Fort Lauderdale Criminal Attorney Blog

March 5, 2012

Fort Lauderdale Crimes Targeted with “Peacemaker”

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

Local police have purchased a mobile surveillance unit, dubbed “The Peacemaker,” in an effort to reduce crimes in Fort Lauderdale.

The armored surveillance truck is being touted by a police as an effective crime-fighting tool. However, some have countered that it can be used to intimidate innocent people.

What Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorneys know is this: If law enforcement has the benefit of taxpayer-funded, advanced technology that can be used to aid the prosecution in criminal cases, anyone who is accused of a crime in Fort Lauderdale needs to contact an experienced Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorney.

According to the Sun-Sentinel, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department’s “Peacemaker” may be the first to debut in South Florida. The department now has two of them – one an old Brink’s bank truck, was purchased in August.

Another, a converted SWAT vehicle, was paid for last month. The bank truck is covered with police logos and signs that say things like, “Whatcha gonna do when we come for you?” It is equipped with a number of cameras that can record for up to 700 hours that can stream live back to police headquarters for 24-7 surveillance. Officers park it out in front of what they dub as high-crime areas, and say it is a major deterrent for criminal activity. Often, the vehicles are unmanned.

While some residents have applauded the presence of the vehicle, others, like one local motel owner, was quoted in the paper as saying the vehicle was essentially a form of harassment. The hotel owner was arrested in October in a prostitution case, which is still pending, but says she is innocent. She said both the city and police have tried everything to shut her down, but have been unsuccessful because she’s doing nothing illegal.

“Now, they bring this truck to intimidate me and my customers,” she said.

One of her neighbors shared the same sentiment, saying police exited the Peacemaker recently to question a group of young men, one of whom was ultimately charged with loitering.

“We can’t sit outside without being harassed,” he said. “Now we have that truck. Most of us are not doing anything wrong.”

Police say if people are abiding by the law, the truck shouldn’t be a concern, and that it has already alleviated certain neighborhoods from rashes of burglaries and robberies. They counter that every time a person walks down the street, they are watched by up to 30 private cameras owned by businesses. The difference, Attorney Richard Ansara notes, is that those cameras aren’t funded by the government for use in criminal cases.

While the Peacemaker in Fort Lauderdale is likely the first in Florida, that may not last long. A spokesman for the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said while it may not be in the immediate budget, it is something he hopes the agency could deploy sometime soon.

Other agencies that have used in-vehicle cameras in the U.S. include:

— Police in Peoria, Ill. are using an old Brink’s truck they call the Armadillo; They have even added an Armadillo Two.

–Police in Green Bay, Wis., are also using an armored surveillance vehicle, though the name of it is unclear;

–Lafayette, La. police have employed a Crime Suppression Surveillance Vehicle, which they also call an Armadillo;

–St. Louis Metro Police have an armored car that is also equipped with such things at ballistic headlights, and it has the ability to provide live 360-degree of surveillance of several square blocks.
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February 29, 2012

Murder at South Florida Nightclubs Alleged to be a Growing Problem

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

Murders at nightclubs in South Florida are becoming more commonplace, according to a new report by the Palm Beach Post.

Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorneys know that when it comes to prosecuting someone for a murder charge in South Florida, a case must be airtight. Murder is the most serious crime on the books, and punishment can be severe – up to and including the death penalty in Florida.

But when a shooting or stabbing or some other assault is alleged to have occurred at a night club, there are specific challenges, particularly with regard to witnesses.

The newspaper reports that in 2011, there were at least nine shootings inside South Florida nightclubs, more than double that of 2010. Within the past 10 years, 20 people have been killed in nightclubs. Within that decade, Broward had the most gun deaths – 13, including one that was a suicide. Another 42 people were hurt by stray bullets in the last 10 years, some of those with injuries that were life-threatening, though they ultimately survived.

