Clearwater Criminal Defense Law Blog

Not all crimes in Florida are the same. As the range of law violations span from parking tickets to murder, so too is the range of their severity and the repercussions they have upon a conviction. Following is a discussion of the various categories of crimes and what you need to know about them if you are facing criminal prosecution in Florida. Basics Crimes in Florida are broadly categorized into three groups: infractions, misdemeanors and felonies. Within those categories, crimes are broken down by degrees, and the degree of a particular crime determines the range of possible penalties....

In some circumstances Floridians may have all legal records of their crime wiped from the official record. The expungement process is not widely known in the state of Florida, but it is available to those who have past crimes they would like to have removed from their record. Here’s what you need to know about expungement in Florida. Basics Expungement is the removal from public view the details of a criminal conviction. Essentially, if a court agrees to expunge the record of a crime, as far as non-government entities go, it’s as though the crime had never happened. Why Expunge? Individuals...

Last week we went over some of the limits the law places on police in Florida regarding searching and seizing the property of private individuals. This is the second part of that series, and we shall discuss other concerns and issues surrounding Florida’s search and seizure laws and what they mean for you. Reasonable Expectation Of Privacy Another situation in which law enforcement does not need a warrant to seize contraband is when the individual whose property is being searched does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy. The United States Supreme Court has interpreted the Fourth...

Florida’s law enforcement has many tools at its disposal for investigating crime. However, police and investigators have strict limits on what they may or may not do in the course of an investigation. Following is a discussion of police search and seizure and the authority and limitations law enforcement has in the state of Florida. Basics The root of police search and seizure limitations can be found in the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, which reads: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall...

Many Floridians talk about civil rights and how an individual’s civil rights may be violated from time to time. But where do these civil rights come from? Following is a discussion of the origin of American civil rights and what that means for you if you find yourself facing a civil rights violation in Florida. Basics In general, civil rights are recognized in one of two ways: Federal legislation, or federal court decisions. The Federal government establishes the basic set of civil rights that every American state must recognize. Although states may recognize more civil rights than the...