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A Jacksonville corrections officer was arrested last week, accused of driving under the influence. Police say the man was pulled over about 2:45 a.m. because he was driving with one of his headlights out, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. Once the officer approached the vehicle, police said he seemed intoxicated and was subsequently arrested on a DUI charge, the newspaper reported. The officer, who works at the jail, was placed on limited duty until his Jacksonville DUI Case is resolved, the newspaper reported.

In Jacksonville DUI Cases, there are specific procedures and protocols officers must follow in making arrests, which can make DUIs highly technical cases. As is common in most Jacksonville DUI Cases, this investigation centers on a traffic stop. In many Jacksonville DUI Cases, the officer will have a driving pattern he or she has observed – the person is speeding, swerving, or otherwise driving recklessly. In this Jacksonville DUI Case, there is not one. The headlight was the cause of the traffic stop. Officers must have a valid reason for pulling someone over in the first place and a headlight is an allowable reason, as officers can say it is a safety issue. Once the person is pulled over, police must then have a reason to begin a Jacksonville DUI investigation. Some of the typical language in police reports includes a driver having the odor of alcoholic beverages, slurred speech or watery eyes.

No specifics were given in the Jacksonville DUI Case involving this corrections officer, but the point is the officer must have a reasonable belief that the driver is intoxicated. If that is met, the officer will typically ask the driver to perform field sobriety exercises. The exercises are designed to determine if a driver is too impaired to be behind the wheel. A Jacksonville DUI Officer will likely ask the driver to walk in a straight line and turn around; stand on one leg; stand with his or her legs together to test balance; and recite the alphabet or a series of numbers in order (Rhomberg Alphabet). Each individual test has various indicators of impairment and, if a driver scores poorly, he or she will be arrested for DUI. Once the arrest is made, the driver will be booked into the jail and asked to take a breath test. Now, both the field sobriety exercises and the breath test are technically voluntary – though refusal to do either will buy the driver a night in jail. But, refusing to take them also limits the evidence against a driver in a Jacksonville DUI Case. Our Jacksonville DUI Attorney knows the ins and outs of the detailed rules governing DUI arrests and can thoroughly examine your case to determine if the arrest was legal, and what the best options are for you or your loved one.

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A Jacksonville man is in jail without a bond on a Jacksonville Sex Crimes charge after going to police headquarters to discuss accusations against him, then changing his mind and choosing not to speak with detectives. The 29-year-old man is now facing a first-degree felony charge of lewd and lascivious molestation of a child under the age of 12, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. The charge is punishable by up to life in state prison.

The man told police he would answer questions about two incidents where a child said he touched her sexually, the newspaper reported. But when it came time to talk, the man changed his mind. Police felt they had enough evidence without his interview that he was immediately arrested on a Jacksonville Sex Crime charge. The suspect has every right to remain silent and not talk to police in this Duval County Sex Crimes case. As most people can recite from one crime show or another “Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.” And that is 100 percent true. Time after time in Jacksonville Criminal Defense Trials, prosecutors will play a video of the suspect’s interview with police where the suspect either admits to the charges or is caught in some type of lie that deals a significant blow to the case. If you or a loved one is being questioned by police about involvement in a crime, it is always best to speak with a Jacksonville Criminal Defense Attorney first, if you plan to talk to police at all. At any time during questioning from police, you can ask for a lawyer and police must end the questioning right there. If you do call a Jacksonville Criminal Defense Attorney, that attorney can be there when you meet with police and can help prepare you for what police may ask.

While refusing to talk to police can have a long-term benefit in the state’s ability to prove the charges against you, it can cause some short-term pain. In this Jacksonville Sex Crimes Case, the state asked that no bond be offered to the defendant. The judge agreed, so the defendant will be sitting in jail until the case is resolved. That can make it difficult to remain silent, but not talking is almost always in the defendant’s best interest. It is human nature to try to explain yourself, especially to an authority figure like a police officer, but most defendants in Jacksonville Felony Crimes Cases do nothing but hurt themselves when they speak to police.

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Several Clay County Sheriff’s deputies were disciplined and received harsh public words from their boss after a Clay County teen spent a month in jail on a crime he didn’t commit. Police were investigating a claim from a girl younger than 12 that said she had sex with a boy named Cody Williams in 2012, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. The girl told police what he school he went to and what he looked like, so police arrested Cody Lee Williams and, even though he was 17, he was immediately charged with a felony as an adult, the newspaper reported.