With regard to knife injuries, five people were stabbed to death in South Florida nightclubs over the last 10 years. Four of those instances happened in Broward and one in Palm Beach County. One instance last year involved a man who officers said was so livid over a bar tab that he stabbed one man to death and cut four others at Fishtales in Fort Lauderdale.

Broward Sheriff Al Lamberti was quoted as saying that nightclub fatalities are on the rise. Reports indicate that all of the alleged shooters and most of the alleged victims were males, with the exception of one 17-year-old girl who was shot when a group of men fired into a crowd at a West Palm Beach bar.

One would think that when a crime is alleged to have occurred amid a crowd of people, the perpetrator would be easy to identify. But when a nightclub is the crime scene, Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorneys know that witness accuracy may be called into question.

First, you have an atmosphere that is dark and loud. The strobe lights are flashing and the bass is pumping hard, drowning out much of the conversation. This is often why people flock to the club – but it is also going to impact the ability of any potential witnesses to accurately recount how events transpired. Patrons may not have clearly seen or heard how a situation unfolded. This is often the case with assault charges in Fort Lauderdale and other more common nightclub crimes.

Also, night club owners often jam-pack their venues for an optimum nightly payout. What that means, though, is that even if someone is standing or dancing just a few feet away, they may not actually see or hear what is going on a few steps behind them.

Another important factor to consider is whether any potential witnesses have been drinking. Alcohol can fog a person’s recollection, and make events seem fuzzy or unclear. It’s important for law enforcement to accurately record how much witnesses had been drinking at the time they provided their statements.

Each element must be carefully weighed by a Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorney who is prepared to fight for you.
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January 28, 2012

Miami Drug Case Makes Its Way to U.S. Supreme Court

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

A significant drug case out of Miami has gone through the Florida Supreme Court and now will be tested by the U.S. Supreme Court, which will determine if drug-sniffing dogs can be used to detect marijuana, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Fort Lauderdale drug cases can range from a misdemeanor possession case to a felony trafficking case. Charges can range from months in jail to decades in prison, depending on the type of drug, quantity, location of where it was found and other factors.

An experienced Fort Lauderdale criminal defense lawyer will tell you that these cases often come down to whether police have probable cause to conduct a search. People who get arrested for these offenses typically are arrested after a stop in their vehicle or in their home after an extensive investigation.

In both scenarios, police must have a reason to investigate the drug crime. They must have a search warrant to get into a person’s house and sometimes even into their vehicle. This requires an officer to get a judge to sign off on a warrant after they’ve provided evidence that they should be able to do a search.

And that’s what this case comes down to. A Miami man was convicted of growing marijuana illegally at his home. Officers got a tip that this was going on and took a drug-sniffing dog to the man’s house. The dog, through its training, indicated there was an odor of marijuana coming from inside the house. Based on that information, police got a search warrant from a judge and busted in, finding 179 marijuana plants inside.

But the case was appealed after the man was convicted. Florida’s justices threw out the evidence against the man, saying that dog sniff tests shouldn’t be allowed at the home of any citizen unless the police had probable cause. Florida prosecutors, however, contend that dogs sniffing for drugs don’t constitute a “search.”

Eighteen states have supported the appeal to the nation’s high court. The Times reports that it usually sides with police in major cases. In a 2011 case, justices ruled that officers in Kentucky didn’t have time to obtain a search warrant and were justified when they broke into house after smelling marijuana. But the justices rejected law enforcement officers’ use of thermal imagers, which can detect marijuana-growing operations from the outside, as a privacy issue.

The case should be heard in April with an expected ruling being issued sometime in June. This will be a major case for drug cases in Fort Lauderdale because it will determine how police can use these drug-sniffing dogs, which have come under scrutiny as unreliable. Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorneys will certainly be watching to see how this case is argued and what facts are presented to show that drug-sniffing dogs are legitimately trained and why the state thinks they can just take a dog up to a person’s house to seek criminal actions against residents.
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January 19, 2012

Marco Rubio Staffer Charged in Florida Domestic Violence Incident

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

A staffer for Florida Senator Marco Rubio was recently arrested and charged with a domestic violence incident in Fort Myers, leading to the man quitting his job, the Associated Press reports.

