Tampa DUI Lawyer Blog

A Hernando County deputy has been placed on paid suspension because he is being investigated for DUI. Two Brooksville, Florida women noticed a car swerving off the road early Sunday morning and called 911 while following the vehicle.

The women tailed the vehicle to the deputy’s home where they were shocked to see a squad car parked in the driveway. The deputy thought the women really liked him and proceeded to flirt with them.

The deputy is a nine-year veteran of the sheriff’s office. According to the Hernando Today, the deputy was off-duty and on his way home from a bar in the area.

Authorities showed up at the deputy’s house that morning after he had exited his vehicle and made it inside his home. Detectives said that the women in the car and anyone else who saw the deputy that night will be asked to provide statements.

The deputy and former detective has previously been suspended by the sheriff’s office three times. There are also two cases against him right now— a criminal investigation involving the State Attorney's Office and an Internal Affairs investigation.

The deputy has been suspended before for suspicion of alcohol abuse.

DUI suspects can still be prosecuted despite whether they are caught behind the wheel. In Florida, to prove DUI prosecutors must show that the defendant drove or was at some point physically in control of the vehicle and was under the influence of alcoholic beverages or a chemical substance or had a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 or more grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood, or a breath-alcohol level of 0.08 or more grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath. In cases like this one, witness testimony is crucial to making the charges stick. Law enforcement does not have to actually witness the crime being committed to charge a person with DUI. If a witness or witnesses state they saw a person commit DUI, then the person will most likely be investigated and charged.

This is an interesting case because the deputy is under investigation for multiple crimes and has been suspended before for alleged alcohol abuse. It will be noteworthy to see how prosecutors handle this charge.

Continue reading " Brooksville, Florida DUI Attorney :: Hernando County Deputy Suspended for Suspicion of DUI " »

Tampa Bay Buccaneers assistant coach Jayson Kaiser was arrested for DUI shortly after midnight on Wednesday after he was pulled over for driving with his headlights off. According to police, Kaiser allegedly smelled of alcohol, had slurred speech and bloodshot eyes.

Kaiser supposedly refused to participate in a field sobriety test or take a Breathalyzer test because he claimed he had not been drinking. According to FOX Sports, Kaiser was held on $500 bail and his car was impounded.

This marks the third arrest for members of the Bucs organization over the past few months. The Bucs pro scouting coordinator and former Bucs linebacker Shelton Quarles was arrested March 4 on suspicion of drunk driving.

Bucs cornerback Aqib Talib was charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon last month after a domestic dispute in Texas in which he allegedly shot at his sister's boyfriend.

Following an arrest for DUI, police will often have the driver’s vehicle towed. In some cases, police may release the vehicle to a passenger that is not impaired or even contact a family member to come retrieve the automobile from the scene. In the majority of DUI cases police will call for the car to be towed to a city impound lot where it can be picked up by the suspect once they are out of jail and can pay the fees to redeem it. Traditionally courts order the impoundment of a vehicle involved with DUI for a minimum of 10 days.

Impoundment of a vehicle can be waived if the family only has one vehicle or no other resources for transportation. If not, the car cannot be impounded while a suspect is held in jail. If a jail sentence is being served, the impoundment will happen once the person is released from jail.

Continue reading " Tampa, Florida DUI Attorney :: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Assistant Coach Accused of DUI " »

A Waldo, Florida homeless man arrested for cycling under the influence (DUI) Monday has also been charged with making videotaped threats against the officer who arrested him and against the officer's family.

The 49-year-old man was noticed by a Waldo police officer around 8 p.m. struggling to control his bike and running a stop sign.

After the man was stopped by the officer he released some jail paperwork as a means to identify himself. The officer performed several breath tests on the man which resulted in registered blood alcohol levels of .158 and .149.

The man was arrested and placed in the backseat of the patrol car where the in-car video camera allegedly captured him threatening the officer through statements about sexual assaults on his family members and hiring someone to shoot a shotgun in his presence.

The man has served three prison terms since 1987 for convictions of escape, trafficking in stolen property and burglary with assault.

The man was charged with DUI and corruption by threat against a public servant and transported to the Alachua County jail.

Florida law provides the most zealous of prosecutors an avenue to prosecute folks for DUI when riding a bike with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or greater. In Florida, the driver of a vehicle who drives with a blood alcohol content of 0.08 or more or while normal faculties are impaired can be found guilty of DUI. Not all states recognize a bicycle as a proper vehicle for prosecuting a DUI, however, Florida has a tradition which includes DUI convictions for bikes, golf carts, scooters, mopeds, motorized wheel chairs and even horses, yes, I said horses.

Continue reading " Gainesville, FL DUI Lawyer :: Homeless Man Arrested for Riding his Bike Intoxicated and Threatening an Officer " »

A 38-year-old Land O’Lakes woman and England native was charged with three counts of DUI with property damage Monday after her Dodge Durango allegedly struck a mailbox and a traffic warning sign. Florida Highway Patrol said the vehicle came to a stop amidst trees and shrubbery where it caught on fire.

