The Florida Supreme Court Decision that Established that Confessions Extracted by Threats or Promises Are Inadmissible at Trial In October of 1852 in Pensacola, Florida, a series of 4 fires broke out in just 2 days.  It was clear that there was an arsonist on the loose. An 1852 Pensacola Newspaper wrote that Pensacola’s residents […]

Facts of the Case – Rehaif v. United States Mr. Hamid Rehaif, a citizen of the United Arab Emirates, entered the United States on a student visa to attend the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida.  Under the terms of his visa, he was allowed to stay in the United States only so long […]

What Is Substantial Assistance? “Substantial assistance” is a term that is often heard in the media when federal criminal cases of public interest are in the news. Substantial assistance is a process by which a federal criminal defendant helps the government to investigate and prosecute crimes committed by persons other than the defendant. A defendant […]

What is a federal minimum mandatory drug sentence? Defendants in the Tampa federal courts with federal drug charges frequently face minimum mandatory sentences.  A minimum mandatory sentence is a minimum sentence that the judge must impose by law, whether the judge likes it or not. For example, if a Tampa federal drug case involves at […]

The Hillsborough County, Florida Drug Court is a voluntary program that is designed to take non-violent drug offenders out of the criminal justice system and place them into drug treatment.  The goal is to get non-violent drug offenders the help they need to kick their drug habit. In Hillsborough County, Florida, drug court is called […]

Frequently, rather than send a person convicted of crime to jail or prison, Florida judges will sentence a person to serve a term of probation. Florida probation rules normally involve persons having to report to a probation officer, pay court costs, pay costs of probation, perform community service hours, and attend classes. The length of […]

What is a Florida DUI? To prove the crime of DUI in Tampa, the prosecutor must prove two things beyond a reasonable doubt: First, the defendant drove, or was in actual physical control, of a motor vehicle. Second, one of the following two things was true. The defendant, while driving or in actual physical control […]

A Hillsborough County, Florida arrest warrant is an order directing law enforcement to take a person into custody.  If you or a loved one has an arrest warrant in Hillsborough County, Florida, the situation probably seems very frightening. However, an experienced Tampa arrest warrants attorney can help you manage this situation.  There are a variety […]

The Tiger Woods DUI Case Around 4:00 a.m. on May 29, 2019, an officer from the Jupiter, Florida Police Department found pro golfer Tiger Woods asleep in his car. According to police, Tiger’s Mercedes was parked partially in the street, and partially in a bike lane.  The car was running with its break lights on […]

What Is Hearsay? How is Hearsay Defined in the Tampa Criminal Courts? In Tampa, Florida criminal trials, the Florida Rules of Evidence apply.  The Florida Rules of Evidence are laid out in Chapter 90 of the Florida Statutes. One of the most important of Florida’s evidentiary rules deals with hearsay.  Hearsay in court statements can […]