Articles Posted in DUI

Most people facing DUI charges are terrified because it’s the first time they’ve ever become entangled in the criminal justice system.

Not so for a 29-year-old Florida woman, whose recent DUI arrest is her 19th since she became an adult.

Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorneys know that cases such as this require a special level of skill. Of course, each case is to be decided based on its own facts and merits, but the problem is that someone with such an extensive history doesn’t elicit much sympathy from the court. What’s more, enhanced sentencing laws are such that arrests for even relatively minor crimes can be met with harsh penalties.

We don’t know what this defendant’s prior crimes were, but if she was convicted of prior felonies, she could be classified as a habitual felony offender under Florida Statute 775.084. This statutes specifies that someone may receive this classification if:

1. He or she has been convicted of any combination of two or more felonies in the state;
2. The felony for which the defendant is currently being sentenced occurred either while in prison on a previous felony offense or while the person was on parole or probation;
3. The previous felony conviction happened within five years of the most recent charge or within five years of the individual’s release from community control or supervision.

This classification does not require that the previous felony convictions were for violent offenses (that is a different classification).

Habitual felony offenders face sentences that are effectively doubled. So if you are convicted of a third-degree felony, which carries a 5-year maximum sentence, you would be facing a 10-year maximum as a habitual offender.

Similarly, if you were convicted of a second-degree felony, which normally carries a 15-year maximum, you would instead be facing a 30-year maximum.

That’s why it’s so important for someone with prior convictions facing new felony charges to secure an experienced attorney. The key will be, if possible, working to negotiate lesser charges or fewer of them.

In this case, the defendant was pulled over in Charlotte County for reportedly driving erratically. The deputy reportedly recognized her from previous encounters, and knew that she had a suspended license. She declined to participate in any field sobriety tests and also refused to be searched by the deputy at the time of arrest.

As she was being processed at the jail, she was asked whether she had anything illegal on her. She replied no. However, in the course of conducting a search prior to her intake, deputies found about 24 Xanax pills.

She was subsequently charged with DUI, driving under a suspended license, resisting an officer, possession of Xanax and introduction of contraband into a county jail. That last one is a third-degree felony, as defined in Florida Statute 951.22.

In her mug shot, she displays a breezy smile. It may be time to get serious about building a strong defense.
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A number of DUI arrests have been tossed after a checkpoint held late last year in Pasco County was determined to be illegal.

Broward DUI lawyers know that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled way back in 1990 that checkpoints were legal. It was a 6-3 decision, and it was a blow to those who sought to defend Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable search and seizure.

The court had determined that the goal of removing impaired drivers from the road outweighed the privacy rights of drivers. Some states have subsequently outlawed the practice under their own constitution, but Florida is not one of those.

Florida law enforcement agencies conduct these checkpoints with a fair amount of regularity – about 15 to 20 times each month, according to the Governors’ Highway Safety Association.

However, that 1990 federal Supreme Court ruling came with some very specific provisions about how checkpoints must be carried out.

One of those provisions is that the stops conducted during the checkpoint can’t be random. For example, police have to establish a plan ahead of time to show that they stopped every third car or every fourth car – as opposed to simply stopping and searching whomever they felt like.

The reason for this is simple: It helps avoid profiling. So an officer can’t stop you just because you have a political bumper sticker that the cops don’t like or because of your race or ethnicity.

If they fail to do this, the checkpoint may be deemed unconstitutional, and all arrests are subsequently invalid. Most law enforcement agencies will file a plan ahead of time, indicating their method of search.

Pasco county officials did this, saying they were going to stop every third car that came through the checkpoint.

According to the local television media, the checkpoint was a collaboration between the Florida Highway Patrol, Pasco County sheriff’s deputies and Tarpon Springs Police Department.

The problem was, video from the officers’ dash cameras showed that they were not following the plan that had been outlined ahead of time. In fact, they were corralling three to four vehicles at a time – rather than every third vehicle, as was the plan. This is a clear constitutional violation.

You would think that presented with this evidence, prosecutors would simply drop the cases. But they didn’t do so without a fight. Instead, they had the officers involved sign an affidavit indicating that the checkpoint was carried out according to the guidelines set forth by the Supreme Court. But this was a lie, as the video clearly showed.

