What Are Enhancement Penalties In Florida?

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Enhancement penalties in Florida mean that every time you commit the same crime the penalties become more severe. For example, for anyone convicted of a second DUI, there may be mandatory jail time as opposed to a first time DUI conviction.

Does It Matter If A Girl Lied And Told Me That She Was 18 Years Old?

Unfortunately, it does not matter if a girl lied and told you that she was 18. Whether you are tricked or deceived, the courts still hold you accountable. If you were involved in a situation with a person who potentially may be a minor, it would actually be advantageous to see her driver’s license and really know how old she is because such crimes of statutory rape are just the fact that the young woman is underage. It doesn’t matter whether she consented or not based upon an old history of law that when you are underage, you really can’t give conscious consent or voluntary consent. Thereby, you could be in trouble even if you are 19 or 20 and she is 15 or 16, it could still be a very serious problem.

How Can Drug Possession Charges Affect My Life?

Drug possession charges affect your life in many ways. Employers do not like to hire people who are involved with drugs for a number of reasons. The first reason is they do not want to hire criminals and the second reason is that they don’t want to hire somebody that they feel may be using drugs while they are working for them. Certainly, this is the case in the transportation industry and also in other fields as well. Getting caught with drug possession can also be very serious because it depends on the type of drug and it depends on the amount. If it’s over a certain amount then the statute will claim that you were not just possessing a drug but actually trying to sell it and the penalties are very stiff for those types of cases.

How Does A Criminal Arrest Affect My Immigration Status?

When you get arrested, the immigration people want to know everything about that arrest. They want to know, even though in Florida you have the right to seal your records or expunge your records. Even if you have done that, immigration can require you to re-open your records and view them to see what the facts or circumstances are of that particular arrest and your immigration status can be denied. Another issue that comes up is if you are here on a visa, you could wind up committing a crime and then there is a good chance they might keep you in jail until immigration decides whether they are going to deport you or not. Those are some of the risks in dealing with immigration consequences.

What Happens If There Is An Outstanding Bench Warrant For Me?

In that case, what a bench warrant usually means is that you did not show up in court. It would be very important for you to contact a lawyer immediately to try to get that bench warrant cleared. Normally, unless it’s a very serious type of crime, it’s not like the police are out looking for you but the consequences can be very sad. For instance, let’s say there is a bench warrant for you for theft and you don’t show up in court. When you don’t show up in court and a bench warrant is issued, if by chance you are in a car and you get stopped with other people and the police officer identifies you and it turns out there is a bench warrant, they can take you right to jail. You can remain in jail until that bench warrant is cleared. Further what happens, as it happened in some cases where somebody was arrested in Broward County for a Dade County bench warrant and they were brought to Broward County jail, you may have to sit there several days until Dade County and Broward can deal with setting a bond.

Can I Be Sued In Civil Court For A Criminal Matter?

Yes, you can be sued in civil court for a criminal matter. As an example, you are arrested for a DUI, Driving Under The Influence, where you have caused damages or injured somebody. They may bring a civil action against you for money damages to compensate them for the injuries and their losses. Another example would be where somebody gets into a fight with somebody and punches them in the face and the person is arrested for what we call the battery. The injured person then can also bring an action against you in civil court for damages and injuries because of the fact that you punched them in the face. It is a fact that the same circumstances can be in criminal and civil court. Another example of duality is that you can have a case or the facts of the case and you can be charged both in state court and federal court because both state and federal courts are considered separate and independent sovereigns.

You can technically have a situation where somebody is charged in federal court under a bank statute for a bank robbery and then charged in Florida for a criminal matter in state court for robbery. Usually, the courts try to work out the jurisdictions and one will take it versus the other. In certain instances where they really want to put pressure on someone, they could actually take you to trial, find you not guilty in state court and then retry you under a different statute in federal court and find you guilty. That is one area where you don’t have double jeopardy. Double jeopardy means that you can’t be tried twice for the same situation because the statutes and the jurisdictions are different.

For more information on Enhancement Penalties In Florida, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (305) 903-8892 today.