Fort Lauderdale defense lawyer

June 1, 2016

ProPublica: Racial Disparity Alleged in Florida Criminal Risk Assessment Tools

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

The study of predicting which criminals are more likely to commit future crimes has been one of great interest for many years, and it’s given birth to computerized systems in the U.S. known as “criminal risk assessment tools.” Criminologists say there is a public interest in recognizing which individuals may be more dangerous before it is decided how long their sentence should be and when or whether they should be released.

Prior to the 1970s, these predictions routinely factored race, skin color and nationality. The following decade, as the country was in a midst of a crime wave, lawmakers imposed many mandatory minimum sentences and removed discretion from the hands of prosecutors and judges. That meant there was less important to evaluate individual offenders, but then states started grappling with overflowing prisons and jails. And that’s where criminal risk forecast has swung back into routine use.

As detailed in a recent ProPublica article, dozens of computerized risk assessments are being used nationally – including right here in Broward County. These programs made by for-profit firms weigh dozens of various factors. However, the researchers found that these scores have been cited repeatedly by judges at sentencing hearings, and what’s more, the results tend to be skewed along racial lines. Black defendants are often deemed to have a much higher risk assessment, even when the crimes are similar and the statistics are controlled for other factors. Continue reading

April 17, 2016

One-Year-Old Boca Raton Gang Rape Case Hinges on DNA Evidence

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

The alleged gang rape of a Florida Atlantic University student at last year’s “South Florida Oil Spill” party remains unsolved as event organizers prepared to host the party again this year. It will be the seventh annual for the event, in which 600 to 800 college students from across the state pack into a party spot and pay a $30 flat-rate for all-you-can-drink and live music.

According to the Sun Sentinel, it was at this event at the Wayne Barton center just two miles off campus in Boca Raton last year that a young woman, separated from her friends while dancing in the center of the gym, was allegedly dragged off the dance floor, guided briefly onto the main stage and then pulled into an enclave to the left of the stairs. There, she would later tell authorities, the men pulled a curtain over her head and took turns raping her.

Today, there are no suspects and no arrests, but authorities say they are hoping for a break in the case, which at this point will hinge on DNA evidence. When the woman was taken to the hospital – hours after the alleged attack – there were traces of semen found inside her. At this point, that may be the only way to identify those allegedly involved. Continue reading

February 29, 2016

Florida Manslaughter Charges Dropped for Ansara Law Firm Client

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

South Florida Defense Attorney Richard Ansara of The Ansara Law Firm successfully defended a client charged with manslaughter following a 2013 fatal shooting in Boca Raton.

As The Sun-Sentinel recently reported, Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Glenn Kelley dismissed the second-degree felony case against 25-year-old client Joshua Henry of Pompano Beach. Henry originally faced up to 15 years in prison. He is now a free man.

Ansara aptly argued that the events resulting in the death of Justin Holt, 22, were the result of a “tragic accident,” not criminal action. Continue reading

February 17, 2016

Florida Official Accused of Keying Car in Neighbor Spat

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

Ron Cacciatore is a man who has spent his life in Broward law enforcement. He worked for years as an undercover agent, targeting drug traffickers. He took on high-profile, influential members of organized crime. He even spoke at one about about running for Broward sheriff himself.

But now, he’s on the other side of that coin. The 62-year-old, who currently serves as the head fraud investigator at the Broward Property Appraiser’s Office, was recently accused of taking a key to vandalize the car of a 73-year-old neighborhood association president, who has been sparring with his 43-year-old stepdaughter.

This is according to The Sun-Sentinel, which alleges the source of this quarrel spans a full five years – and the tenure of two association presidents. In all this time, there have been reports of conflicts between those involved that resulted in hair-pulling, biting and restraining order filings. And now, reportedly, it’s culminated in vandalism by a high-ranking county official and retired lawman. Continue reading

January 13, 2016

Vehicular Homicide Charges in Fort Lauderdale 4-Year-Old’s Death

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

Most people think speeding is one of those things that is “no big deal.” People do it all the time, and often with little consequence. But consider this case recently reported by the Sun-Sentinel:

A man has been charged with vehicular homicide in Fort Lauderdale after a high-speed crash resulted in the death of a 4-year-old boy almost two years ago in Sunrise.

The now-21-year-old defendant had been driving at least 70 mph in a black BMW. Investigators would later opine he was driving somewhere in the neighborhood of 83 mph. The speed limit on that stretch of North Pine Island Road is 45 mph. There was a yellow car in front of him. A vehicle ahead of that yellow car made a wide turn into the parking lot of a shopping plaza. The yellow car hit the brakes. The BMW driver, Andrew Ezequiel Perez, couldn’t slow down in time. He lost control.
Continue reading