According to Tampa Bay Online, the accident occurred around 3:35 p.m. The woman was supposedly drifting in and out of sleep when speaking to a trooper at the scene. She eventually was able to tell police she was traveling to pick up her 2- and 4-year-old children from day care.

She was released from the Land O’ Lakes Jail Tuesday morning after posting a $1,500 bond.

Under current Florida law, law enforcement is permitted to forcibly draw blood from a driver if the officer thinks that someone has endured serious bodily injury or when there is a fatality. It is not out of the ordinary to see a case where a DUI suspect declined a blood alcohol test and blood was drawn anyway. In cases like these, protests can be made to keep the results from being entered as evidence at trial on fourth Amendment search and seizure grounds and Fifth Amendment due process and rights against self-incrimination.

The drawing of blood is objectionable when the gap of time between the DUI arrest and the drawing of blood is far apart. Many courts hold police responsible for obtaining a search warrant before compulsive blood draw. The government has successfully argued in certain instances that the fleeting nature of blood alcohol evidence makes dire circumstances that can rationalize the confiscation of blood without a search warrant. The forcible blood draw is usually rendered invalid if other tests such as a breathalyzer test are available and have been or could have been carried out.

Continue reading " Land O’Lakes, Florida DUI Attorney :: Pasco County Woman Charged with DUI after Colliding Into Mailbox " »

Tampa police arrested a 48-year-old Hillsborough County firefighter Tuesday around 9:40 p.m. for DUI. According to MSNBC, the man was not working that evening.

Police stopped the man for allegedly driving his 2000 Ford Focus without its headlights on.
Police reports show the man’s breath-test readings for blood-alcohol content at 0.176 and 0.171.

The Tampa, FL man was arrested in 2008 for DUI. A spokesman for the Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office said he pleaded guilty and received 12 months probation, 50 hours of community service and his driver’s license was revoked for six months.

If you have been arrested for DUI and the arrest occurred within five years of a previous DUI conviction, then under Florida law your DUI will qualify as a second DUI within five years. This charge can carry a shocking five year revocation of your Florida driver’s license. If the DUI arrest is outside the five years of a previous DUI conviction, the law can seek punishments similar to a first time DUI with maximum jail time at nine months, fines between $1,000 and $2,000 and installation of an ignition interlock device for one year. After a second DUI conviction, a driver is not eligible for a hardship license following an administrative suspension.

If your DUI conviction falls within five years of a prior DUI conviction your penalties can include at least 10 days in jail with a maximum incarceration period of nine months, unless your BAC reading was beyond .15, which could elevate jail time to 12 months. Along with time served comes a probation period of 12 months and fines between $1,000 and $2,000, unless your BAC reading was beyond .15, which could raise fines to a maximum of $4,000. A mandatory ignition interlock device can be placed on your car for at least 12 months with a maximum time period of 24 months. While the driver’s license revocation period for a second DUI within five years is five years, you could be eligible for a hardship reinstatement hearing after one year.

Continue reading " Tampa, Florida DUI Attorney :: Hillsborough County Firefighter Arrested for Second DUI " »

A 23-year-old former Florida basketball player faces DUI charges after he was stopped by police for driving with his high beams on and a tag light out. He allegedly smelled of alcohol, appeared to have watery and bloodshot eyes and supposedly told police he had consumed two alcoholic drinks.

According to the Associated Press, authorities claim the former Gator failed sobriety tests, but blew 0.065 and 0.070 on the breath alcohol test. He allegedly told cops he was driving because his girlfriend was too intoxicated to get behind the wheel.

The Ex-Florida basketball player was released from jail Tuesday.

In the state of Florida, prosecutors can prove DUI through a blood-alcohol or breath-alcohol reading of 0.08 or higher or by determining the defendant’s normal faculties were impaired. A breath reading is the easiest way to prove DUI, however even through the refusal of a breath or blood test prosecutors can still advance with DUI charges on the theory that the defendant was impaired and just decided not to blow. When a breath test is under 0.08 prosecutors rely on officer testimony and observations to prove impairment, despite breath readings.

In close breath reading cases, the State of Florida is permitted to make the argument that at the time of driving .08 existed, and only due to the time difference on transporting the defendant to the police station/jail did the results drop below .08. It will be interesting to see which direction prosecutors move on this file.

Some people can show impairment after having just one or two alcoholic beverages and still have low breath-alcohol readings. Impairment means defects in motor skills such as fuzzy vision, garbled speech and poor balance. If a law enforcement officer believes that you cannot safely operate a vehicle or have been drinking or using drugs, you can still be arrested and charged with DUI despite a blow below 0.08.

Important thing to note: In Florida, you will always be arrested for DUI before you ever submit or even refuse a breath test.

