criminal defense lawyer

July 26, 2017

Acquitted of DUI Manslaughter, Boca Raton Man Still Faces 30 Years for Hit-and-Run in Fatal Crash

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

A Boca Raton man was recently acquitted of a DUI manslaughter charge, though he is still facing up to 30 years in prison after jurors determined he fled the scene of that fatal crash. Initially, it was defendant’s girlfriend – not him – who was facing charges in connection for the death. However, police combed through hundreds of emails between the couple afterward, ascertaining that he had in fact been the one driving.

This question of disputed fact involved compelling arguments made by both sides, according to The Sun Sentinel, and reveals why having a good defense lawyer at the outset is a smart move. Those emails were likely this defendant’s undoing – but they also helped clear the name of his now-ex girlfriend, who was initially charged. Understand that any communications about an alleged crime – whether via email, text, voicemail or social media – can and probably will be used against you in a court of law. It’s generally wise never to communicate anything you would not wish to be read aloud in a deposition. Your defense lawyer can counsel you on how to limit these communications and protect your chances at trial. Continue reading

July 23, 2017

Florida Mother Arrested for Child Abuse, Child Neglect for Teen Daughter’s Drinking

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

Although many parents worry about how they will help their teens avoid the pitfalls and perils of underage drinking, some parents view it as better to embrace it. “If I can oversee it, I can control it and protect them,” the thinking goes.

This is erroneous on several fronts. There is of course the civil liability that can be imposed if you knowingly allow a teen to imbibe on your property – particularly if you supply the alcohol – and that teen later drives and is involved in a crash. Although there is technically no social host liability law, F.S. 768.125 holds that a person who sells or furnishes alcohol to someone who is not of lawful drinking age can be liable for injury or damage caused by or resulting from intoxication of that minor.

Beyond that, adults who allow minors to drink or furnish them with alcohol could face charges for child abuse and/ or neglect, as one Florida mother recently discovered. Continue reading

April 28, 2017

Florida Spring Breakers, Tourists, Grapple With Hangover of Vacation Arrest

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

Throngs of spring breakers and tourists start to flood Florida coasts beginning in March, with spring break hitting its peak around the middle of the month. However, those who came for a week may find they are dealing with our court system for much longer.

The Sun-Sentinel reported spring breakers kept local law enforcement agencies busy, with offenses ranging from slapping the rear quarter of a police horse and underage drinking.

Fort Lauderdale police issued a warning to both locals and visitors in advance of spring break, insisting there would be a “zero tolerance” policy of enforcing state laws and local ordinances. In many cases, that meant arresting spring breakers, who now may face the expensive possibility of having to return to Florida to face the music in court. Continue reading

April 21, 2017

Reliability of Forensic Hair Analysis Questioned in Study

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

Over the last several decades, the American criminal justice system has relied increasingly on forensic testing to definitively identify suspects, nail down timelines and prove or disprove theories about what happened and who was involved.

However, there is an increasing amount of data showing that some of these methods are not as bullet-proof as they were previously held out by prosecutors and the scientific community to be. In 2015, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalists at ProPublica detailed the great deal of faulty forensics that had been reported in previous years.

On one hand, the emergence of DNA analysis became a powerful prosectuorial tool – but also one that was valuable for defendants, resulting in the revelation of scores of wrongful convictions. Recently, the Washington Post reported on a substantial study by the National Association for Criminal Defense Lawyers that found 26 out of 28 examiners in the FBI’s forensic hair comparison unit gave flawed testimony in more than 200 criminal cases during the 1980s and 1990s. Continue reading

March 17, 2017

Florida Cops: Spring Break Patrols Will be in Full Force

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

Spring break in Florida is something of a rite of passage for many college students across the country. They flock here for a brief, sunny respite from the mid-semester doldrums and flood the state’s beaches and bars.

Many communities thrive off this yearly influx of younger visitors. However, state and local police are issuing stern warnings about what is expected of visitors here and what kinds of enforcement actions they can expect.

In particular, police are focused on:

Public drinking
Drinking and driving
Underage consumption of alcohol

March 9, 2017

Florida Supreme Court Affirms Ban on Open Carry of Firearms

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

In a divided and controversial ruling, the Florida Supreme Court upheld a longstanding ban on people openly carrying firearms in public.

