Jacksonville Criminal Defense Attorney Blog

Recent Developments for Defending Drug Possession Cases

Published on: May 15, 2017 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

Capable criminal defense lawyers know there are two major avenues for defending drug possession cases. The first is to pursue traditional defenses such as investigating search and seizure issues, warrant issues, actual versus constructive possession issues and other similar traditional defenses. The second major avenue, and one unfortunately oftentimes overlooked, is to fully investigate and develop sentencing phase “mitigation” evidence. Effective mitigation in a criminal drug possession case, or in any criminal case for that matter, is oftentimes critical in avoiding a conviction and/or jail or prison time.

So what is mitigation evidence? It is evidence of individual-specific circumstances generally beyond your control that significantly adversely affected your character and behavior which lead to your arrest.

Typical mitigation evidence in drug possession cases involves, among other things, showing your drug addiction arose from you initially being lawfully prescribed pain medications by a licensed physician for a medically documented injury, such as neck and/or back pain from an automobile or on-the-job accident. The mitigation evidence generally demonstrates you were placed on an extended course of prescribed pain medications such that by the time your prescription had expired you had become addicted, through no fault of your own. Faced with your addiction and the lack of any further prescriptions for the pain medication, your character and behavior were involuntarily altered to the extent you were left to satisfy your addiction on the “black market” or on the street. This type of mitigation evidence often is rightfully considered by the State in arriving at a negotiated disposition of your case (in what is oftentimes referred to as “plea bargaining”) that spares you a formal felony drug possession conviction and/or jail or prison time. Continue reading

Alleged New York Child Abuser Acquitted of All Charges

Published on: May 3, 2017 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

Cesar Gonzales-Mugaburu , a 60 year old foster father who had previously opened his home to scores of disabled children, was acquitted yesterday in a New York Supreme Court of endangering or sexually abusing several boys while they were in his care. The verdict followed a five week trial during which eight of Mr. Mugaburu’s accusers testified against him. Mr. Mugaburu had been denied bail and was held in jail for a year prior to his trial.

Mr. Mugaburu’s lawyer, Donald Mates, argued at trial that while Mr. Mugaburu was strict, he was not abusive. Mr. Mates cited to the fact New York City’s child welfare agency trusted Mr. Mugaburu so much that it had placed 95 boys in his care over 20 years. Mr. Mates further raised doubt about the credibility of the accusers, arguing they were coached.

The jury deliberated the 16 charges against Mr. Mugaburu for more than a week. According to the The New York Times, jurors reported struggling at times to remain impartial in the case which elicited a lot of emotion. The jury further organized the case details and created a timeline on a white board in the jury room. The jurors even debated the definition of “reasonable doubt” and requested the judge to re-read the jury instructions providing the definition. The case was very stressful for the jury, with one juror noting some of her fellow jurors fainted, became dizzy, developed stomach problems, and experienced insomnia during the trial. Continue reading

Beware of Controlled Calls in Sexual Battery and Date Rape Cases

Published on: February 13, 2017 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

You meet a woman on an internet dating site or through a dating app such as Tinder. You subsequently end up having what you understood to be consensual sex. Later, however, the woman calls you complaining you forced her into having sex with you or otherwise contends the sex was non-consensual.

This is a relatively familiar scenario. And, it’s a potentially dangerous one. It’s dangerous because unbeknownst to you, your date may have already contacted police with her allegations and the call is part of an investigative tactic known as a controlled, or pretext, call.

In a controlled call, a sex crimes detective will have already been in contact with your accuser. The detective will further have coached your accuser regarding what to say to you prior to making the call. And, most importantly, the call is recorded to collect and preserve crucial evidence to use against you in a criminal case.

Florida Felony Registration Requirements

Published on: September 28, 2016 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

I’ve had numerous inquiries about registration requirements for those convicted of felonies within the State of Florida. Many folks, and apparently even some lawyers, believe the registration requirements only apply to those convicted of sex offenses. That is incorrect. Thus, while it is commonly known that certain sexual offenders or sexual predators must register with their local Sheriff’s Office, it is less widely known that there are registration requirements associated with non-sex felony offenses as well.

Florida Statute section 775.13 imposes a registration requirement for anyone convicted of any felony in the State of Florida. That section requires “convicted” felons to register with the sheriff within 48 hours of entering any county within the State of Florida. The required registration includes being fingerprinted and photographed. Furthermore, the registration requirement also applies to anyone convicted of a felony in any state or federal court outside the State of Florida.