It wasn’t until a local defense attorney continued to press the issue, insisting prosecutors look more closely at the video, that they ultimately conceded and agreed to drop all prosecutions relating to that checkpoint.

When asked later for comment, prosecutors said they “missed” any indication that the stops were not legal when they first watch the video. Furthermore, police agencies said they had “no idea” they were not complying with the law.

So, either they were not being truthful or they don’t know the law. Either way, they were zealous about moving forward with these cases until one of the defense attorneys simply wouldn’t drop it.

And this is why it’s so critical if you’re arrested for DUI during a Broward sobriety checkpoint that you hire a skilled attorney. There are many technical basis for which an attorney can file a motion to suppress. If granted, it means any evidence that was improperly collected (i.e., in the course of an illegal search) may not be used against you. In these cases, prosecutors had no choice but to drop the charges because without evidence collected during the course of the stop, they had no case.
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A woman in northern Florida was arrested for DUI with eight children in her vehicle.

In addition to charges of driving under the influence, she is also accused of eight counts of child neglect.

Fort Lauderdale DUI defense lawyers know that while this is an extreme example, it’s not uncommon to face additional charges in DUI cases when children are in the vehicle at the time of your arrest.

Child neglect, as defined in Florida Statute 827.03 is a caregiver’s failure or omission to provide care, supervision and services necessary to maintain a child’s mental and physical health or failure to take reasonable efforts to protect a child from abuse, neglect or exploitation. This also means that if you are intoxicated behind the wheel, there are children in the car and you have another adult with you, that adult may also be charged with neglect.

In this case, the only adult in the car was a 32-year-old woman, who was reportedly involved in a minor crash. Police were called, and eight children were in the vehicle between the ages of 10 months and 14 years. Media reports indicate the woman’s blood alcohol level was 0.166 and she told officers that she was on her way to a nightclub.

This raises another point: You are under no obligation to tell the officer where you are coming from, where you are going or how much you’ve had to drink. More often than not, this only serves to hurt your case.

It makes the stakes of your case higher, as not only are these likely to come into play in terms of child custody, but the charge is also a third-degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine – for each charge.

In some cases, the best defense in these scenarios is to prove that you did not meet the legal definition of intoxication at the time of your arrest. In order to do this, you need an experienced criminal defense lawyer.

Legal intoxication means that you had a blood alcohol content of 0.08 percent at the time of your arrest. Police have a number of ways in which they try to prove that you were intoxicated, the most damning of which are often breathalyzer or blood tests.

It’s important to note that in Florida, we have what is called “implied consent.” That means that if you refuse to submit to chemical testing, you will automatically lose your license for six months. But you have to weigh the consequences here. If you know for certain you could pass the test, go ahead and take it. However, if you have children in the vehicle with you, it’s important to understand that you will likely be facing additional child neglect charges, which are felonies. In these situations, you may opt not to take the test, take the automatic six months-suspension. You may still be charged with neglect, but your defense attorney will have a better chance at fighting the DUI charge – and therefore the neglect charges – if you give prosecutors less evidence with which to work.

The same goes for submission to field sobriety tests. These are highly subjective and you are not required by state law to submit to it. However, you should understand that your refusal will likely draw the officer’s suspicion. So if you are certain you will pass it, go ahead and take it. If not, it’s best to request to contact your attorney before submitting to any testing or answering any questions.
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What could have been a simple misdemeanor DUI charge has ballooned into a second-degree felony case, after a woman allegedly attempted to bribe a trooper to let her go.

West Palm Beach DUI lawyers understand, according to multiple media reports, the 21-year-old woman is facing felony bribery charges, following the incident in Orlando.

The Florida Highway Patrol trooper reported that he stopped the driver for traveling 12 miles per hour above the posted speed limit, which was 30 miles per hour. At the time, she was driving a newer Nissan Altima.

The trooper said he asked her to exit the vehicle, and she repeatedly refused, even after six requests. The officer then reported that he saw the woman make a move for her ignition. Fearing she was going to make an attempt to flee, he opened her door and yanked her out of the vehicle by her arm.

She fell to the ground.

