Many people believe if someone records them without their permission, the recording cannot be used in court. A recent decision by the First District Court of Appeal, however, shows that is not always the case. Corey Smiley was invited to the home of the women with whom he shared a…
On June 25, 2019 Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Florida Senate Bill 1020, regulating the production and distribution of hemp and hemp extracts in Florida, including the increasingly popular hemp derivative, cannabidiol (CBD). The bill makes Florida the latest state to enact legislation to legalize and regulate its hemp industry. …
To date, the following eleven states have legalized recreational use of marijuana: Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska, Nevada, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Maine, Vermont and Massachusetts. As those and other states and cities relax their drug laws, the highly trained dogs used by their police departments to sniff out narcotics can’t be…
On March 26, 2019 United States District Judge Brian J. Davis sentenced 68 year old Mohammad Abdul Malek to 10 years in federal prison for attempted enticement and coercion of a minor to engage in sexual activity. Malek, a Ph.D. level engineer, was employed as a federal civilian employee at…
If you’ve been served with a Petition for Injunction for Protection against Stalking, sometimes referred to as a “restraining order”, there’s good news for you. A recent case from the First District Court of Appeal has made it harder to get a stalking injunction. In Venn v. Fowlkes, 43 Fla.L.Weekly…
A 2016, report by ProPublica and the New York Times found frequent false positives and user errors by law enforcement administering the most popular drug field tests. Precise error rates are difficult to ascertain, as some test results can be affected by variables such as the weather, user error and lighting…
Imagine that while driving your car, you are stopped by the police for having an expired tag or for speeding. The officer approaches and tells you the reason for your stop. He / she then asks for your license, registration and insurance card. The officer then asks you to step…
Your medical history can often be used to obtain reduced charges, or even dismissal of your DUI case. A case from Washington State recently reported in USA Today provides a classic example of how your medical history can be highly relevant to your DUI case. The incident began when Carol…
Most people are aware Google scans emails to develop advertisements targeted to users’ particular interests. In fact, the notion Google will scan your content to tailor your advertising has been well known; the company’s terms of service notify users their emails are being analyzed. However, most people are not aware…
The First District Court of Appeal recently issued an opinion concerning whether merely being around drugs is sufficient to convict someone for possession. Based on the facts in that case, the answer is “no.” In that case officers found illegal drugs while investigating a shootout between two cars that had…