Florida Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

Did you know that a lot of the fireworks displays you may have seen during the recent New Year’s celebrations aren’t all that legal? Unless these displays are being done by professionals, they are violating the law. However, this may change if a law makes it through all of the hurdles in the Florida Legislature.

Known as HB65, the bill would allow people throughout Florida to legally shoot off fireworks on the following holidays: Independence Day, Memorial Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. Currently, fireworks are only allowed to be set off provided there is a permit or if it’s for agricultural purposes. Though fireworks are sold legally in Florida, those buying them must sign paperwork indicating they are familiar with the state’s fireworks laws.

Should HB65 become law, buyers would need to be at least eighteen years of age. Local governments would also be able to ban fireworks if they feel it necessary.

Since October, law enforcement officers have been warning and educating Florida drivers about the new handsfree law. However, this “grace period” will be ending once January 1, 2020, arrives, allowing officers to issue tickets for anyone who is caught not driving handsfree in certain areas.

Drivers that are caught holding a “wireless communication device” when they are driving through construction zones, school zones, or school crossings may receive a moving violation which comes with a $60 fine. Officers will be using these last two weeks of December to educate drivers on the new laws, taking advantage of the greater number of holiday drivers on the roads. For the time being, drivers will receive a tear-off reminder regarding the new law requirements and its associated fines.

Once January 1st comes around, fines and citations will replace these reminders.

A committee of Florida state senators has approved a bill to decrease the states’ prison population by enabling judges to move away from mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses at the low level. Known as SB 346, the bill has already cleared two of its three committee hurdles without receiving one vote of no.

A Florida Senator and former prosecutor told committees that the removal of offenders from state prison would save money and result in a boost to public safety. He cited an audit of the judicial circuits in Florida that found offenders placed under ‘community supervision’ rather than jail tended to be less frequently rearrested.

SB 346 would reduce the penalty for possession of fewer than two grams of most controlled substances to a single year. In most cases, it permits a judge to refrain from mandatory minimum prison sentences and fines for other drug offenses.

After last year’s shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida instituted the “red flag” law. This law allows authorities to remove weapons from individuals that may be a danger to themselves or others or may use them to commit a crime. However, police must convince a judge that such an action is warranted. If a judge agrees, the individual must surrender the weapons or give them to someone that can possess them legally. Florida is one of just fifteen states to have such a law.

A 33-year-old man has now been charged with being the first person in Florida to break the law after he refused to surrender his weapons following a 2018 incident where he allegedly fired shots at a vehicle during an argument. The man’s attorney argued unsuccessfully that the new law was not fully understood.

To read more about the case, visit https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/crime/fl-ne-rpo-defiance-trial-20191206-ejkq5e6vwvbnpki4spp3jm7psy-story.html.

A new federal law aimed at banning animal cruelty acts is now in effect. Known as the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act (PACT), President Donald Trump signed the law last week. With this new law, acts such as impaling, burning, drowning, suffocating, or causing animals any serious bodily harm are prohibited. Offenders may receive as much as seven years in prison.

With the signing of PACT, a 2010 law loophole is closed which prohibited creating and distributing animal crushing videos but failed to make the cruelty acts in these videos illegal. The videos often involve individuals killing, mutilating, or torturing defenseless small animals and were shared over the Internet.

Should you wish to read more about the animal cruelty law and how it made its way to being signed, read the Sun-Sentinel article at the following link: https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/fl-ne-federal-law-now-bans-animal-cruelty-20191202-zftrlvfcvbabhdknr5kcdmorqm-story.html.

The United States Attorney General recently proposed a new initiative aimed at better enforcing the U.S. gun background check system, coordinating state and federal gun prosecutions, and ensuring that prosecutors review records rapidly to demonstrate when a defendant is unable to own a weapon due to issues with their mental health.

Called Project Guardian, the program will allow prosecutors to coordinate with law enforcement officials on a local and state level to evaluate possible federal charges should a suspect be arrested for possessing weapons, if there is a belief a gun was used to commit a violent crime or drug trafficking offense, or if the suspect is believed to be a member of a violent gang.

The program allows alcohol, tobacco, and firearm office agents across the country to either create new procedures or update existing protocols to bring federal charges against individuals attempting to get a gun from a firearms dealer by lying. Prosecutors will concentrate in particular on criminals with violent histories, who are members of the gang, or who have faced charges of domestic violence. Furthermore, United States attorney’s offices would also need to promptly enter details into government databases regarding individuals who are unable to possess guns due to reasons of mental health.