Continue reading " Gainesville, Florida DUI Attorney :: Ex-Florida Basketball Player Blows under 0.08 and Still Charged with DUI " »

A 35-year-old New Port Richey, Florida woman was charged with DUI, driving with a suspended license and two counts of DUI property damage after rear-ending a school bus Thursday morning. Florida Highway Patrol reported she was also wanted for failure to appear in a theft case.

According to Tampa Bay Online, the accident happened at 9:22 a.m. when the bus was stopped at an intersection. The woman allegedly failed to stop and hit the rear of the bus.

The bus was carrying 25 students ages 9 to 12 and a 48-year-old bus driver. No one was injured.

The woman was being held at the Land O’Lakes jail with bail set at $1,513.

All DUI cases in Florida are considered criminal. Driving while your license is suspended for a Florida DUI is an additional criminal offense. Being convicted of this charge carries penalties of jail time and fines. Prior DWLS convictions can be a cause for enhanced consequences. A third conviction can become a felony under Florida law.

Most Florida DUI offenses are misdemeanors; however a DUI can become a felony if the DUI conviction is the third within the past 10 years, is the fourth or greater DUI conviction despite time frames or if the person charged with DUI causes serious bodily injury to another person.

Continue reading " New Port Richey, Florida DUI Attorney :: Pasco County Woman Charged with DUI after Crashing Into School Bus " »

A Hillsborough County Sherriff’s deputy and former St. Petersburg police officer was arrested late Sunday night for DUI with property damage after he rear-ended another vehicle. He was driving a 2004 Ford Explorer around 10 p.m. when he was arrested by Tampa police.

An officer said the 33-year-old deputy smelled strongly of alcohol and refused a Breathalyzer test. During field sobriety tests the man allegedly had problems following simple directions and his eyes were glassy and bloodshot.

He posted $500 bond and was released around 6 a.m.

A Hillsborough County Sherriff’s spokeswoman said the man has been placed on administrative leave without pay.

Florida prosecutors look at any DUI involving a collision or crash closely because enhanced penalties apply to those charges regardless if anyone was actually injured. The criminal charge of DUI with damage to another person or property is a first degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months in jail and a $1,000 fine. A first DUI with no damages can carry consequences of six months in jail and $500 fine.

It will be especially interesting to see how the State Attorney’s Office deals with a sworn law enforcement officer refusing the breath test.

DUI cases with property damage do have viable defenses despite the seriousness of the allegation. In this case the man was asked to step outside of his vehicle and perform field sobriety exercises. Inaccuracies with the results could be possible since the tests were performed after the accident, and the driver could have been on edge from the accident or even hurt, and not intoxicated. The man did refuse a breath test, but if he had provided a sample, the reading could have been imprecise if his airbags were deployed during the accident. Many experts believe that when airbags are deployed during an accident it can throw off the breath test machine, causing it to record higher and erroneous readings.

Continue reading " Tampa, Florida DUI Lawyer :: Hillsborough County Sherriff’s Deputy Arrested for DUI " »

The Marion County Sherriff’s Office arrested a 31-year-old Williston, Florida man Wednesday for grand theft, DUI and refusing to submit to a breath test.

The man was allegedly at a hotel with an escort and at the end of their get-together, stole her purse.

According to the Gainesville Sun, the 23-year-old escort flagged down an officer shortly before 2 a.m. at a Sleep Inn Motel. She told the officer that the Williston man was quite intoxicated, driving drunk and had stolen her purse, which was worth $75, had $241 in cash inside and contained some prescription medication.

The escort told the officer that after their pre-agreed 30 minute tryst was finished she went to the restroom. While she was in the bathroom, the man left the motel room with her purse.
The deputy followed the Williston man’s car and stopped him after he made a wide U-turn and ran over a curb.

The officer saw the purse in question in the man’s front seat and retrieved it.

The man allegedly failed a field sobriety exercise and was taken to the Marion County jail, where he refused to take a breath alcohol test.

Around noon on Wednesday the man contacted an Ocala Star-Banner reporter to make a statement. Apparently the man told the reporter he was not guilty of drinking, being with a woman or stealing anything.

Field sobriety tests are quite controversial in Florida DUI cases. The tests are designed to determine if a person is too incapacitated to operate a vehicle and to keep any dangerous activity off of the roadways. The intentions of these tests are good, however, many times the tests can be inaccurate. A few examples of field sobriety tests include writing the alphabet or reciting it backwards, counting fingers, touching your nose or standing on one leg.

The most controversial factor of field sobriety tests is that people not under the influence of alcohol or drugs can have trouble passing them mainly because there is no objective way to determine if someone is inhibited by drugs or alcohol, clumsy or even poorly-coordinated. Some illnesses can even affect coordination and balance. There are many scientific studies that question the reliability of these tests, but the bottom line is that they are subject to interpretation.

Continue reading " Williston, Florida DUI Attorney :: Levy County Man Accused of DUI and Stealing Escort’s Purse " »