This incident brings up some key points for people who find themselves dealing with a Fort Lauderdale domestic violence incident. Fighting at home can be caused by excessive use of alcohol or abuse of drugs and can create major problems for both the aggressor an the victim.

Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorneys recognize that while an arrest can be a difficult thing to defend when dealing with domestic violence, other aspects of this situation can be a problem as well.

What this refers to is a restraining order. Unfortunately, these are somewhat easy to obtain and can put a person labeled as an “aggressor” in these types of cases through the ringer. The Broward County Sheriff’s Office makes it clear that a restraining order is as easy to going to the courthouse with the proper paperwork between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m.

A temporary protective order is usually granted first. All that takes is for a person to convince a judge they are in some type of danger. These orders are temporary, but can cause major distractions while active. For couples who live together and have children together, these can cause parents to not be able to see their children or spouses or have to live somewhere else while the order is in place.

A violation of an order can be punished as a criminal offense, even if there is no initial criminal report taken by police officers or sheriff’s deputies. Florida Statutes 741.31, which governs domestic violence situations, tells residents how to obtain an injunction for protection against domestic violence.

But a temporary order is designed to be just that — temporary. Once that is ordered by a judge, the person it is against receives a copy and has the right to a hearing to contest it. It is strongly advised that this person gets legal representation.

Requesting a hearing is well within a person’s rights and he or she should ensure that an experienced Fort Lauderdale criminal defense lawyer is by his or her side at this type of hearing. A permanent order against a person can lead to him or her being shut out of their own home or being banned from seeing family members. A slip-up, even if unintentional, can lead to an arrest. It can be a slippery slope.

In the incident in Fort Myers, the regional director for Rubio in Southwest Florida resigned after initially being placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. Deputies went to the couple’s apartment after the man’s wife called 911 and then hung up. When they arrived, they found the woman’s elbow was swollen and bloody and she was visibly upset.

She told deputies her husband pushed her, causing her to fall on top of a carpet in the garage. He then allegedly rolled her into the carpet and kicked and punched it with her inside. She said she unrolled herself and confronted him. The man allegedly then pushed her against the wall, causing the elbow injury.

Deputies arrested the man at a nearby hotel and charged him with domestic violence battery, despite his wife not wishing to press charges and refusing to get medical treatment. The man’s attorney told the media the allegations are false and that the man and a witness whom she would not name can contradict the police report.
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January 12, 2012

Detroit Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera Avoids Jail Time in South Florida DUI

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

All-Star first baseman Miguel Cabrera, who was arrested last year and charged with DUI, recently avoided jail time after entering a no contest plea in connection with a 2011 arrest, the Detroit Free Press is reporting.

DUI in Fort Lauderdale is typically charged as a misdemeanor, which some people mistake for a minor charge. But Fort Lauderdale DUI defense lawyers have seen how a conviction can rip apart a person’s life.

It can kill careers or make qualifying for certain jobs difficult. Some estimates put the cost of a DUI at more than $10,000 after paying the fines and fees, educational classes, bond to get out of jail the first night, towing and impound lot fees and other expenses related to the conviction. This can cause significant financial strain.

And there’s also the stigma attached to such a charge. Newspaper and television news stations are interested today in embarrassing people who get arrested by posting their jail mug shots on their websites. Sadly, these photos can stay online forever, which can damage a person’s reputation. This can lead to family problems as well.

This is why the only way to handle these charges is with an aggressive defense. In Florida, a defendant can face major sanctions, even for a first offense:

-Up to 1 year of probation
-Up to 6 months of jail time
-Mandatory 50 hours of community service
-Up to $1,000 in fines, unless blood-alcohol level is 0.15 or higher, then up to $2,000
-10 days of vehicle impound
-Minimum 180 days driver’s license revocation
-Completion of DUI School

Anyone who thinks these are minor sanctions isn’t paying attention. These can make a person’s life difficult. And while it will still show up on a his record, Cabrera’s recent plea has kept him out of jail.

