Posted on August 22, 2017 in Criminal Lawyer in Miami

The moment that many Floridians have been waiting for has finally arrived. Governor Rick Scott signed a bill that will allow for the implementation of Florida's medical marijuana program, a program that was approved by voters in November of 2016. However, while Amendment 2 suggests that the program will be comprehensive, Florida state lawmakers have fought hard to stifle the program, which means that it is important for those who intend on partaking in it to fully understand what it does not allow. If you are found using marijuana for medicinal reasons in ways that are prohibited by the law, you could face serious criminal consequences.

For that reason, our criminal lawyer in Miami wants to ensure that anyone who is considering using medical marijuana fully understands what they are not allowed to do under the newly passed law.

Medical Marijuana Actions that are not Legally Permitted

Our Miami criminal law firm has gone to great lengths to fully understand all of the technicalities outlined in the newly passed Florida medical marijuana bill. The Miami criminal defense lawyer from Stroleny Law: Criminal Defense Attorney wants to ensure that patients fully understand what they are not permitted to do under this law so that they do not end up facing misdemeanor or felony charges.

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 Posted on August 17, 2017 in Miami Criminal Defense News & Articles

Typically, those who have been brought up on criminal charges do have at least one individual that acts as an eyewitness to the events that lead to the criminal charge. The eyewitness can usually identify the person who was charged with the crime. While it is understandably upsetting to learn that an eyewitness is pointing to you, our criminal attorney in Miami wants you to know that even though someone is willing to identify you as the responsible party, that doesn't necessarily mean that you are guilty and will be convicted of the crime.

Here's the thing, testimony from eyewitnesses is not always reliable. In fact, there are several issues that can arise when it comes to eyewitness testimony, which in turn, makes the testimony of an eyewitness unreliable in court.

If you have recently discovered that an eyewitness has identified you as being involved in the crime that you were charged with, our criminal defense lawyer in Miami wants you to take comfort in knowing that the individual's testimony may not have an effect on you.

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 Posted on August 15, 2017 in Miami Criminal Defense News & Articles

Have you been charged with aggravated assault? Are you unsure of what that charge actually means and what the possible consequences of such a charge are? If so, then our criminal attorney in Miami wants to share some important information with you.

Aggravated Assault Defined

As per Florida Statues, Section 784.021, aggravated assault involves four different elements:

• The person who is accused unlawfully or intentionally threatened another individual, either by word or by action, to commit an act of violence.
• When the threat was made, the person who was accused seemed to have the ability to act on the threat that was made.
• The threat that the accused made toward the victim made the victim feel threatened that a violent act was going to be committed against him or her.
• The assault was made with a deadly weapon or with a well-formed intent to commit a felony.

Basically, aggravated assault is any assault that involved the use of a deadly weapon (a knife, a gun, a blunt object or any other object that could cause serious bodily injury or death), or the accused has the intent to commit a felony.

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 Posted on August 11, 2017 in Miami Criminal Defense News & Articles

If you have been accused of cyberstalking, the last thing you should ever do is hand over your phone to the police. No matter what they promise you, even if that promise if having the charges dropped, don't give into the temptation of letting the police search your phone.

Why shouldn't you give the police your phone? - Because they want to use it to collect evidence that they can use against you, which could put you in an even more serious legal situation. If you have been accused of cyberstalking, the first thing you should do is contact a Miami criminal defense attorney as soon as possible. An experienced attorney from a criminal law firm in Miami will be able to help guide you through the legalities that are involved with your accusation.

What is Cyberstalking?

Cyberstalking usually happens when a person uses a form of electronic communication, such as email, text messaging or social media, to harass, intimidate or bully another individual. It can involve anonymously sending text messages, sharing private information about the victim, sending sexually offensive emails or posting hateful and/or threatening comments toward another person online.

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 Posted on July 12, 2017 in Miami Criminal Defense News & Articles

Are there certain privileges that protect us from the testimony of others in a criminal law court? Although most individuals understand such basic rights as immunity from self-incrimination, it's less common knowledge that laws exist to protect one from the testimony of others in specific circumstances. Our Miami criminal defense lawyers have tremendous success in dealing with matters pertaining to these privileges. These privileges vary according to state and federal laws respectively, although sometimes they are available under both. It's usually the defendant or the attorney who invokes these privileges.