The court disagreed with passionate arguments by supporters of the Second Amendment, instead ruling 4-2 that the state law doesn’t impede the exercise of the core right to bear arms. Rather, the law only regulates one manner of how a person can bear arms. The court’s decision is an affirmation of the findings by the 4th District Court of Appeal, which in 2015 decided against a man arrested for open carry of a gun in a holster in St. Lucie County.

Defendant in the case, Norman v. Florida, specifically challenged the constitutionality of F.S. 790.053, the state’s open carry law, which has been in effect since 1987. The statute holds that except as otherwise provided, it’s against the law for anyone to openly carry on or about his or her person any gun or electric weapon or other device. In order to be lawfully carrying a gun, one has to be licensed to carry a concealed firearm and the firearm has to be adequately concealed. Continue reading

February 24, 2017

Sober Home Owner Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud Conspiracy

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

A second person arrested in a wide-ranging federal investigation into insurance fraud by South Florida sober homes has pleaded guilty to health care fraud conspiracy.

The Sun-Sentinel reports the 45-year-old defendant conceded before the court that he had accepted nearly $250,000 in kickbacks to refer clients living in his sober living homes for testing and treatment for substance abuse. Additionally, he reportedly sent some 60 clients with health insurance to two different recovery centers, and those centers in return sent him approximately $500 a week.

At this point, authorities have arrested seven people for health care fraud conspiracy at sober homes throughout Broward and Palm Beach counties. A 46-year-old man from Boynton Beach was the alleged ringleader of the operation. Meanwhile, this defendant who recently pleaded guilty faces up to 10 years in federal prison. Continue reading

October 25, 2016

Florida Supreme Court Rejects Dippolito Appeal, Case Set for Second Trial

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

The high-profile murder-for-hire plot case of Dalia Dippolito is slated for a second jury trial before the end of the year, now that the Florida Supreme Court has refused to hear a request from defendant to toss out the charges.

In the matter of Dippolito v. Florida, justices gave no explanation for the denial, saying only it was denied upon review. A circuit judge had denied her dismissal request earlier this year. Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal rejected her request without even holding a hearing.

The bizarre case out of Boynton Beach has raised all sorts of issues about entrapment and whether the alleged plot was ever real to begin with. According to ABC News, Dippolito is accused of concocting a scheme to kill her former husband when they were just newlyweds. She reportedly, with the help of a friend, helped to hire a “hit man,” who was actually an undercover detective, to kill her husband. Continue reading

September 17, 2016

Florida Supreme Court Considers Expert Witness Standard Changes

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

Three years ago, Florida legislators passed a controversial bill that affected almost every kind of court case in the system – including criminal cases. The change involved the standard to which expert witnesses are held in court. Their expert qualifications, their methodology, their testimony – all of this came under greater scrutiny when justices did away with the previous “Frye Standard” and instead adopted the “Daubert Standard,” which is used in federal courts and in most other states.

This was largely deemed a positive move for two groups: Criminal and corporate civil defendants. However, personal injury lawyers and some state attorneys have taken issue with it. The Florida Bar is the group that has asked the Florida Supreme Court to consider reverting back to the Frye Standard.

The Frye standard asks the judge to consider whether to allow expert witness testimony into evidence based only on whether the it represents principles that are considered generally accepted in that particular field. The Daubert standard, meanwhile, requires judges to use a more stringent standard. Judges are asked to allow the expert witness testimony only if it’s based on sufficient facts or data, if it’s the product of reliable methods and principles and the expert witness has applied the methods and principles of the case correctly. Often, this requires something of a mini-trial before the trial. Continue reading

September 15, 2016

Florida Man Arrested by Federal Authorities for Online Threats

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

A Florida man has been arrested by the FBI on federal charges for allegedly making Facebook threats against the LGBTQ community at events in both Wilton Manors and nearby Fort Lauderdale, according to The Sun-Sentinel.

Fifty-year-old Craig Jungwirth is accused of violating federal statutes on interstate commerce when he reportedly made reference to the Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando and made numerous threats against LGBTQ events planned over Labor Day weekend. Additionally, he was charged with driving on a suspended license, an unrelated offense.

A six-page FBI affidavit that formed the basis for the arrest accuses Jungwirth of sending communication that threatened to kidnap or injure another person. A conviction on the federal charge could result in up to five years in prison, a $5,000 fine or both. He was taken to jail in Seminole County, but is facing charges in federal court. Continue reading