Fort Lauderdale Criminal Attorney Blog

A Hollywood man who was reportedly belligerently intoxicated made headlines recently after his domestic violence arrest. He reportedly told officers he should be allowed to “touch my wife any way I want to.”

The judge disagreed, and the 46-year-old is now being held on $6,700 bond.

Fort Lauderdale domestic violence defense attorneys understand that as we approach Thanksgiving and on through the rest of the holidays, we’re going to see an uptick in both domestic violence calls and arrests.

The fact is, of course a marriage license doesn’t give anyone the right to be abusive. People tend to say things when they’re impaired that they never would otherwise.

Still, this man’s conversation with police won’t help his case. It’s worth noting this Thanksgiving if you are involved in a family squabble and police are called to arrest you: Don’t say anything. It can be tempting to jump in and try to explain yourself or how the other person has over-reacted. But after your arrest, it isn’t likely to do much good, and it’s probably only going to hurt your case – especially if you’ve been drinking, because you’re liable to say something you don’t mean. Wait for your attorney to clear it up.

According to a recent study on domestic violence arrests, there is a 22 percent increase in calls on Thanksgiving. That increase actually continues steadily throughout the week after the holiday.

On Christmas Day, domestic violence calls are up 17 percent, and on New Year’s Eve, they jump by more than 30 percent.

And it’s not just spouses or intimate partners. It often involves other family members.

There are several explanations for this:

First of all, the holidays are stressful. You are gathering with people you maybe don’t see all that often, and that’s perhaps because you might not like them all that much. Many people feel a sense of obligation to visit with family because it’s tradition, but such gatherings may tend to fuel the flames of old hurts, grudges or resentments. And it’s not usually a quick visit either – it’s hours and hours.

This tends to lead to the second cause of problems during these gatherings, which is alcohol. This is like adding fuel to a grease fire. Some people use it as a coping mechanism, while others simply don’t know their limit.

Thirdly, you have the money elements. Holidays can be expensive. Not only is there a bird, and the stuffing and the other sides and the desserts – but then there’s the travel costs. And it continues from there, immediately with Black Friday. There is a great deal of pressure to spend, and these days, people are still struggling. Given that financial problems are at the root of many family disagreements, it’s not wonder that this element can lead to extra tensions.

It’s important if at all possible to take a step back and remember to relax. Avoid situations you know are going to be tense, and walk away from those that appear to be escalating.

If you are arrested, understand that because it’s a long weekend, you may spend an extra day or two in jail. But make that first phone call to your defense attorney.
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Fort Lauderdale domestic violence attorneys know the issue is a growing problem, as evidenced by a recent report by the Sun-Sentinel, indicating that while overall crime rates are down, murders are up dramatically – and it’s due to domestic violence.

Broward County Sheriff Al Lamberti reported that murders in the county rose an eye-popping 85 percent in the first half of this year compared to last.

According to statistics recently released by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, there were 21 murders in the first half of 2011. Contrast that with the first half of 2012, when there were reportedly 39 homicides.

The vast majority of those cases, Lamberti said, stemmed from domestic violence.

While we certainly don’t agree with law enforcement on every matter, we do agree with the statement he gave regarding the reasons behind the problem:

After a fatal domestic violence case, people have a tendency to say, “he or she just snapped.” But all too often, there is a lot more going in a troubled relationship that ends in homicide, and there generally are repeated and escalating incidents in prior history.

That’s why when our attorneys take on new clients one of the first things we typically suggest they do is attend counseling and, if necessary, substance abuse treatment. We have found that not only is this viewed favorably by the court, potentially allowing you more leniency in a plea deal or sentencing, you have the opportunity to address underlying problems. This will allow you to hopefully prevent a similar episode from happening in the future.

Our attorneys are dedicated to helping those individuals who are wrongly accused or whose criminal domestic violence charges are inflated and even those for who might carry some of the burden of responsibility for their actions. These are very serious charges, with long-term consequences and the social stigma that comes with conviction. As law enforcement continues its crackdown on household violence, the number of marginal or unfair arrests will also no doubt increase.

Domestic situations have a propensity to quickly spiral out of control, often with both sides acting as aggressors. Still, it is almost always the male half who is arrested.

