Florida Criminal Lawyer Blog

Our Miami narcotics criminal defense lawyers were sorry to see a story of what may have been a drug raid gone wrong. The Miami Herald reported March 14 that Broward Sheriff’s Department employees shot a 52-year-old woman last weekend after breaking into her home just after midnight. Police say Brenda Van Zwieten refused to drop her handgun when sheriff’s deputies ordered her to. The officers broke into her home after midnight on suspicion that it was a “drug den” after neighbors complained. In the raid, police found several drugs and and three other firearms, along with some cash. Van Zwieten’s boyfriend, 47-year-old Gary Nunnemacher, was taken into custody without complications on a misdemeanor marijuana charge.

Van Zwieten had no criminal history involving violence or drugs. She did have a license for the handgun deputies found her brandishing. Her brother, Bill George, said she had been threatened recently by someone accused of stealing from her house, and that she’d had an alarm system installed the week before. Deputies say they announced themselves several times before breaking a sliding glass door to get into Van Zwieten’s house just after midnight on Saturday. In the course of their search, they found 40 tablets of Xanax, about three ounces of marijuana, one gram of heroin, four grams of cocaine, $550 in cash and three other firearms. Van Zwieten’s son, Rob Singleton, produced a prescription for the Xanax. He insisted that his mother was not a drug dealer, but a grandmother active in the PTA and political campaigns.

The article notes that the incident is under investigation, and our West Palm Beach drug crimes defense attorneys hope that investigation is thorough and unbiased. Judging purely from the facts in the article, Van Zwieten may very well have mistaken the deputies for criminals breaking and entering her home. This could be especially likely if she was asleep when the raid started and didn’t hear deputies announcing themselves outside. This would be true even if Van Zwieten was guilty of dealing drugs, but the evidence for that is not strong. The cash and guns could have numerous legal explanations, and most of the drugs were either legally prescribed or found in such small amounts that they’re below the cutoff in Florida law for a charge of intent to sell.

Continue reading "Relatives Accuse Police of Shooting Innocent Woman in Midnight Drug Raid" »

A recent article about a drug arrest caught the attention of our Fort Lauderdale drug crimes defense attorneys. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Jan. 8 that the Port Everglades terminal was evacuated and a cruise ship passenger arrested after a customs agent found a “suspicious” liquid on the passenger. After sniffing the liquid, the agent reported feeling lightheaded and having an elevated heart rate. He was seen and released from the hospital, and laboratory tests of the liquid have suggested that it’s harmless. However, the passenger, 25-year-old Casey Flynn, was found with marijuana and arrested for drug possession. As a precaution, authorities also evacuated the terminal for about three hours.

The Sun-Sentinel said customs agents and the Broward Sheriff’s Office were scanning the crowd for people with outstanding arrest warrants on the morning that Flynn was disembarking from a five-day, music-themed cruise. As he was leaving the ship, an agent saw him drop a container of liquid and stopped him. After the agent reported feeling unwell, authorities evacuated about 300 people from the terminal. More of the cruise ship’s 2,750 passengers were required to wait on board the ship until hazardous materials investigators cleared the terminal to reopen. Laboratory tests found the liquid harmless, but these results were deemed inconclusive and the samples were sent for additional testing. Flynn may face charges related to the liquid in addition to the marijuana possession charge.

As Miami drug possession defense lawyers, we think Flynn may have a strong case for defending himself against both charges, if a second charge is even brought. As a rule, evidence obtained from illegal searches cannot be admitted in court. This includes evidence that forms the backbone or entirety of a criminal case, such as the marijuana found on Flynn. It’s not clear from the article whether the search was legal, but judging by the description, the customs agent may not have had probable cause to search him. After all, travelers routinely carry liquids like shampoo and mouthwash. If the search is thrown out, the marijuana possession charge, and any charge related to the mysterious liquid, may also have to be thrown out. And to charge Flynn in connection with the evacuation, prosecutors would have to show that he, and not law enforcement overreaction, was responsible for causing it.

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As Sarasota drug crime defense lawyers, we believe strongly in the use of drug courts rather than criminal penalties for nonviolent drug offenders. That’s why we were pleased to see an Oct. 19 article in the Orlando Sentinel about a new grant of federal money that could expand and strengthen the drug courts considerably. According to the article, nine Florida counties will be able to expand their existing drug court programs using about $20.8 million in funding from the federal stimulus package. The participating courts estimate that the money will help an additional 2,000 people complete drug court programs, resulting in $95 million in savings on operational costs and new prison construction.

Florida instituted the nation’s first drug courts in response to drug abuse problems that were clogging the state’s criminal courts. In drug courts, offenders facing drug charges may enter diversion programs that keep them off probation and out of jail. Instead, these offenders complete drug treatment programs, pass drug tests and fulfill other requirements. If they successfully complete the program, first-time offenders may have their charges dropped; repeat offenders may receive a withholding of adjudication or have penalties reduced. According to the Sentinel, about 10,000 Floridians enter the programs each year in 46 of Florida’s 67 counties. The newspaper also cited research showing that people who complete the programs successfully are 80% less likely to re-offend -- although roughly half of participants never complete them. In fact, the state estimates that only 1,600 out of 4,000 offenders will stay out of prison -- but even with a success rate of less than 50%, it still expects to save more than twice what the federal government will spend.

Advocates of drug courts say the programs save money that would otherwise be spent on unnecessarily incarcerating nonviolent offenders. According to Judge Ronald Whitehead, who supervises the drug court in Orange County, taxpayers pay $65 a day to supervise someone in prison, but only $15 a day to supervise someone in a drug diversion program. As West Palm Beach narcotics offense lawyers, we believe this makes the programs a win for everyone involved -- the system, the offenders and the public. Drug crimes that qualify for the programs are nonviolent offenses, which means that the offenders themselves are typically the only “victims.” Sending such offenders to prison does nothing to protect the public, but it can have profound consequences for the offenders’ lives and futures. Drug diversion programs give them an opportunity to earn a second chance.

Continue reading "Federal Stimulus Package Money to Help Florida Expand Successful Drug Diversion Programs" »