The trooper then reported at that time that he smelled alcohol around the area of the woman’s face. She was walked to the patrol car, and the trooper said she did so unsteadily. She was then instructed to sit on the front of the police car. As she did so, she reportedly lost her balance again.

In searching her vehicle, the trooper reportedly discovered an empty bottle of liquor.

She refused to undergo field sobriety tests before he placed her in the back of his patrol car. Once he did so, he reported that she offered him multiple times to pay him several thousand dollars to let her get out of the ticket.

Now, what our West Palm Beach DUI defense attorneys believe is important here is the way in which this offer was supposedly made. As evidenced by the dash camera inside the cruiser, what the woman reportedly said was, “Whatever I owe you, I can just pay you in cash.”

This statement alone is quite ambiguous.

The other statements appear more slightly more damning, but there is still the possibility that they could be defended in court. It will be tough for the state to argue she was too drunk to drive but consciously and deliberately committed a felony by offering a bribe.

According to the trooper, the woman told him she had previously been released by an officer for the same offense after she gave him money, and she added, “So there’s no way I could just pay you off, even if I gave you $3,000 right now.”

The trooper reportedly declined.

If the woman has no prior record, one option a defense attorney might consider is pleading to the DUI charge in order to have the bribery charged dismissed. However, it sounds like she may have a solid defense to those charges. She did not take a breathalyzer or field sobriety test, the reason for the traffic stop was marginal and a defense attorney may argue the trooper lacked cause to search her vehicle.

Bribery, as defined by FL Statute 838.015, is the act of offering a public servant some money or other benefit in order to influence their job performance or commit an omission that would be in conflict with his or her official duties. As a second-degree felony, as defined under FL Statute 775.082, it is punishable by up to 15 years behind bars.
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A Coral Gables DUI manslaughter defense team has advised a recently-released client not to speak to the media about the alleged incident, which resulted in the death of a 13-year-old girl.

Coral Gables DUI manslaughter defense attorneys know this is a smart move, especially when an incident involves media coverage – which is likely to happen anytime a crash results in a death.

It’s important because while you may feel the need to defend yourself in the court of public opinion, where half-truths or flat-out falsehoods may be printed, what you say to a reporter can end up having a negative effect on your criminal case – and that is where all the facts are supposed to come out. If there is negative publicity, you need to let your experienced Coral Gables DUI manslaughter attorney handle it. He or she will know how to defend you – if it’s necessary – without saying anything that could jeopardize your defense in the proceedings.

In this case, the 38-year-old defendant was reportedly driving his girlfriend’s sport utility vehicle on the U.S. 1 busway on April 13 and struck a minvan carrying a family. By some estimates, he was traveling at speeds of over 100 miles per hour. The impact of the crash is said to have ripped the minivan apart.

The SUV driver reportedly tried to keep going, though his vehicle was damaged. He eventually left his vehicle and allegedly started fleeing on foot. He was soon stopped by police.

The 13-year-old girl, who had been asleep in the back seat, was declared dead at the hospital.

In addition to the media picking up the story, the girl’s 16-year-old sister posted a video on YouTube, asking supporters to sign a petition and show up at the courthouse for an upcoming bond hearing.

People responded, and about 250 were there when the driver was granted a bond that exceeded $200,000. That response from the community is likely part of the reason why the judge imparted such a high bond. It was originally set at $1 million. Normally in case of Coral Gables DUI manslaughter, as defined under FL Statute 316.193, the bond is set around $45,000.

Officers who escorted him in the courtroom for his hearing wore vests that were bullet-proof. He was using a walker.

Prior to the judge granting a lesser bond, the defendant’s parents were grilled on their finances and connection to their native Nicaragua. Prosecutors in the case have argued that he may be a flight risk. So now, his passport has been surrendered – as well as his parents’ passports – and he is on house arrest while he awaits trial. That means he must wear a GPS monitoring device, and is not allowed to leave his house for any reason other than doctor or lawyer visits. He also is not allowed to drive or drink any alcoholic beverages.

Outside his parents’ home, media gathered in front as he returned. When reporters tried to approach him, he collapsed. His lawyer has said this was a result of the injuries he sustained, which include broken ribs, a collapsed lung and a punctured liver.

