driving on the wrong side of the road. Fleeing and eluding can be a number of different felony degrees, depending on the circumstances of the chase. In this Jacksonville Fleeing Case, it is charged as a second-degree felony because the driver is accused of driving at a high rate of speed, or “in a manner which demonstrates a wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property,” as described in Florida law. This second-degree felony has a maximum penalty of 15 years in state prison. Resisting an officer without violence is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by a year in the county jail and reckless driving is a second-degree misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of six months in the county jail. Driving on the wrong side of the road is a civil traffic ticket.

The man was initially in jail after pleading guilty to battery and possession of marijuana – two relatively minor misdemeanors. Now, the man is looking at two felonies and a total of 30 years in prison should the judge choose to sentence him to the maximum on both counts and run the sentences consecutively. That is unlikely in this Jacksonville Felony Case, but escaping and then running from police again does not help defendants when it comes to getting the benefit of the doubt from a judge. Felony charges can add up quickly when a person flees from police and, in general, the punishment can be limited if a person simply complies with police. That doesn’t mean a defendant should speak with police – everyone has a right to remain silent. But running from police can simply increase the charges – and the severity of those charges.  Our Jacksonville Felony Attorney represents people charges with all types of crimes and will thoroughly investigate the case against you or your loved one so you can make an informed decision on how to proceed.