Fort Lauderdale Criminal Attorney Blog

September 2, 2015

Penalties for Florida DUI Manslaughter Widely Vary

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

If you kill someone in a drunk driving accident in Florida, you will serve prison time if convicted. But how much time may come down to a number of factors, which include not just the individual facts of the case, but the disposition of the survivors, the strength of your defense attorney’s case and, interestingly, where the conviction happens.

This is according to a recent Miami Herald article, which analyzed why some DUI manslaughter convictions receive such widely varying sentences.

Per F.S. 316.193, the minimum mandatory sentence available in Florida for DUI manslaughter is four years. That’s the least amount of time a judge can give you. The most is 30 years per charge. The statewide average out of 400 DUI fatality cases in Florida since 2012 was just under 10 years.

But some areas had a reputation of being harsher than others. Broward is one of those.
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August 31, 2015

Tucker v. Florida – Stale Information in a Search Warrant

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

In a criminal investigation, if law enforcement waits too long following the issuance of a search warrant to make an actual search or if they wait to long to act on certain information pertaining to a criminal act, the warrant or information could be deemed “stale.”

That means even if the warrant was valid or the information was sufficient to establish probable cause, a defendant may challenge this evidence if the delay was unreasonable, and therefore no longer supported by probable cause.

Most courts agree that warrants are stale 10 days after they are issued, but there are often subjective factors the court may consider.
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August 25, 2015

Florida DUI Motion to Suppress Blood Test Results Reversed

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

Florida’s 5th District Court of Appeals ruled recently the trial court in Florida v. Kleiber incorrectly applied the strict compliance standard in granting a DUI defendant’s motion to suppress blood test evidence.

DUI blood test evidence is critical in any case wherein a person is alleged to have driven drunk. Where the evidence itself cannot be challenged on its validity or merits, a DUI defense lawyer may seek to suppress the evidence from being considered by the court in the first place.

There are a number of ways to do that, and the strategy is going to be case-specific.

Here, defendant, a 25-year-old firefighter, was arrested by the Florida Highway Patrol in 2012 after a collision a year earlier on I-75 near Wildwood. Around 4:30 a.m., defendant allegedly rear-ended a vehicle in front of him on the highway. That other vehicle overturned multiple times and collided with a fence. The other driver, 29, and his 20-year-old passenger were rushed to a local hospital in critical condition. The 20-year-old woman later died.
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August 23, 2015

Arrest on Cruise Ship for Battery of a Minor

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

Millions of people flock to Florida and its surrounding waters for an escape from the daily grind. But for some, the “vacation mindset” leads to lowered inhibitions and the assumption that consequences won’t be forthcoming.

However, as one Ohio man learned recently, one doesn’t evade the law simply because a crime occurs on vacation.

The 30-year-old was arrested at a Florida port, shortly after the cruise ship on which he was a passenger docked. Authorities alleged he had battered and threatened a 13-year-old boy who made sexual overtures toward his niece. He was charged with child abuse, assault, battery and false imprisonment of a child.
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August 18, 2015

Driver Sentenced 30 Years for Crash That Killed Five

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

Back in 1996, a man in West Boca caused an auto accident that resulted in the deaths of five Boca Raton teenagers. The following year, he would receive a 15-year prison sentence.

Three years later, another man in West Boca killed six senior citizens in a crash. He too would later receive 15 years for his crime.

But now, in 2015, a 23-year-old in Riviera Beach has been sentenced to 30 years for the exact same crime: Vehicular homicide.
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August 14, 2015

DUI Manslaughter Arrest in Pompano Beach Crash

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

Statements made to police detectives from a hospital bed will make it difficult for a man to build a solid defense following a fatal car accident in Pompano Beach in June.

The decedent in the case was working with one other as a driver/delivery person on a car hauler. The workers stopped on South Dixie Highway on June 23rd to drop off a vehicle to a business there. The workers parked the semi-truck on the far right lane of the roadway. The flashing hazard lights were turned on. They lowered the ramp in the rear and were working on unloading the vehicle from the lower ramp.

Decedent was standing inside near the back of the trailer trying to unchain another vehicle. Meanwhile, according to police, defendant driver was operating his vehicle in the right lane. He reportedly did not stop or swerved as he approached the stopped truck. Instead, he drove right up the ramp. He struck decedent with the front bumper of his vehicle, and decedent was launched through the front of defendant’s vehicle.
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August 10, 2015

Bretherick v. Florida – Stand Your Ground Immunity is Defense Burden

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

The Florida Supreme Court has once again taken on the issue of the controversial “Stand Your Ground Law,” ruling explicitly that the burden is on the defendant to prove he or she is entitled to immunity under this statute.

In Bretherick v. Florida, defendant had argued the onus was on the prosecution to show why such immunity did not apply. Amicus curiae briefs were filed with the court by the National Rifle Association of America and Florida Carry, Inc. in support of defendant.

The district court denied defense motion to dismiss on these grounds. Florida’s Fifth District Court of Appeal then affirmed that by finding it was the defendant who had a burden to prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, at the pretrial evidentiary hearing, that he or she is entitled to immunity. However, the 5th DCA then certified the question to the state supreme court for review as a matter of great public importance. Justices with the Florida Supreme Court agreed with the 5th District panel.
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August 6, 2015

Cohen v. Florida – Phone Call Gets Man 25 Years Prison

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

Violations of probation in Florida can be extremely serious matters.

Many criminal cases are resolved through plea agreements that offer plaintiff an opportunity to avoid a lengthier jail or prison term by submitting to community control (i.e., probation). However, a person who does not abide by the terms of that probation could face severe repercussions – up to and including imposition of the full sentence they would have otherwise faced on the previous charges.

This is why probation violation cases need to be handled by an experienced criminal defense attorney. The stakes can be enormously high, and it’s not a risk you want to take.
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August 3, 2015

Parents Criminally Charged When Children Access Guns in Florida

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

A father in Davie recently came under police scrutiny after he allegedly shot his 12-year-old daughter on accident while teaching her about gun safety. Police decided ultimately not to arrest him.

The girl was admitted to a local hospital with a gunshot to her left forearm, and the injury wasn’t considered life-threatening. The injury reportedly occurred when the father was trying to show her how to safely draw a firearm from his pocket.

Investigation is still ongoing, and while police haven’t charged him, that decision will be reviewed by the state attorney’s office. Other parents in similar situations have not evaded criminal charges.
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July 28, 2015

South Florida Father Sentenced to 5 Years Prison for Shaken Baby

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

For the death of his 5-month-old son as a result of violent shaking, a Lake Worth man will serve five years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter.

Initially, defendant had been charged with first-degree murder and faced up to 30 years in prison. Defendant’s wife, the child’s mother, supported defendant and the two even went on to have another child, a daughter, after the death of their son.

This may have prompted prosecutors to agree to a plea deal with much lesser prison time than what he could have served. As part of the deal, prosecutors dropped the first-degree murder charge and child abuse charge in exchange for a guilty plea to manslaughter. Even that charge carries a possible prison sentence of up to 15 years. That he had no prior criminal record, authorities say, also factored into the agreement for him to serve less time.
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