The majority of these cases will be prosecuted as misdemeanors. Many understand misdemeanors to be not as serious as felony cases, but a conviction on a misdemeanor domestic violence charge can have far reaching consequences.

First, in addition to a possible year in jail, you will likely serve a mandatory minimum of at least 5 days behind bars. After that, you’ll likely be made to endure a 30-week batterer’s intervention program. You will also forfeit any rights to have a firearm while you’re on probation, your concealed weapons permit is going to be revoked and you will never be able to have your criminal record expunged or sealed.

Secondly, because this charge is never blotted from your criminal record, it’s something potential schools, employers and any member of the public will be able to easily look up and find. In some fields, such as primary education or law enforcement, you may be barred entirely from your career field, as such convictions are seen as a moral deficiency.

The best way you can avoid this is to avoid a conviction.

One technique that our attorneys sometimes employ to do this is to facilitate a victim outreach.

Many alleged victims regret that the situation has gotten to the point it has, and have no real desire to move forward with the case anyway. In some cases, they may wish to reconcile. However, the court may bar the defendant from contacting the alleged victims. Having your defense attorney do it for you can sometimes result in agreements to drop the charges. It’s important to note that domestic violence victims themselves don’t have the power to drop a case – only prosecutors do. However, if a victim refuses to cooperate, it can make proving that case much tougher.
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The Broward County Bar Association recently released a detailed analysis offering some insight into why local domestic violence cases have surged.

Broward domestic violence defense attorneys know that a big part of it has to do with the economy. It’s practically a science – meteorologists can tell from barometric pressure readings whether it’s going to be a good weather day or a bad one. Defense attorneys know that when the economy begins to tank, domestic violence cases increase.

Throughout the U.S., calls to the National Domestic Violence Hotline have climbed by about 13 percent from 2007 to 2009. In Florida, domestic violence centers reported a 40 percent increase in demand for services from late 2008 to late 2009. In the last year, Broward County domestic violence centers have reported an eye-popping 43 percent increase in calls, while those in Palm Beach County have reported an uptick of 27 percent.

What does the economy have to do with it? Consider first that South Florida has been hit especially hard by the economic crisis. Even though politicians in Washington continue to espouse the fact that we’re now technically in a recovery, a lot of people here are still struggling with impending foreclosures, unemployment or underemployment, reduced wages and overall economic insecurity. When people are on edge or depressed, that alone can lead to “taking it out on” those closes to you. It can also lead to substance abuse, which is another factor in domestic violence allegations.

Something else that is not often discussed with regard to domestic violence allegations in tough economic times is the fact that police agencies are often overworked and understaffed. Officers are being forced to take on more cases without working any additional hours, as local, state and federal budget cuts put restrictions on overtime and the hiring. And, of course, a similar strain on resources exists in the court system.

Officers conduct a cursory overview of the facts with a few questions – and that’s it. But almost always in domestic violence cases, someone is going to jail. Even if you are charged with a misdemeanor, as is the case with most domestic violence arrests, that mark is going to remain on your permanent record forever, unless your attorney can convince the state attorney’s office to drop or reduce the charges or if you are exonerated by a judge or jury.

This is why it’s critical to hire an experienced domestic violence attorney because this kind of a conviction – even if you plead no contest – will follow you as you try to apply for a job, or even keep the one you have. The current economic state of this country makes this an even more pressing issue.

Some of the strategies that a criminal defense lawyer in your case might employ include:
–Showing a potential monetary or other benefit that the accuser stands to gain with your conviction;
–Calling witnesses to testify that the person accused has a reputation for being non-violent and peaceful;
–Calling witnesses to testify that the accuser has a history of not being truthful;
–Showing that the accuser may be an unreliable witness due to the abuse of drugs or alcohol;
–Showing that the actions of the accused were taken either in self-defense or in order to protect children from the acts of the accuser.
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A report under the news category, “Flori-Duh” mocked a Fort Lauderdale man who had been arrested on charges of domestic violence battery after reportedly covering a woman with tomato sauce and shaving cream.

However, Fort Lauderdale domestic violence defense lawyers know that in all seriousness, the charges are nothing to laugh about.