His attorney later told reporters that the defendant will have nothing to say and that he has “forbidden him from opening his mouth.”

If you have been involved in a DUI manslaughter case and have not yet hired an attorney, you should practice this advice in the interim.
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Lantana Police Chief Jeff Tyson is a Boca Raton DUI charge.

Boca Raton DUI defense attorneys understand that while the penalties for these charges can be serious no matter what your profession, those in certain career fields are likely to suffer disproportionately.

Law enforcement officers who are arrested for criminal offenses should immediately retain private legal counsel who is familiar not only with the officer’s bill of rights, but also with how to walk the fine line between being cooperative with your employer and not implicating yourself in a criminal action.

Of course, for those who face job-related consequences, beating the charge in court or successfully seeking a reduction or dismissal of the criminal allegations can go a long way toward protecting yourself.

The first course of action you should take if you are arrested for a DUI in Boca Raton is to contact an experienced defense attorney who will handle every aspect of your case from start to finish.

Law enforcement is one of those fields. Officers are held to a higher standard of conduct, and as such, can be sanctioned or fired by their employer for even misdemeanor criminal offenses.

This is particularly true when the officer hold a high-profile position – in this case, the chief. And the professional sanctions in this case happened swifter than most.

Not even a full day had passed since Tyson had been arrested for drunk driving and hit and run, the town manager had fired him. Noted in that termination letter was the violation of five cited rules, which included conduct unbecoming of an employee, whether on or off-duty.

According to The Sun Sentinel, the off-duty chief had been driving an unmarked police vehicle shortly after 1 p.m. on Military Trail. It was at this time that he allegedly rear-ended an unmarked car belonging to a deputy with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, who was stopped at the traffic signal in front of him.

The off-duty chief then allegedly sped away, but was stopped a short time later. He was apprehended and given a breath test that indicated his blood alcohol level was almost triple the 0.08 that one is legally allowed to have consumed and still get behind the wheel of a vehicle.

The chief then reportedly tried to downplay the incident, saying he had merely “tapped” and “bumped” the other vehicle. He told investigators he had gone to the doctor’s office earlier that morning and then stopped to visit his sons at a local university and high school.

Yet, investigating officers noted that the chief seemed disoriented and smelled like alcohol. He was asked to participate in a field sobriety test, but he refused. Once at the police station, officers tested the chief, and determined his blood alcohol level was somewhere around 0.23.

When they searched his vehicle, investigators reportedly found a cup containing something that appeared to be alcohol.

In the state of Florida, a DUI conviction can net a jail sentence of up to six months, as well as one year of probation, 50 hours of community service, a license revocation, attendance at DUI classes and a $500 fine.
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All-Star first baseman Miguel Cabrera, who was arrested last year and charged with DUI, recently avoided jail time after entering a no contest plea in connection with a 2011 arrest, the Detroit Free Press is reporting.

DUI in Fort Lauderdale is typically charged as a misdemeanor, which some people mistake for a minor charge. But Fort Lauderdale DUI defense lawyers have seen how a conviction can rip apart a person’s life.

It can kill careers or make qualifying for certain jobs difficult. Some estimates put the cost of a DUI at more than $10,000 after paying the fines and fees, educational classes, bond to get out of jail the first night, towing and impound lot fees and other expenses related to the conviction. This can cause significant financial strain.

And there’s also the stigma attached to such a charge. Newspaper and television news stations are interested today in embarrassing people who get arrested by posting their jail mug shots on their websites. Sadly, these photos can stay online forever, which can damage a person’s reputation. This can lead to family problems as well.

This is why the only way to handle these charges is with an aggressive defense. In Florida, a defendant can face major sanctions, even for a first offense:

-Up to 1 year of probation
-Up to 6 months of jail time
-Mandatory 50 hours of community service
-Up to $1,000 in fines, unless blood-alcohol level is 0.15 or higher, then up to $2,000
-10 days of vehicle impound
-Minimum 180 days driver’s license revocation
-Completion of DUI School

Anyone who thinks these are minor sanctions isn’t paying attention. These can make a person’s life difficult. And while it will still show up on a his record, Cabrera’s recent plea has kept him out of jail.