What police didn’t check to find out is there are two Cody Williams at the same school and they arrested the wrong one, the newspaper reported. Sheriff Rick Beseler reprimanded the detective in charge of the case for his “incompetence” and said police should have taken a photo of the suspect they arrested to the alleged victim for confirmation before making the arrest, the newspaper reported. Once Cody Williams learned more of the facts of the case against him, he realized what may have happened, and his mother pleaded with the detective to talk to the alleged victim, the newspaper reported.

The Clay County Sheriff’s Office has requested that his arrest record be expunged, but that may be a difficult proposition. If he was simply charged as a juvenile in this Clay County Sex Crimes Case, that would not have been a problem because juvenile criminal records are sealed by the court. But because prosecutors immediately charged him as an adult – without doing any investigation on their own, it appears – the arrest is more difficult to remove. When potential employers or universities do background checks in Florida, they will most likely use the Florida Department of Law Enforcement database. Those searches pull arrest data from all counties and cities across the state and drop them into a report based on the person’s name and social security number. Unless the Clay County Sheriff’s Office does something it doesn’t do in other less-publicized cases, that arrest will always be there when someone searches Williams’ name. Now, it will also show that the charges were dropped, but Williams will have to explain it every time – and also check the box on any employment application that asks if he was ever arrested for a felony. Many employers only ask about convictions, not arrests, but enough of them do the FDLE checks that Williams may find it easier to let them know what they’ll find first, and explain the situation.

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A Jacksonville police officer is now facing charges himself after detectives say he stole a $49 supplement from a local gym. Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office officials announced the arrest last month, saying the officer was removed from the street while the investigation was being conducted, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. Surveillance video from the gym allegedly shows the officer with a bottle in his hand, ducking behind the counter and then coming back into view with nothing in his hand, the newspaper reported. The officer says he told the clerk to put the cream supplement on his account and was not trying to steal anything, the newspaper reported.

The officer in this Jacksonville Theft Case will likely be charged with a second-degree misdemeanor charge of petit theft, punishable by up to 60 days in the county jail and a $500 fine. The severity of the charge and possible punishment Jacksonville Theft Cases is determined by the value of the property the person is accused of stealing. In this Jacksonville Theft Case, the officer would be facing the least serious charge possible. People accused of theft of less than $100 can be charged with a second-degree misdemeanor. When the value is between $100 and $300, the charge is a first-degree misdemeanor and the penalty goes up to a maximum of one year in the county jail and a $1,000 fine.

The $300 threshold is really the key in Jacksonville Theft Cases. Once the value tops $300, the charge becomes a felony. Grand Theft in Jacksonville is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in state prison. There are other caveats that can increase the penalty, including if the property is taken from an emergency vehicle, but the main number to know is $300. Charges in Jacksonville Theft Cases can also increase based on the person’s criminal record. If someone has one petit theft conviction on his or her record, the charge is automatically a first-degree misdemeanor – even if the property in the Jacksonville Theft Case is worth less than $100. And if the person has two or more convictions, the case becomes a felony – again, regardless of the amount. In many Jacksonville Theft Cases, first-time offenders may be offered a diversionary program, where if they meet certain conditions and pay back the value of the property, the charges may be dropped. Our Jacksonville Theft Attorney can help negotiate a disposition that is hopefully favorable, and something you or your loved one can live with, complete and move on from.

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A Nassau County man who continues to maintain that his actions were not the ones that ultimately killed six people in a 2010 traffic crash will now likely spend the rest of his life in prison. Pedro Ocasio-Alcazar was sentenced this month to 60 years in prison – 10 years for each person who died in the crash, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. He was facing up to 15 years on each count of vehicular that a jury convicted him of in January.

Police said Ocasio-Alcazar was speeding and weaving in and out of traffic in Nassau County when his car side-swiped a car with six people inside, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. That car then slid into the median and was hit by an oncoming truck that killed six people – including four children, the newspaper reported. Ocasio-Alcazar argued he wasn’t the one who caused the deaths and maintains he should have never been charged. So just how far does a driver’s responsibility extend in a Nassau County Traffic Case such as this one?

To charge vehicular homicide, the state must prove a death is “caused by the operation of a motor vehicle by another in a reckless manner likely to cause the death of, or great bodily harm to, another,” according to Florida law. It appears fairly obvious that Ocasio-Alcazar was driving recklessly in this Nassau County Driving Case. But to just what degree appeared to be the issue. Nassau County Traffic Homicide cases present significant challenges to both sides. It’s not as cut and dried as a homicide case where there is a gun or knife involved and clearly some action the led to the death of another. No one is arguing that the driver got behind the wheel with the intent to kill six people. And most drivers who end up charged in Nassau County Traffic Homicide cases do not have much experience in the criminal court system. They may have a few traffic tickets, but nothing that comes close to the amount of time they are now facing.