The professional baseball player was charged last February after police pulled to the side of the road in Fort Pierce to check on his Land Rover, which was on the side of the road and Cabrera was standing next to it. Police said he started drinking from an open bottle of Scotch.

He faced several charges, including DUI and resisting arrest. As part of a plea deal, he was sentenced to one year on probation, lost his driver’s license for six months, had to pay fines and fees, has to serve 50 hours of community service and must attend DUI school and a victim impact panel.

Some may see avoiding jail time as a major victory or a celebrity “getting off easy.” But consider what you would do if you had to complete 50 hours of community service and live for six months without a driver’s license. Those are significant hardships that the average person must take into account. So, while DUI arrests are on the decline in the United States, police are thirsty to make as many arrests as possible to show the public they are doing a good job. That’s why the average citizen driver must employ a strong defense in any DUI case.
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January 5, 2012

FDLE Employees Were Paid to Get Drunk, Test Breathalyzers For Ft. Lauderdale DUI Cases

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

Reports out of Sarasota suggest that the state’s version of the FBI, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, paid its employees recently to get drunk and test the Intoxilyzer 8000 breath test machine in order to use it in the prosecution of thousands of Fort Lauderdale DUI cases.

Fort Lauderdale DUI defense lawyers have become more and more skeptical of breath testing machines as evidence has come out that they are faulty. Lawyers have been able to get judges to write orders allowing them to see how the breath testing machines are manufactured.

This is because DUI cases are the only kind in Florida where the defendant isn’t currently allowed to see how a key piece of evidence works. In murder cases, defendants get to see how blood evidence is collected and tested and those witnesses are available for questioning. In burglary cases, the defense is provided with information about who collected fingerprint evidence and how it was processed.

But in Fort Lauderdale DUI cases, until now, defendants weren’t able to see the workings of breathalyzers, the machines that law enforcement relies upon heavily for arrests and convictions for driving under the influence. This has recently changed, but these machines are still coming under fire.

The Herald-Tribune in Sarasota has been reporting for months how experts testing these machines have seen that they work improperly. In many cases, defendants blew up to 12 liters of breath into the machine, though the human lung can only hold five liters of breath. That called into question hundreds of cases that prosecutors and judges tossed out.

And in Florida, FDLE only allows one type of breathalyzer to be used. And now that it has been questioned as potentially faulty, this raises questions about the thousands of DUI cases throughout the state, including in Fort Lauderdale. Current cases should be examined, as should past cases.

In the most recent news, the newspaper reports that FDLE bought about $300 of booze, snacks and mixers and allowed their employees to get drunk on company time in order to test the devices. The workers were told to drink and then blow into the machines. Their blood was also drawn and sent off to a lab, bringing the taxpayer tab to about $8,000.

FDLE employees testified about the results in a Sarasota courtroom recently in order to try to save the Intoxilyzer 8000 from being shelved statewide. But judges were skeptical because the blood tests have not yet been returned from the lab. DUI defense lawyers questioned the validity of the study since it was highly unscientific.

Fort Lauderdale DUI defense lawyers believe this is a last-ditch effort by the state to convince judges that these machines, which have already been proven to be faulty, are accurate. As more and more pressure is put on the state to replace these machines or ensure somehow they are accurate, it’s possible that cases will be dropped or police will be reluctant to use these as their main piece of evidence.
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June 13, 2011

Hollywood Police Department Fires 13 Officers

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

It appears as though the Hollywood City Commission has made some tough decisions at the commission meeting today. Thirteen Hollywood Police Officers have been terminated as well as imposing a ten percent pay cut for all other remaining officers. Additionally, it appears as though the City Commission cut their own salaries by ten percent. Needless to say, the budget cuts come after the City Commission learned that it faced a $10 million dollar budget shortfall rather than the anticipated $8.5 million shortfall.