The news report details the account of a domestic violence dispute that quickly escalated into a situation in which the 26-year-old man allegedly doused the woman in cream and sauce. The judge presiding over the situation said he thought he had heard just about everything: domestic violence by tuna can, pizza, sandwiches and meatballs. These are the stuff of legendary lunchroom food fights, but in the context of a domestic violence case, the repercussions are far steeper than a trip to the principal’s office. (By the way, a high school food fight in Arizona recently resulted in felony battery on a teacher charges for one of the teens involved, so the use of food in an action against someone else doesn’t de-criminalize the act.)

Florida statute 784.011 defines assault as an intentional and unlawful threat by word or act to do violence upon another person accompanied by the ability to carry out that threat. Battery, as defined in Florida statute 784.03, is the act of intentionally touching or striking another person against the will of that person.

Florida Statute 741.28 defines domestic violence as ANY assault, battery, sexual assault or battery, stalking, false imprisonment, kidnapping “or any other criminal offense” that results in physical injury or death of a household or family member by another household or family member.

These can be charged as either felonies or misdemeanors, depending on the severity of the case and the criminal background of the defendant, which mean a person could potentially be sentenced to years behind bars if convicted.

The whole phenomenon of poking fun at cases of domestic violence involving food or other weird objects was addressed recently by an editorial in a Nebraska newspaper, where a husband had been arrested there for assaulting his wife with a sandwich. The reporter who covered the story had used tongue-in-cheek phrasing and noted the “several pieces of lunch meat found on the carpet,” as well as the mayonnaise stains on the victim’s shirt. The husband was charged with a misdemeanor, and the story was subsequently picked up by national news outlets, including Fox News, the New York Daily News, CBS News and others.

Online commentators had even more fun with the story, asking if the sandwich was a “club sandwich” and whether, if the sandwich had been ham and the woman a Muslim, if it would have been prosecuted as a hate crime.

The editorial chided these remarks, as well as the “news” reports. But, of course, this is unlikely to have much effect on the media, or on those who find humor in the situation, particularly when someone isn’t seriously hurt.

What’s important for potential clients to understand is that even if the circumstances surrounding your arrest become fodder for laughs, you need to take it seriously and hire a criminal defense lawyer with experience.
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A Boynton Beach woman is facing criminal charges after police say she beat her young son with a belt after he was reported at school for bad behavior.

Fort Lauderdale criminal defense lawyers know that 50 years ago – and even today in certain cultures – such conduct would barely cause a raised eyebrow, let alone criminal charges. In fact, this was historically seen as a form of good parenting.

In fact, in 19 states in this country – including Florida – corporal punishment is not only allowable, it is sanctioned and carried out by school administrators. The boards used to paddle children are about 5 inches wide and 1/2 inch thick. They are often hand-made, sometimes by students themselves in wood shop.

A recent report by ABC News indicated that about 3,600 students were spanked by school officials in Florida last year. (That’s much lower than in states like Georgia and Florida, which on average spank more than 28,000 kids annually.)

But times have changed dramatically, and criminal laws are always evolving.

Even though Florida lawmakers have been working to ban corporal discipline in Florida schools, the measure has so far been unsuccessful. Most Florida schools have opted out of the practice, but clearly not all of them.

And yet, it appears we use a different measuring stick when it comes to the actions of parents seeking to discipline their children.

Florida Statute 827.03 defines child abuse as the intentional infliction of physical or mental injury on a child or an intentional act that could reasonably be expected to result in physical or mental injury on a child or the active encouragement of another person to inflict physical or mental injury on a child.

“Physical injury” is a vague term, and fails to differentiate from severe welts and bruising to hand prints and scratches.

This is not to say that there are not parents who take it too far. But in a state where we allow school officials to paddle children, the line often seems unclear.

In this case, the 34-year-old mother was upset with her son, age 5, for bringing home a bad conduct report. Essentially, these are issued when a child acts up in class. She then reportedly took her into his room and whipped him with a belt. The noise woke the boy’s father, who asked the mother to stop.

Somehow, an investigator with the Florida Department of Children and Families learned of the incident and started an investigation. The boy had a single vertical mark across the side of his back, as well as several bruises. The boy said that his mother disciplined him and his sister with a belt when they misbehave.

They also have a younger brother, age 1. There is no indication that the infant has been subjected to any physical harm by the mother.
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