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A St. Johns County man and woman are charged with child neglect and felony drug charges after police said they found a methamphetamine lab where a child lived. The two were arrested last week after police were called to investigate a strange smell coming from the home, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. Police say the smell got stronger once the woman answered the door, the newspaper reported. Police found several items used to make meth and also alleged the drug had recently been produced inside the home.

The suspects are now facing multiple charges in this St. Johns County Drug Crimes case, which could even be enhanced further by the fact the child was in the home. As of now, the charges include child neglect, producing or manufacturing meth, possession of meth, keeping or maintaining a drug dwelling and possession of drug paraphernalia. Production of meth is a second-degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years in state prison, and the drug paraphernalia charge is a misdemeanor, which only exposes the person to time in the county jail – not state prison. The three other charges are all third-degree felonies, and all have a maximum sentence of up to five years in state prison. So, as of now, the maximum penalty in this St. Johns County Drug Crimes Case is 26 years behind bars. One charge that hasn’t come yet, but is certainly possible given the facts that have been reported, is producing or manufacturing meth in the presence of a child. That St. Johns County Drug Crime becomes a first-degree felony, punishable by up to 30 years in prison – more than anything either suspect is charged with now combined. This could be something the state chooses to file later, or there may be facts of the case – such as the child being dropped off after the production was complete – that prevent the state from charging it that way. Because meth is essentially the product of several harmful chemicals and emits toxic fumes when it is cooked, laws are very strict in St. Johns County Drug Cases involving meth – especially when children are involved. The odors also make it much more difficult to hide, especially when people are cooking the drug in hotels and apartment complexes where other people are often present.

In St. Johns County Drug Crimes Cases, the severity of the charges is determined by the type of drug and the amount. And meth is one drug that carries among the most serious penalties. Any amount of the drug is a felony, and there are multiple charges that almost always come down when police find a meth lab – as these suspects have learned. Our St. Johns County Drug Crimes Attorney has represented people facing all types of drug charges, from possession of marijuana on up, and knows the ins and outs of the laws and procedures police must follow to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt.

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A former bookkeeper with Clay County schools was arrested last week, charged with several felonies and accused of stealing $57,000 from the school district. The bookkeeper resigned last year while she was being investigated and said she did not intentionally take any money, instead pointing to poor paperwork and recordkeeping, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. Law enforcement sees it differently and the state charged her last week with grand theft, uttering a forged instrument and running a scheme to defraud.

The multiple charges come in because of the manner in which these Clay County Theft Crimes were allegedly committed. For example, police say the woman forged receipts and paperwork that made it look like she paid for school expenses with her own money, though in reality she use a school credit card, the newspaper reported. That likely led to the charge of uttering a forged instrument, a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison. In Clay County Theft Cases, the uttering charge that is always a third-degree felony is more the exception than the rule. In most all other Clay County theft cases, the charge and the potential penalty are based on the value of the property the suspect is accused of stealing. Theft itself can be a misdemeanor or run all the way up to a first-degree felony.

The same escalating scale applies in the scheme to defraud charge the woman is also facing in this Clay County Theft Case. According to Florida law a scheme to defraud is” a systematic, ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud one or more persons, or with intent to obtain property from one or more persons by false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises or willful misrepresentations of a future act.” Because she is accused of taking $57,000, she can be charged with a first-degree felony, punishable by up to 30 years in state prison. She narrowly exceeded the threshold – anything from $20,000 to $50,000 is a second-degree felony with a maximum sentence of 15 years in state prison. A scheme to defraud that the state says netted less than $20,000 is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.

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Even though her child neglect charge was not related to her students and she completed a pretrial intervention program to have the charge dropped, a Jacksonville kindergarten teacher was still fired because of the arrest. The teacher was arrested in June 2013 after she and her husband left their 9-month-old granddaughter in a van by herself while they went into a grocery store, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. The teacher told her supervisor about the arrest, which is required by school district policy, but word never travelled to the proper authorities inside the district, the newspaper reported. District officials said they learned of the arrest during a routine update of arrest records for all employees, the newspaper reported, and that’s why it took so long to fire her.

School officials said the teacher accepted responsibility by entering the pretrial program and district policy requires employees to be fired if they have a felony on their record. The teacher is contesting the termination, the newspaper reported. Her attorney is arguing that the crime did not involve a student and, because the charge is dropped, the felony rule does not apply in her case, the newspaper reported. The teacher does not have a previous criminal record, the newspaper reported.