It has been alleged by the Police and Firefighter Unions that the City Commission has engaged in unlawful negotiations by failing to provide any documentation showing a “financial urgency.”
According to Stephanie Szeto, a Hollywood resident and Police Officer; “we don’t have enough police officers and its getting to be a dangerous city.”

There are many dangers associated with reducing any police force. The obvious danger is that crime may rise due to less police presence. Additionally, without the proper amount of police officers, it is reasonable to conclude that criminal investigations may suffer due to lack of resources. This is especially troubling in cases where a proper investigation would have lead investigators to find evidence of innocence rather than guilt.
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February 5, 2011

Boca Raton: FAU Police Officer Arrested for Murder

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

jimmy%20ho.jpg Former Florida Atlantic University Police Officer Jimmy Ho has been arrested in connection to the murder of a 29 year old Boyton Beach woman. Sheri Carter was pronounced dead at the Delray Beach Medical Center. According to doctors at the hospital, Sheri Carter died from injuries “directly related to being shot.” Neighbors of Sheri Carter say that she worked for a South Florida escort agency.
Florida Atlantic University had placed Ho on administrative leave, however Officer Ho quit shortly after being placed on leave by the University. It is important to note that Florida Atlantic University Police Officer Jimmy Ho was fired from the Broward Sheriff’s Office for violating “moral character standards” prior to being hired by FAU. Furthermore, Ho was involved in a fatal collision killing a 74 year old Holocaust survivor while employed with the Lauderhill Police Department.
According to investigators, Sheri Carter sent a text message to her boyfriend stating that she was with a client that was “acting wierd and scary.” Investigators have checked cell phone records and have determined that Jimmy Ho had contacted Carter prior to sending the text message to her boyfriend.
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January 19, 2011

Red-Light Camera Tickets: Case Dismissed!

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

It happens often that I am approached with the question: Can you beat red-light camera tickets? Many motorists were rightfully nervous when the first influx of red-light cameras began to appear in Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach. This was the first time in Florida history that a motorist could be cited for a traffic infraction without ever even knowing it happened. Flashing red lights in the rear view mirror were to become a thing of the past. Now, local governments including Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Plantation, Pembroke Pines, Coral Springs, and Boca Raton are on a new track to increase revenues for their municipalities. It was argued by local leaders that the new red-light cameras will increase traffic safety. After all, isn’t it the responsibility of our government to keep us safe? Although local leaders are proud to say that their move to institute red-light cameras was based on keeping people safe the reality is that the move was instituted on the notion that cities need money: and this is a great way to make money.
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December 17, 2010

Broward Sheriff’s Deputy Sentenced to 30 years for Raping Prisoner

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

Charles Edward Floyd, 40, could not hold back his tears today as he was sentenced to 30 years in Florida State Prison for raping a prisoner he was transporting while working as a Broward Sheriff’s Corrections Deputy on June 13, 2007. His wife was gripped with emotion as she watched her husband being taken away to serve his 30 year prison sentence. Baby, I’m sorry, I gotta go. Don’t cry for me,” he sobbed. “Mom, I love you.” This was too much for his wife as she began throwing up and crying intensely.
Floyd was charged with one count of kidnapping and two counts of sexual battery by a person in a position of control or authority. These charges stem from an incident in which Floyd was working for the Broward Sheriff’s Office. It was during this time which Floyd was transporting three female inmates. After dropping off two of the three inmates the Broward Sheriff Deputy drove to a remote location where he ordered the female inmate to perform oral sex on him. It was at this time that Floyd had sexual intercourse with the inmate. According to Broward County State Attorney Prosecutors, Floyd’s DNA was found in the womans cervix.
His attorney, Bob Nichols, argued that the “victim did not appear traumatized after the event.” He said the judge should “weigh a lifetime of service to the community versus one day.”
All sexual batteries are violent,” Judge Lazarus responded. Even when “a good person commits an evil deed, nonetheless, he commits an evil deed.”