The professional baseball player was charged last February after police pulled to the side of the road in Fort Pierce to check on his Land Rover, which was on the side of the road and Cabrera was standing next to it. Police said he started drinking from an open bottle of Scotch.

He faced several charges, including DUI and resisting arrest. As part of a plea deal, he was sentenced to one year on probation, lost his driver’s license for six months, had to pay fines and fees, has to serve 50 hours of community service and must attend DUI school and a victim impact panel.

Some may see avoiding jail time as a major victory or a celebrity “getting off easy.” But consider what you would do if you had to complete 50 hours of community service and live for six months without a driver’s license. Those are significant hardships that the average person must take into account. So, while DUI arrests are on the decline in the United States, police are thirsty to make as many arrests as possible to show the public they are doing a good job. That’s why the average citizen driver must employ a strong defense in any DUI case.
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Reports out of Sarasota suggest that the state’s version of the FBI, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, paid its employees recently to get drunk and test the Intoxilyzer 8000 breath test machine in order to use it in the prosecution of thousands of Fort Lauderdale DUI cases.

Fort Lauderdale DUI defense lawyers have become more and more skeptical of breath testing machines as evidence has come out that they are faulty. Lawyers have been able to get judges to write orders allowing them to see how the breath testing machines are manufactured.

This is because DUI cases are the only kind in Florida where the defendant isn’t currently allowed to see how a key piece of evidence works. In murder cases, defendants get to see how blood evidence is collected and tested and those witnesses are available for questioning. In burglary cases, the defense is provided with information about who collected fingerprint evidence and how it was processed.

But in Fort Lauderdale DUI cases, until now, defendants weren’t able to see the workings of breathalyzers, the machines that law enforcement relies upon heavily for arrests and convictions for driving under the influence. This has recently changed, but these machines are still coming under fire.

The Herald-Tribune in Sarasota has been reporting for months how experts testing these machines have seen that they work improperly. In many cases, defendants blew up to 12 liters of breath into the machine, though the human lung can only hold five liters of breath. That called into question hundreds of cases that prosecutors and judges tossed out.

And in Florida, FDLE only allows one type of breathalyzer to be used. And now that it has been questioned as potentially faulty, this raises questions about the thousands of DUI cases throughout the state, including in Fort Lauderdale. Current cases should be examined, as should past cases.

In the most recent news, the newspaper reports that FDLE bought about $300 of booze, snacks and mixers and allowed their employees to get drunk on company time in order to test the devices. The workers were told to drink and then blow into the machines. Their blood was also drawn and sent off to a lab, bringing the taxpayer tab to about $8,000.

FDLE employees testified about the results in a Sarasota courtroom recently in order to try to save the Intoxilyzer 8000 from being shelved statewide. But judges were skeptical because the blood tests have not yet been returned from the lab. DUI defense lawyers questioned the validity of the study since it was highly unscientific.

Fort Lauderdale DUI defense lawyers believe this is a last-ditch effort by the state to convince judges that these machines, which have already been proven to be faulty, are accurate. As more and more pressure is put on the state to replace these machines or ensure somehow they are accurate, it’s possible that cases will be dropped or police will be reluctant to use these as their main piece of evidence.
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The routine of strict Broward County DUI enforcement will be in full swing this Labor Day weekend in Fort Lauderdale, Plantation, Hollywood, and Wilton Manors. All Broward County Law Enforcement agencies will be conducting a crackdown on Driving Under the Influence including the Florida Highway Patrol. Officials in Miami Dade are planning similar “DUI saturation” stops in and around Miami Dade and North Miami Beach.
The South Florida DUI arrest crackdown is a direct result of the national “Over the Limit, Under Arrest” campaign promoting strict enforcement of DUI laws in Florida and throughout the nation.
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Robert Ray Huizenga, the son of famed Fort Lauderdale billionaire H. Wayne Huizenga was sentenced to 18 months in Florida State Prison for the offense of Boating Under the Influence today.
Circuit Judge Michele Towbin Singer accepted the plea today while allowing this sentence to run concurrent with the 24 month prison sentence Huizenga received for violating his probation. Huizenga was originally placed on probation due to a driving under the influence (DUI) incident which left a pedestrian in Fort Lauderdale with a concussion, a gashed head, and a broken elbow.

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