The case exemplifies the difference between punishments levied by Jacksonville Criminal Justice System and by an employer – regardless of whether that employer is private or public. Crimes must be able to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. That is not the case for employers. Public employees, such as teachers and police officers, do have more rights in their employment than would someone working for a private company, but the employer still has more discretion than the legal system. A similar scenario played out in Clay County earlier this year, when a school bus driver was fired for alleged abuse of a student, but prosecutors chose not to file charges.

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A Jacksonville man was charged with first-degree murder as the state alleged he was one of four people involved in the killing of a local man. A jury of his peers, however, did not fully agree and found Corey Bright guilty instead of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. So instead of looking at a mandatory life sentence, Bright was sentenced this week to 20 years in state prison, the newspaper reported.

Bright and three others were accused of ambushing a 22-year-old man because they were upset with the man’s alleged domestic abuse toward his girlfriend, the newspaper reported. Witnesses said two of the men pulled out guns and started shooting, the newspaper reported. All four suspects were charged with first-degree murder and faced a mandatory life sentence if convicted. What the state was likely trying to do is charge all four with first-degree murder and hope at least one of the men who didn’t fire the shots would speak out, be a witness for the state and point the finger at the shooters to help have his own charges significantly reduced. That does not appear to have worked in this Jacksonville Gun Crimes Case. Another suspect pleaded guilty in December to second-degree murder and faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced. The other two are still charged with first-degree murder and are awaiting trial, the newspaper reported. Now, it is possible the suspect who pleaded guilty could be working with the state, and that his sentencing is being delayed until the other two cases are resolved. In Bright’s case, it appears the jury thought he was involved and used a weapon, but likely felt the state could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Bright was indeed responsible for the man’s death.

That can be the danger in overcharging crimes, or using the initial charge to attempt to get the suspect to plead guilty to a lesser charge – something that likely is more fitting of the crime in the first place. When a jury is read instructions before it starts deliberating in a Jacksonville Criminal Case, there are often other charges known as “lesser included offenses.” For example, if someone like Bright is charged with first-degree murder, there is a list of other charges the jury can decide to find the defendant guilty of, if jurors don’t think the initial charge was proven beyond a reasonable doubt. In many Jacksonville Gun Crimes cases, jurors believe the suspect is guilty of something – perhaps just not the most serious charge the state could possibly file – and will look to the lesser included charges as a compromise. But, in many Jacksonville Gun Crimes Cases, the state’s game of hardball works. Some defendants feel they have too much to lose with a mandatory life sentence on the line in a trial, and try to plead guilty to second-degree murder in hopes of someday being released. The decision to plead or take a Jacksonville Gun Crimes case to trial is an individual choice that should be based on the facts of the case and the suspect’s personal situation. What is the right call for one person may be more than another is willing to risk.

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More than 30 people are now facing drug charges in Clay County, following an undercover investigation and a string of arrests. Clay County police said their six-month investigation yielded 31 arrests so far, with a few more likely on the way, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. Police used undercover narcotics detectives to buy drugs from suspected dealers in Green Cove Springs, Middleburg and Orange Park, the newspaper reported. Police reported to the media that 109 pounds of marijuana were taken off the streets, and a list of charges also shows that other drugs, including cocaine and prescription narcotics such as hydrocodone, were seized as well.

Clay County Drug Crimes charges always hinge on two important facts: the type of drug in question, and the amount that a person is accused of having in their possession. For example, a person can be charged with drug trafficking in a Clay County Drug Crimes Case even if there is no evidence of the person actually selling or trying to sell the narcotic. Trafficking is charged simply when the amount reaches a certain threshold – which varies dramatically based on the drug. For example, one of the men arrested in this Clay County Drug Case is charged with trafficking in hydrocodone – a first-degree felony that could land him in state prison for the rest of his life. Trafficking in hydrocodone starts at just four grams of pills, literally a handful of pills, and carries a minimum mandatory sentence of three years in state prison and a fine of $50,000.

Now compare that with marijuana, where a charge does not become trafficking until a person is alleged to have more than 25 pounds in his or her possession. That Clay County Drug Charge is also a first-degree felony with a minimum mandatory sentence of three years in prison, but the fine is $25,000 – half of what it would be for a Clay County Drug Case involving prescription drugs. For marijuana, hydrocodone and all other illegal drugs in Clay County Drug Trafficking Cases, there are further weights and benchmarks that trigger various minimum mandatory sentences and fines – which take any discretion out of the hands of a judge and make the sentence required by law. Clearly, not all drugs are treated equally when it comes to Clay County Drug Cases. Our Clay County Drug Crimes Attorney knows the ins and outs of how the law is applied based on each individual substance, and can help you or your loved one understand the possibilities going forward.

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