Fort Lauderdale Criminal Attorney Blog

October 13, 2016

Lionel Tate Case Conjures Regrets From Prosecutor, Judge, Defense Attorney

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

In 2001, a Broward County boy became the youngest ever in American to be sentenced to life in prison. That was 15 years ago.

Recently, a number of those who were involved in the Lionel Tate case, including the judge, the prosecutor and the defense attorney, convened as part of a panel before the Broward County Crime Commission’s conference on juvenile and adolescent violence. They were there to discuss the landmark case, which involved a 12-year-old boy who in 1999 killed a 6-year-old girl whom his mother had been babysitting. He was reportedly attempting to imitate the pro-wrestling moves that he had seen on television.

An appellate court overturned Tate’s murder conviction in 2004, finding it wasn’t clear he had understood the charges. That led to a plea deal in which he agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder in exchange for a sentence of 10 years probation. Those who were involved in the criminal case say they lacked clear guidelines for how they were supposed to handle matters like this. They had never before faced this type of circumstance, and the courts didn’t offer much guidance. Continue reading

October 9, 2016

Prosecutorial Misconduct by Withholding Evidence Now a Felony in California

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

Prosecutors in California who withhold exculpatory evidence or tamper with evidence in a criminal case will now face felony charges themselves. The recent law, signed by that state’s Governor Jerry Brown, allows a penalty of up to three years’ prison time for prosecutors who withhold evidence that defendants could use to exonerate them. Before this law passed, such actions were criminal, but they were only considered misdemeanor crimes.

Officials say the measure was necessary in light of a growing number of cases wherein people have been wrongfully convicted at least in part because prosecutors abused their power and position. The measure follows a high-profile case in Orange County where a prosecutors in a murder case was found to have repeatedly violated defendant’s rights by not turning over key evidence. Although the court overseeing the matter did not find the prosecutor had engaged in willful misconduct, he was nonetheless removed from the case.

There are allegations from the public defender’s office in that region that corrections officers have for years violated inmates’ rights with an illegal jailhouse informant program that prosecutors tried to hide. This involved using the testimony of fellow inmates in exchange for leniency in their pending cases – while not disclosing this deal at trial. A number of high-profile criminal cases have collapsed as a result. Prosecutors are now saying if the law applies to them, it should apply to defense lawyers too. Continue reading

October 5, 2016

Florida Homicide Arrest Made in 26-Year-Old Cold Case

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

A South Florida domestic violence arrest recently led to a reportedly huge break in a 26-year-old cold case.

Joseph Zieler, 54, was arrested in August for allegedly shooting his adult son with an rifle. His was not seriously hurt, but Zeiler was facing a felony charge nonetheless. Because this was a violent felony charge, Zieler’s DNA was entered into CODIS (Combined DNA Index System). Lab workers reported a “hit” – on a double homicide/ sexual assault that occurred in Cape Coral way back in 1990.

According to The News-Press, police believe Zeiler, who was 25 and lived in the area at the time, killed 11-year-old Robin Cornell and 32-year-old Lisa Story, at their home in Cape Coral. Story was the roommate and friend of Robin’s mother, Jan Cornell. Continue reading

October 1, 2016

Florida DUI Manslaughter Bond Revoked for Facebook “Like”

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

An interesting legal debate has cropped up in Palm Beach County over a Facebook “like.”

CBS 12 reports the defendant, Paul Maida, who has been linked to a deadly DUI accident in Boca Raton, has had his bond revoked for “liking” a post on his ex-girlfriend’s Facebook page. The judge had ordered him not to have “contact” with his ex-girlfriend.

That woman is reportedly a key witness in the state’s case against Maida, who is accused of striking a 66-year-old bicyclist in April 2014 on Yamato Road. Maida is accused of fleeing the scene, which carries it’s own penalty in fatal crashes of a minimum mandatory 4 years in prison if convicted. Investigators say Maida eventually drove back to the scene of the crash, but only after switching seats with his girlfriend, who was reportedly not impaired. Continue reading

September 29, 2016

FSU Coach Arrested for DUI in Florida, Suspended

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

Florida State University football team’s strength & conditioning coach was suspended for a month without pay following his Florida DUI arrest in Tallahassee, following a blow-out party with crew members of the “Showtime” network.

According to The Tallahassee Democrat, Coach Vic Viloria spent the evening drinking whiskey on the Florida State campus, first at his office and then, after deeming that “inappropriate,” fearing other employees might see, moving to the Showtime crew’s trailer. Although he initially planned to “sleep it off” in his office (a wiser choice), he chose to drive home early on a recent Saturday morning. However, he did not make it home before he was stopped by police. The FSU team and its season is the focus of Showtime’s latest series, “A Season With,” which debuted this month. Viloria said he was given a bottle of whiskey by the crew to celebrate the closing of the preseason camp. He reportedly opened the bottle in his office and shared it with three Showtime crew members.