Failure to register as a convicted felon in Florida is a second degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 6 months in prison. However, if you’ve been convicted of a gang-related offense and fail to register, that is considered a third degree felony, and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison. Continue reading

Florida Teacher Arrested for Showing Porn to Students in Class

Published on: November 26, 2015 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

A Polk County teacher was arrested this month for showing pornography to students in his classroom. My review of the facts indicates that as is typical in many criminal matters, there are potential defenses available to the teacher that potentially could absolve him, or at a minimum, mitigate the severity of the charges he faces.

The Arrest Affidavit states that one of the teacher’s students came to his desk during class with a question about her assignment. As she approached, the teacher laid his iPhone on his desk, face up. The student observed “multiple websites depicting adult male pornography” on the phone. After speaking with the teacher, the student returned to her seat. Shocked at what she had just seen, the student returned to the teacher’s desk where she surreptitiously recorded the images displayed on the teacher’s iPhone screen, which included a slide show depicting a nude male’s erect penis and two male subjects engaged in sexual intercourse. Three additional students reported having also seen adult pornography on the teacher’s phone. Continue reading

Jacksonville Automobile Accident Insurance Fraud Scheme

Published on: November 19, 2015 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

A little over two years ago, the first of many arrests were made in connection with automobile insurance fraud schemes here in Jacksonville. The schemes involved “staged”, or prearranged, accidents at low speeds to create realistic accident scenarios. The driving participants would then seek medical treatment at select clinics established to milk insurance companies out of personal injury protection (PIP) coverage payments.

The scheme first originated in South Florida, especially the Miami area, and spread here to Jacksonville. To date, there have been in excess of 100 arrests made in these cases locally. There are still suspects at large and many filed cases are still winding their way through the court. Many of the participants are not fluent in English and require interpreters in court and for meeting with their Jacksonville criminal defense attorney, further complicating the process. Continue reading

Child Abuse Cases Are Not Always As They Seem

Published on: November 13, 2015 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

This week the Times-Union reported on a couple who were arrested for allegedly abusing their 7-week old daughter only to be later exonerated. The story is a great example of why we shouldn’t jump to conclusions when such allegations initially are made. Rather, we should wait for all the evidence to come out about the matter before drawing our final conclusions.

The facts are as follows. The young couple were preparing for an outing when they noticed their 7-week old daughter wasn’t moving her arm. They took her to the hospital where an x-ray showed it was broken. Because they couldn’t satisfactorily explain the cause of the injury, the state became involved. A whole-body x-ray ordered as part of that investigation revealed the infant had numerous broken bones. And, because the parents again couldn’t offer a plausible explanation for the child’s multiple fractures, they were arrested at the hospital, handcuffed, taken to jail and later charged with felony child abuse. As bad as this is, the story actually gets worse.

The Difference Between Burglary and Trespass May be Important to Your Case

Published on: November 8, 2015 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

If you’ve been charged with burglary, a competent Jacksonville criminal defense lawyer may be able to get your charges reduced to trespass, or even have them dismissed. While both are crimes, the distinction between burglary and trespass can make a huge difference in the outcome of your case and upon your life going forward.

There are different varieties of burglary. In discussing the highly significant differences between burglary and trespass in this blog entry, I will be referring to the crime of burglary of a dwelling. Continue reading

Jacksonville Juvenile Offenders To Get Relief From Prosecution for Certain Nonviolent Crimes

Published on: October 28, 2015 | by Roelke Law, P.A.

The Times-Union reported today that the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office has committed to increase its use of juvenile civil citations in lieu of arresting juveniles for certain minor nonviolent crimes. Civil citations are issued in appropriate cases as an alternative to arrest for juvenile misdemeanor offenders. Instead of being arrested and then subjected to juvenile delinquency sanctions, which may include residential commitment programs, juveniles issued civil citations will be directed to a restorative justice process.

The commitment was made at a recent meeting of the Interfaith Coalition for Action, Reconciliation and Empowerment (ICARE) by Undersheriff Pat Ivey. The Sheriff’s Office commitment includes working with ICARE to create a public announcement about the civil citation program and with the State Attorney’s Office to increase the use of citations in battery cases where the victim was not injured, such as minor “schoolyard fights.” The goal of ICARE is to bring Duval County more in line with Florida Department of Juvenile Justice statistics showing that while less than 33 percent of its eligible youth receive civil citations, state-wide that average is 43 percent.