South Florida Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog
Jimmy Smith, a former Jacksonville Jaguar football player, will be doing 18 months probation on a conviction of possession of cocaine. Smith was stopped by Florida Highway Patrol last April for dark tints on his vehicle. 6 grams of cocaine were found in the vehicle as well as 3 grams of marijuana and some other drug paraphernalia. Smith was place on probation following his hearing regarding all the drug charges and suspended license. Driving with a suspended license is illegal in the state of Florida. Probation is not something new to Jimmy Smith. He was on probation for a DUI last year.
Florida Baby Found Alive Under Bed; Mom in Custody
Chrystina Lynn Mercer, 25, has been charged with neglect of a child with aggravated circumstances and interference of child custody. The 7 month old child was reported missing and found 4 days later in a box at a babysitter’s house. “They gave us consent to search the home and we found the baby in a box under a bed, with stuff pushed around the box to hide the baby,” said Washington County Sheriff Bobby Haddock. The baby was taken to a hospital and found to have no health issues. The child has been put in protective custody. Police say they have never had a case like this.
Florida Prescription Pain Killer Dealers Arrested En Masse
The Kentucky State Police and FBI have partnered in their prescription pill war efforts, resulting in more than 300 people being arrested in 2 days recently. The drugs the individuals obtained are usually bought at pain clinics in Florida and a few other states on the way from Kentucky. 518 arrest warrants were issued in total during the 3-year investigation known as Operation Flamingo Road. The traffickers from Kentucky, according to Lt. David Jude, would send droves of individuals to pain clinics in South Florida to obtain pills with falsified medical records. They would drive back up to put all the pills on the black market.
Tampa Police Officer Shot at, Suspect In Custody
Jeffrey Lee Ervin, 21, was arrested and charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer and one count each of obstructing or opposing an officer with violence, carrying a concealed firearm and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The Hillsborough County Sheriff involved was not injured and is doing fine. Paulo Santos-Rizzo, the 3 year veteran for the sheriffs office, was shot at 4am while establishing a perimeter during an investigation of 2 people reportedly breaking in cars. The suspect fled after being spotted by a K-9 handler. During the pursuit, the suspect Ervin shot at police, striking the rearview mirror area of the officer’s vehicle, nearly hitting his head with the bullet. There was no return fire and the suspect was quickly apprehended. A severe and swift trial is in order for this repeat offender, with his last arrest being in July 2008 stemming from an aggravated assault incident involving a pellet gun and a violation of probation.
Florida DUI Checkpoint Results in 10 DUI Arrests, Among Other Things
Lee County conducted a DUI checkpoint last Friday in Fort Myers. Starting at 11pm and ending at 3am, police officers nabbed 10 drivers under the influence of alcohol as well as a few other criminals committing crimes. Three individuals had no valid driver’s license and four were driving with a suspended license. One individual was illegally carrying a concealed weapon. A significant number, 42, of traffic violations were cited with about 12 verbal warnings. A total of 758 vehicles passed through the checkpoint. Police and county officials do these checkpoints for the following reasons: 1. To remove impaired drivers from the road. 2. To reduce the likelihood that other impaired drivers will not operate on the roadways due to fear of being caught. 3. To heighten public awareness of DUI. and 4. To educate the public on the dangers of driving while intoxicated. Lee County Sheriff Office and Fort Myers Police Department partnered up for this checkpoint.
Girls Gone Wild Founder Gets Probation on Tax Evasion
Joe Francis, age 36 and founder of the lewd soft-porn series “Girls Gone Wild”, is on 1 year of probation after filing false tax returns and bribing jail workers. He already served 301 days of jail time in acceptance of his plea deal. “No additional incarceration is neccessary,” said US District Judge S. James Otero last Friday. Francis will be paying back about $250,000 in restitution to the IRS and a $10,000 fine. A former tax account is to blame, accord to Francis, for the trouble he was in. Francis says that the account attempted to defraud him and turn him into authorities so he could collect some IRS reward money. Original charges against Francis accuse him of $20 million in fraudulent tax deductions.
Florida Man Asks for Sex in 911 Call
Joshua Basso, 29, is accused of asking for sex from a 911 dispatcher. “The caller advised the 911 dispatcher that he was in the bathroom looking for sex and continued to make several obscene comments regarding masturbation and body parts,” according to a report from Tampa police. Basso called back 4 times after being hung up on by the dispatcher. He was arrested immediately during the phone calls by Hillsborough police officials on charges of making a false 911 call. Basso ridiculously told police that “he was out of (cellphone) minutes and he called 911 because it was free.” A mental evaluation is most likely in order for this deranged individual.
Child Molester Accused of Abusing Mentally Retarded Step-Daughter
A man from South Bend, Indiana is being accused of molestation charges to his mentally challenged step-daughter. Timothy Strait, 38, is looking at child molesting, criminal confinement, and domestic battery. The mother to the child woke up one day on a Sunday morning to see her husband, Timothy, lying on top of the daughter. After she confronted him, he said that the two were just wrestling, when he then proceeded to push the wife to the floor refusing her to leave the apartment. Strait has a criminal history ranging from other incidents of domestic violence to theft convictions in Florida.
Florida Football Player Arrested for Hit and Run Accident
Lawrence Taylor, a football star in Florida, was arrested for leaving the scene of an accident with property damage, according to Miami-Dade County jail records. This is a second degree misdemeanor in the State of Florida. Taylor is a former player for the New York Giants. He has a marred history with incidents of cocaine use during his football career, yet his is still hailed as one of NFL’s all-time best players.
Florida Attorney Suspect in Fraud by the FBI and IRS
Scott Rothstein, 47, is suspected of misappropriating millions of dollars via investments of faked legal settlements. FBI and Internal Revenue Service agents searched the law offices of Rothstein Rosenfeldt, home of the high-profile South Florida attorney. Investment fraud is at the center of the matter. Nearly $100 million in total fraud is estimated to have occurred in Rothstein’s debacle. No charges have been filed yet against Rothstein, and his lawyer declined to comment on any of the events surrounding his client.