In these cases the defendant will usually object to testimony that could be prevented through official privileges. If you'd like to discuss the following privileges with a Miami criminal attorney, we may be able to use these in your specific case. Nonetheless, here are some of the possibilities for privileges available:

Doctor-Client Privileges:

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 Posted on July 11, 2017 in Miami Criminal Defense News & Articles

Like most Florida residents, you've heard about medical marijuana on the news recently but have no clue how the system works. If you want a medical marijuana card in Florida, call our Miami drug crime lawyer and find out if you're entitled to a card under the new law, 305-615-1285 . Qualified patients can have their marijuana card within the next month!

On June 23^rd, 2017, Governor Rick Scott signed Senate Bill 8A, establishing a framework for medical marijuana in Florida.

You May Be Entitled to Medical Marijuana if You Suffer From:

• Cancer
• Epilepsy
• Glaucoma
• HIV/AIDS
• PTSD
• ALS
• Crohn's Disease
• Parkinson's Disease
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Anxiety
• Anorexia
• Arthritis
• Back Pain
• Cachexia (Wasting Syndrome)
• Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome
• Diabetes
• Hepatitis C
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome (with chronic abdominal pain)

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 Posted on July 09, 2017 in DUI

In some circumstances, a person facing DUI charges in the state of Florida may claim their driving under the influence was necessary because of some emergency-type situation. Not only has our Miami criminal defense firm dealt with situations where these exceptions applied, but we've been successful in winning these cases.

This type of exception was recently illustrated by the Driggers v. State case which took place in the Florida's Fifth District Court of Appeals. The six components of a necessity defense were explained during the case. These are as follows:

1. There must be reasonable grounds for the defendant having believed that an emergency truly existed, as opposed to creating a false emergency.

2. The danger or the threat thereof should, apart from being real also be both "imminent and impending."

3. This danger must constitute a threat which can cause significant harm to the suspect or another person.

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 Posted on July 07, 2017 in Miami Criminal Defense News & Articles

The decision by some states to give convicts internet access wasn't an arbitrary or haphazard decision. In a world where it seems as if life is changing exponentially faster, keeping inmates away from technology could cause society more harm than good. Yet out of all the US states, there are only four which allow some limited form of access to the internet. Some policy makers have argued that, much like shelter and food, the internet is a basic necessity and therefore a human right. This argument is open to debate and there are reasons that prisoners shouldn't be deprived of internet access altogether.

In recent history, the case of Michael Santos stands out as an important marker in the argument for prisoners' internet rights. After his 25 year sentence was served, he added his voice to the debate from his first-hand experience as a prisoner. Without internet access, prisoners live in a very real sense of isolation from the real world. This strongly disrupts their chances of true rehabilitation after release. They are also cut off from conversations within and surrounding technological awareness. This in turn means they have difficulties integrating back into the world.

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 Posted on June 30, 2017 in Miami Criminal Defense News & Articles

Florida is one of the more lenient states in terms of firearm possession laws. Miami does not require residents to have a permit should they decide to purchase shotguns, handguns, or rifles. Carrying a handgun does however require a concealed carry permit.

Our Miami criminal law firm has dealt with countless cases relating to gun laws. In order to save you time, we've summarized the most important information below.

Florida Gun Laws Under the Magnifying Glass

• No requirements for permits in the purchase of rifles, shotguns or handguns
• Apart from special exceptions, open carry of any firearm is illegal.
• Carrying a concealed weapon does require the appropriate license.
• "Duty to retreat" law does not apply in cases where the resident has lawful presence.
• "The Stand Your Ground Law" applies in Florida.
  

Lax though gun laws may be, they do not unfortunately apply to every Florida resident. Section 790.23 states that some classes of people are prohibited from purchasing, carrying, owning or even operating firearms altogether, specifically convicted felons and those found delinquent of felonies.

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 Posted on June 27, 2017 in Miami Criminal Defense News & Articles

If you've ever watched crime television shows, you'll be quite familiar with the idea of DNA sampling for the purpose of allowing law enforcement to match a suspect to a crime scene.

Florida Statues, Section 945.325, are clear on just how important DNA databases have become for modern criminal investigations. Not only are they used to identify criminals, but they're equally helpful in ruling out certain suspects as well.

All About DNA Databases

To give you an idea of how important DNA analysis has become, the state of Florida and every other US state has declared that it's in the best interests of the public to maintain a nationwide DNA profiling system. This includes samples from individuals who have committed specific types of misdemeanors, as well as specific kinds of felonies.

The name of this database is "CODIS," which stands for "Combined DNA Index System."
Any kind of biological evidence recovered from the scene of a crime can be added to CODIS and compared with the already-existing profiles. When there is a match between the profile and the relevant sample, serial rapists or murderers can in theory be quickly identified by law enforcement. An experienced Miami criminal defense attorney knows that the truth isn't always as straightforward.

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