Articles Posted in Broward County Courthouse News

The Fort Lauderdale theft of some $100,000 in merchandise from two area electronics stores is being potentially linked to other retail thefts in Florida.

Our Fort Lauderdale criminal defense lawyers recognize that this incident comes on the heels of an announcement by local, state and federal authorities that a comprehensive retail task force is in the works.

According to federal officials, retail thefts nationally result in losses of approximately $30 billion and affects most storefront retail businesses to some degree.

The new task force, which is going to include deputies from the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, will target the many different types of retail theft crimes, from individuals who line their pants-pockets with tin foil to throw off anti-theft sensors to organized theft rings that have been known to drive off with containers packed with merchandise.

The recent electronics store burglaries are one example of what authorities are targeting. According to news reports, the first incident happened at a store on North Federal Highway, where a pair of individuals gained entry after store hours by cutting a hole in the roof. From there, they forced open several display cases and reportedly heisted about $30,000 worth of electronics.

The second incident, which occurred at another branch of the same business, this one on Southeast 17th Street, happened when two individuals broke in through a wall the store shared with another business. Once again, the pair targeted the display cases, this time making off with about $90,000 worth of electronic merchandise.

Similar incidents have been reported in Largo, and detectives say the incidents could be connected.

Another recent example was the case of a couple in Palm Beach County who were arrested after attempting to steal nearly $2,400 worth of baby formula from a large chain store retailer.

Then there was the Hialeah couple accused of stealing some $36,000 in children’s products. Their scheme involved purchasing expensive, big-ticket items one day. They would then return a few days later, pull these items off the shelves and then return to the register for cash using the original receipt.

The methods reportedly run the gamut, from robberies at gunpoint to sophisticated heists.

Task force investigators say these items, often stolen in bulk, are then sold at local flea markets or online.

The National Retail Federation, which cited the $30 billion figure in its latest national survey, has reportedly ranked Miami as 4th in the nation for prevalence of organized retail theft. The organization said many retailers are unprepared to confront those with elaborate schemes. He said the methods have evolved rapidly, and the deterrent actions that were effective even a year ago are no longer working.

While the task force operators say they have little interest in targeting small operations, we are confident that arrests for all types of shoplifting and retail thefts are going to spike in the coming months with the creation of this initiative.

Florida Statute 812.014 holds that anyone who steals property in excess of $100,000 can be charged with a first-degree felony, which is punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Items valued at between $20,000 and $100,000 will be charged with grand theft as a second-degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Any theft between $300 and $20,000 can be charged as grand theft of the third-degree, a third-degree felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison.

There are also exceptions to these rules. For example, if you steal a firearm, it might only be worth $200, but according to the law, it will be charged as a third-degree felony.
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Prosecutors have declined to press charges against a 50-year-old man who shot a 33-year-old outside a nightclub in March, saying the shooting was justified under Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law.

Fort Lauderdale criminal defense lawyers know that the law has gained a great deal of notoriety in the last year due to the Trayvon Martin case, in which the 16-year-old black male was shot by white/Hispanic neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman in northern Florida. Advocacy groups decried the subsequent decision by police not to file charges, citing the “Stand Your Ground” law. A special prosecutor was eventually appointed in that case, and Zimmerman is now facing charges.

But “Stand Your Ground” has historically been seen as a defense to physical assault or homicide that occurs at or near one’s home. It isn’t typically applied to bar-room brawls, but this case shows that in certain circumstances, it can be.

Coincidentally, this incident occurred in March, the same month Zimmerman shot Martin.

In this case, the Sun Sentinel reports, the older man fired his gun outside of Mangos nightclub, after the younger man attacked him physically. According to Broward County Sheriff’s deputies, the older man’s two teenage sons were waiting to meet up with their dad when a 33-year-old walked by and tossed a used tissue at their car. When the boys met up with their father, he walked with them inside the club to demand an apology. It’s not clear if they got it, but the man and his two sons then left, him heading in one direction and his sons in another.

However, the tissue-tosser soon followed the older man across the street. Once there, he stripped off his shirt, a recognized signal that he was prepared to start a physical fight.

The older man warned the younger to stop, keep away from him and that he was armed with a gun. That reportedly did not stop the younger man, who then tackled the older man to the ground and began barraging him with punches. Witnesses reported that the younger man was “really hurting” the older man. At that point, the older man reached for his gun and fired a single shot at the younger man’s chest.

The older man reportedly had a concealed weapons permit and remained at the scene to speak to police, who noted he had multiple bruises and dried blood near his nose.

Prosecutors, in declining to file charges against the older man, cited too the mens’ sizes – the older man was 5’7, while the younger man was 6’1 and nearly 240 pounds.

The “Stand Your Ground Law” is located in Florida Statute 776.013. It states that if a person is held in reasonable fear of imminent peril of great bodily harm to himself or herself or another person, they are justified in taking action that may cause death or great bodily harm. There are multiple stipulations in the law, but that’s essentially the crux of it.

If you have questions about whether your case may fall under the Stand Your Ground statute, we can help.
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The soggy Broward County Courthouse will reopen Monday, a week after a burst water pipe caused extensive damage to the aging building.

Jurors are to report as scheduled, court officials said. Anyone who was supposed to report for jury duty this past week should not go to the courthouse and instead wait to be contacted by the Clerk of Court’s Office.
While most of the downtown Fort Lauderdale courthouse will be up and running, the building’s phone system won’t be. Sunday night’s burst pipe on the second floor of the Clerk of Court’s Office drenched the building’s communications center, knocking out the phone lines to both the courthouse and the Broward Main Jail.
More than 14,000 court files were damaged and an outside company has been hired to dry them out, Forman said. Courthouse officials have estimated the flooding caused $1.2 million in damage.

ANSARA RESPONDS
I put this article on the blog for my clients and the general public who may be asking themselves, “do I need to go to court tomorrow?” The answer is yes. Last week the Broward County Fort Lauderdale Courthouse was closed due to a water main leak that has destroyed many files. This seems to be a common occurrence at the Broward County Fort Lauderdale Courthouse. It was only months ago that the Courthouse was closed due to an earlier flood.

When something like this happens it makes you wonder what kind of backup systems if any are being used at the Broward County Clerk’s Office.

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