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In a nationally televised press conference on Thursday, State Attorney Willie Meggs announced that Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston will not be charged with sexual assault. While it sounded as if Meggs found the accuser to be generally believable, gaps in her memory coupled with the discovery of DNA from another man (apparently the complainant’s…

John H. hired me to defend him against a DUI charge. He had two previous convictions, so he knew the stakes were high. He also was firmly convinced of his innocence. He’d been riding his motorcycle, and was pulled over only because he was not wearing protective eyewear. No bad driving. No speeding, no swaying,…

Had an entertaining trial this week. I defended a man charged with battery, which Florida law defines as touching or striking another person against that person’s will. My client’s version of the events was that he and the other guy, a cousin, had a verbal disagreement that got heated. My client offered to “put up…

A former client called me late last Wednesday night, seeking advice. Her son’s former wife had disappeared with their child, and four private investigators had tried to find her without success. Could you please help me, she asked. Of course, I told her. I only work with the best. Within minutes, I was on the…

I was delighted to be a Featured Instructor at the Criminal Defense seminar in Miami presented by International Legal and Forensic Science Services (ILFSS) on February 18. I led off the seminar with a session on Pre-Trial Strategies and Tactics, and joined in on the Trial Panels teaching Cross-Examination and Closing Arguments. A special thanks…

I spent an enjoyable Tuesday afternoon in Court, playing the role of Freedom Fighter as a stood up for the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits the police from conducting unreasonable searches and seizures. In this case, my guy had a pocketful of pot. As the curtain rises on this drama, several deputies were investigating a reported…

A quiet Friday finds me sitting in a courtroom, watching a trial that is definitely not the trial of the century. The young man at the defense table has been accused of the crime of disorderly conduct. He allegedly danced naked in the street near his home after midnight one night. Some dogs noticed, and…

Robert Fulghum and I do not have much in common. All I really need to know, I did not learn in kindergarten. Not in law school, either. Continuing To Learn New Criminal Defense Strategies That Work My formal legal education ended in 1985, when I graduated from UNC School of Law, and passed the Florida…

The Government may claim that the Mouth Alcohol Detector NEVER fails, but we showed them to be just plain wrong. The Intoxilyzer 8000 comes equipped with a device called a mouth alcohol detector. It is a necessary safeguard, because if mouth alcohol were blown into the machine and not detected, the machine would report a…

It must seem to take forever for your case to get to court. You’ve posted bond, hired the best lawyer you could find, and now you find yourself waiting and waiting for your day in court. Why? Isn’t there something your lawyer can do? Yes, there is. Actually, yes, there are. Florida Rule of Criminal…