Florida Criminal Attorney Blog

Summer Christlieb, 33, was recently arrested in Davie, Florida for DUI and child neglect. According to news reports, Summer Christlieb admitted to "drinking a little wine" at her son's birthday party before allegedly piling 5 kids into the back of her car for the ride home. Police allege that none of the children were wearing seat belts.

Fortunately, no one was hurt when Christlieb crashed her car.

As a criminal defense lawyer, I can tell you that a lot more information is needed before any concrete conclusions can be drawn about this case. Just because someone has a glass of wine and gets behind of the wheel of a car, does not mean they were drunk.

In fact, Christlieb may have been wrongly arrested.

While many people personally believe it is wrong to have a drink and then drive, the law does not have such restrictions. Rather, the offense of DUI only occurs when a person drives (or is in actual physical control of a vehicle) while impaired by alcohol, drugs, or other chemical substances.

In other words, the essence of DUI is not drinking alcohol, but rather being impaired by it.

For that reason, there must be proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the driver in question was impaired. If he/she was not impaired, then they are not guilty of DUI under Florida law.

Continue reading "Summer Christlieb Arrested in Davie, Florida for DUI and Child Neglect" »

Lee Willie DeJesus, 23, was arrested in Miami, Florida for allegedly beating up his 2 year old son, Willy Brown. According to news reports, DeJesus has a criminal history, but it is limited to misdemeanor possession of marijuana. It is unknown if the drug played a role in this case.

Regardless, a magistrate judge set bond at $57,000.

Police were initially called to DeJesus' apartment when the boy became unresponsive. At first, DeJesus tried to blame the baby sitter. However, after being taken back to the police station, it alleged that investigators read DeJesus his Miranda rights, which he waived, and admitted to punching the toddler at least fifteen times.

At this point in time, it is unknown whether or not DeJesus has retained a private defense lawyer is intending on applying for representation by the Public Defender's Office.

Continue reading "Lee Willie DeJesus Arrested for Child Abuse in Miami, Florida" »

Ian Arnold, age 22 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has been arrested for aggravated child abuse after allegedly striking and shaking a one year old baby boy to death. Arnold supposedly admitted to pulling the child away from a computer causing hand shaped bruises on both sides of the boy's body and injuries to the boy's brain.

According to police, Arnold called 911 and reported that the "child was breathing funny and his eyes were not moving."

To make matters worse for Arnold, he is also facing a violation of probation. As it turns out, Arnold was on felony probation at the time of this incident for a prior charge of Aggravated Assault.

For these offenses, Arnold is facing a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison on the Aggravated Child Abuse and 5 years in prison for the violation of probation, less any time already served.

However, this may change if prosecutors decide to charge Arnold with murder. According to the Sun-Sentinel, the Broward County Medical Examiner's Office is conducting an autopsy which prosecutors will review when making this determination.

Insofar as a legal defense is concerned, it sounds like this case has a lot of aggravating factors. However, the main piece of evidence that ties this case together are Arnold's statements to police.

Defense lawyers will need to determine how these statements were taken. Were they taken during custodial interrogation? Did Arnold waive his right to remain silent or his right to a lawyer?

Continue reading "Ian Arnold Charged with Aggravated Child Abuse in Fort Lauderdale, Florida" »