In Florida, you can be in violation of the terms of your probation for many, many different reasons. Even something as simple as missing an appointment with your probation officer can lead to revocation of your probation and a sentence of years behind bars. While the state has the authority to find you in violation for a host of reasons, the burden during your probation hearing always falls on the prosecution to prove each element of the violation, not for you to prove that you didn’t violate. That means that, with the help of a skilled Tampa Bay probation violation lawyer, you have many ways ..read more

When you are facing an allegation that you violated your probation, every detail matters, as each detail may represent a piece of the puzzle that is your defense. Sometimes, the difference between defeating a violation case and going back to jail for several years may be something that seems very small to you. A skilled Tampa Bay probation violation lawyer, however, can spot those seemingly-small-but-actually-very-important details and utilize them to keep you from going back to jail. Look at the probation violation case of J.T., a Brevard County man, and you can see just much these small piec ..read more

Here in the State of Florida, probation is something that you need to take extremely seriously. There are so many ways you can be charged with a violation of probation and could have your probation revoked. Of course, there are also lots of situations where you can be wrongfully charged with a violation of probation. Just as much as you take your probation seriously, you should also take any charge of violation of probation with the utmost seriousness. That means reaching out to a knowledgeable Tampa Bay probation violation lawyer immediately. A song in a famous Mel Brooks musical comedy conta ..read more

Many times, your probation may carry with it certain conditions. One common condition is to require that you be at home during certain hours of the day. When you have conditions like that, you can expect curfew checks by your probation officer. If your probation officer makes a check and can’t find you, you may be charged with a technical violation of your probation and have your probation revoked. This, of course, is a very serious thing that should motivate you to obtain skilled legal counsel from an experienced Tampa Bay probation violation attorney. Just because your probation officer came ..read more

A violation of your probation in Florida can be an extremely serious matter. If you’re found in violation, that can mean your serving many more years in jail than you otherwise would have without the violation. Given that many years of your freedom can be on the line, it is exceptionally important that you take a violation of probation matter very, very seriously. Be sure you have a knowledgeable Pinellas County probation violation attorney on your side to protect your rights and your freedom. I.H. was someone who was out on probation but who did not stay out on probation. The state asserted m ..read more

It can be easy to confuse probation and community control in Florida, but they are actually quite different. A person under community control can only leave his/her residence to go to work, to attend class (if he/she is a student), to perform public service, to attend medical treatment appointments or other activities (such as church attendance or completion of errands that the officer approves in advance.) In other words, one can think of community control somewhat like “house arrest.” Probation and community control do have some things in common, however. One that the two are similar is that ..read more

Sometimes, even a seemingly minor crime can (depending on your circumstances) create big problems for you. That’s especially true if you’re on probation, where even a misdemeanor conviction may trigger a revocation of probation. The revocation of your probation could mean spending years in jail that you otherwise would have avoided. That’s why, when there’s a potential probation revocation on the line, don’t take risks. Instead, fight the charge aggressively and contact an experienced Tampa Bay criminal defense attorney about your case. For an example of how all this can work, there’s the case ..read more

If you or a loved one faces criminal charges, the first objective, obviously, is to attempt to secure a “not guilty” verdict. This is not, however, the only objective. Even after a “not guilty” verdict is out of reach, it is still important to have counsel on your side to ensure that the sentence the court hands down is not unjustly long. This was the case for a man accused of burglary and theft crimes, who successfully appealed a trial court’s decision to impose a statutory enhancement to his sentence. In Florida, the statutes allow the state to impose sentence “enhancements” on certain defen ..read more

From the Tampa Bay Times, an article about the different tactics the HCSO uses to combat crime in a neighborhood… Thanks in part to the help of a local community watch organizer, Tampa residents in the Clair-Mel area may at last be getting some relief. Hillsborough sheriff deputies, prodded by the neighborhood watch, sprung into action a few weeks ago. The deputies arrested dozens of men and women on warrants, drug violations and other offenses. To the community organizer it was long overdue. “A lot of folks don’t want to speak up because they’re afraid of what’s happening, of all the violence ..read more

Many Florida residences are often accused of crimes involving the illegal possession of controlled substances defined under Florida Statute section 893.13. Often people accused of these crimes are first time offenders or have often score non-state prison under the sentencing guidelines. Citizens scoring non-state prison are eligible for a term of probation that includes supervision by the Department of Corrections. A term of probation is often a very appealing offer from the State Attorney’s Office because in can used in place of jail or a prison offer or insure that the client is not a convic ..read more