How To Handle a Violation of Probation During the Covid-19 Pandemic and the Courthouse Shutdown
If you or a loved one have been accused of violating probation you may be able to get the matter resolved quickly and with less jail time. A violation of probation occurs when a probationer willfully and substantially fails to comply with the terms and conditions of his or her probation. Has the COVID-19 Pandemic […]
Can I Get My Federal Probation Modified or Terminated Early?
Can I Get My Federal Probation Modified or Terminated Early? If you have been placed on federal probation, a judge may modify or terminate a term of probation and discharge a defendant at any time after the expiration of one year of probation. What Is Modification of Probation? When a person is sentenced to probation […]
Can the Police Take Your Blood Without Consent After a Serious Vehicle Accident?
The law narrowly defines the circumstances in which a blood draw may be performed without the driver’s consent. One circumstance allowing for forcible extraction of a blood sample is set forth in Florida Statutes section 316.1933(1). This section authorizes a blood test where an officer has probable cause to believe a driver under the influence […]
What Can a Criminal Conviction Mean to Your Career?
Nearly 77 million Americans, or one in three, have a criminal record. But that doesn’t have to hold you back from getting the career you studied in college or have trained for. Before Covid, many employers were willing to hire people with criminal convictions because it was hard to fill jobs in a low-unemployment economy. […]
What You Can Expect in a Criminal Proceeding
In this post, we outline basic court procedures to minimize the stress and mystery surrounding your trial proceedings, including what to wear, how early to come to the courthouse, and what type of participation will be expected of you when in front of the judge. There are eight distinct steps taken in most criminal cases. […]
What is Vehicular Homicide?
Vehicular homicide is a crime that involves the death of a person caused by the criminally negligent operation of a motor vehicle. The victim may be either a passenger in the vehicle or a person not in the car, such as a pedestrian, bystander, cyclist, or another motorist. Negligence is sufficient to support a vehicular […]
What is Drug Court?
If you have been arrested for a drug-related offense, you may be eligible for help rather than incarceration. Some courts have begun to realize that crime is not always the problem, it is often a symptom of the real problem, drug abuse and addiction. What Is a Diversion Program? A diversion program is designed to […]
Is the Coronavirus Infecting America’s Prisons?
The coronavirus is infecting American prison inmates at a rate more than five times higher than in the overall U.S. population, and those numbers are escalating rapidly, according to an analysis by the UCLA School of Law’s COVID-19 Behind Bars Data Project. When adjusted for age, those infected while incarcerated were more than three times […]
How Is Covid-19 Changing the Way Criminal Law Is Defined and Executed?
From violations of shelter-in-place that result in misdemeanors to delayed jury trials due to shuttered courtrooms, Covid-19 has had some drastic effects on the criminal law process. One of the most crucial rights you have as a criminal defendant is a right to a speedy trial. So how does that square with the novel coronavirus […]
Have You Been Improperly Arrested While Peacefully Protesting?
The right to peacefully assemble and protest is critical to a functioning democracy. This is one of the rights that makes the United States different and superior to all other countries. Is Peaceful Protest a Constitutional Right? The First Amendment grants the right to freedom of assembly, freedom of association, and freedom of speech. The […]