The case is illustrative of the fact that a Florida DUI arrest can impact multiple areas of your life. Obviously for someone with a high-profile position like Viloria, the impact is severe. In this case, the 30-day suspension handed down by the university represents one-third of the team’s regular season schedule, which spans a total of 12 games. The suspension began Sept. 2 and will last through Oct. 1. Continue reading

September 24, 2016

Report: Domestic Violence Incidents Made Deadlier By Greater Availability of Guns

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

It’s estimated that more than 2,000 people die every year in domestic violence incidents in the U.S. Of those who die, more than 70 percent are women and in more than half of all cases, it’s a firearm that is used to carry out the crime.

Although the issue of availability of firearms is a controversial one in this U.S., but there is little denying the fact that the link between firearms and fatal domestic violence is strong. Just living in a state with a higher rate of gun ownership increases a female’s risk of suffering a fatal gunshot wound in a domestic violence, according to Boston University researchers. That study, released in January, indicated that for every 10 percent increase in gun ownership in a state, there was a 10.2 percent increase in gun-related murders of females.

Additionally, while firearms aren’t necessarily the fuel in domestic violence incidents, their presence does increase the lethality of an attack and also increases the number of victims (i.e., children, grandparents, friends, strangers, etc.). This phenomenon was chronicled recently in a comprehensive article by The Trace. Another thing the presence of a firearm does – whether it’s lethal or even fired – is increase the severity of the charges and the possible punishment. Continue reading

September 20, 2016

22 Drug Arrests in Fort Lauderdale “Operation Bad Karma”

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

Police in Fort Lauderdale recently made a targeted effort to take down an alleged drug trafficking ring in South Middle River near downtown. They launched a six month undercover investigation, dubbed “Operation Bad Karma,” in which they ultimately made 22 arrests, aided by the U.S. Marshals Office and the Broward State Attorney’s Office.

Chief Frank Adderley said the goal was to reduce the proliferation of crack cocaine in these neighborhoods by arresting those responsible for its sale and distribution. Police suspect the group responsible for dealing crack cocaine in the region was also tied to an uptick in violence in the area over the last 12 months, including a handful of murders.

Residents in the area say they have been complaining for more than a year about open-air drug sales as well as violence connected to those engaged in the drug dealing. Police said the hope was that if they could get a handle on the drug activity, they would curb any further escalation of violence. The effort really got underway with fervor in January, when the bodies of two murder victims were found on the very same property where a man had been killed just three months earlier. Continue reading

September 17, 2016

Florida Supreme Court Considers Expert Witness Standard Changes

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

Three years ago, Florida legislators passed a controversial bill that affected almost every kind of court case in the system – including criminal cases. The change involved the standard to which expert witnesses are held in court. Their expert qualifications, their methodology, their testimony – all of this came under greater scrutiny when justices did away with the previous “Frye Standard” and instead adopted the “Daubert Standard,” which is used in federal courts and in most other states.

This was largely deemed a positive move for two groups: Criminal and corporate civil defendants. However, personal injury lawyers and some state attorneys have taken issue with it. The Florida Bar is the group that has asked the Florida Supreme Court to consider reverting back to the Frye Standard.

The Frye standard asks the judge to consider whether to allow expert witness testimony into evidence based only on whether the it represents principles that are considered generally accepted in that particular field. The Daubert standard, meanwhile, requires judges to use a more stringent standard. Judges are asked to allow the expert witness testimony only if it’s based on sufficient facts or data, if it’s the product of reliable methods and principles and the expert witness has applied the methods and principles of the case correctly. Often, this requires something of a mini-trial before the trial. Continue reading

September 15, 2016

Florida Man Arrested by Federal Authorities for Online Threats

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

A Florida man has been arrested by the FBI on federal charges for allegedly making Facebook threats against the LGBTQ community at events in both Wilton Manors and nearby Fort Lauderdale, according to The Sun-Sentinel.

Fifty-year-old Craig Jungwirth is accused of violating federal statutes on interstate commerce when he reportedly made reference to the Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando and made numerous threats against LGBTQ events planned over Labor Day weekend. Additionally, he was charged with driving on a suspended license, an unrelated offense.

A six-page FBI affidavit that formed the basis for the arrest accuses Jungwirth of sending communication that threatened to kidnap or injure another person. A conviction on the federal charge could result in up to five years in prison, a $5,000 fine or both. He was taken to jail in Seminole County, but is facing charges in federal court. Continue reading

September 10, 2016

Smith v. Florida – State Supreme Court Rules File-Sharing Program Meets Child Porn Criteria

By The Law Offices of Richard Ansara, P.A.

As our technology rapidly evolves, so too must our justice system. As we are often faced with ever-newer technological frontiers, courts are often grappling with how the law should be applied.

One such case recently before the Florida Supreme Court highlights this. In Smith v. State, the court was asked to resolve a conflict between this ruling handed down by the Fourth District Court of Appeal in 2015 and an earlier ruling in 2013 in Biller v. State by Florida’s Fifth District Court of Appeal. At issue was whether the use of a file-sharing program for purposes of disseminating child pornography in fact violates the statutory prohibition on transmitting child porn.

The Florida Supreme Court ruled: Yes, it does. That means the precedent set by the 5th DCA is overturned, and those who transmit illegal sexual images of children via file-sharing program can be charged under F.S. 847.0137. Continue reading