Florida Criminal Attorney Blog

Deputies Salisia Pascoe, Kiara Walker, and Roderick Lopez, were recently arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for crimes that relate to introducing contraband into the Broward County Jail and sexual misconduct with an inmate. All have been released after posting bond. Pascoe is facing two counts of using a cell phone to facilitate a felony, one count of introducing contraband into a detention facility, and one count of sexual misconduct with an inmate.

Walker and Lopez have each been charged with introduction of a cell phone into a detention facility, and official misconduct. The contraband in question allegedly included food, batteries that double as lighters, and cell phones. After a cell phone was discovered during a routine pat-down, inmates began filing reports, claiming that the deputies exchanged the items for money or to promote sexual relationships.

It should be noted that there is no expectation of privacy in a jail or prison facility. With the exception of attorney-client privileged communications over the phone or in person, every person in a jail or prison is subject to warrantless search and seizure.

For obvious reasons, especially those mentioned in this blog article, detention deputies and prison guards need to be able to search those present in their facilities.

Continue reading "BSO Detention Deputies Introduce Contraband into Fort Lauderdale, Florida Jail" »

Lisa Orshowitz, a Florida Highway Patrol Trooper, was arrested for DUI at the courthouse in St. Lucie, Florida. According to news reports, Orshowitz was on duty and operating her police cruiser while under the influence. Upon arriving at the St. Lucie County Courthouse, Orshowitz allegedly hit a curb, causing the tire on her patrol car to flatten.

She is then said to have used her police radio to call for a tow truck. However, fellow troopers who observed her at that time, claim she had blood shot eyes, slurred speech, and was having trouble keeping her balance. The news is also reporting that Orshowitz did not pass field sobriety tests that were conducted at the courthouse by other troopers.

According to her arrest report, Trooper Orshowitz told troopers that she took a sleeping pill around 1:00 a.m. because she had trouble sleeping.

If she is smart, Orshowitz will hire an intelligent defense lawyer who has experience litigating DUI's both as a prosecutor and as criminal defense attorney. The worst thing she could do is hire a criminal lawyer who either does not know how or is unwilling to fully investigate her case to determine if she has any viable defenses. This includes looking into possible motives by her coworkers to either exaggerate the circumstances of this case or outright lie.

Continue reading "State Trooper Arrested for DUI While on Duty in St. Lucie, Florida" »

In an unbelievable use of force, a deputy from the Palm Beach Sheriff's Office shot at a 17 year old boy driving the wrong way down Okeechobee Blvd. in Royal Palm Beach, Florida last night. The boy allegedly stole his mother's van and may have ignored police orders to stop, but this example of police conduct sounds utterly outrageous.

I hate drawing conclusions without knowing all the facts, but this case sounds like another example of overly aggressive police conduct. As a result, this poor kid and two other people are sitting in the hospital.

Given my professional experience dealing with internal affairs divisions, I will bet anything that that PBSO exonerates these cops and concludes that their use of lethal force was warranted. In fact, I bet the cops will claim that they had to shoot at the boy because he allegedly drove in their direction. I have heard that one before...

While the boy is accused of stealing his mother's van, an eye witness claims the boy did not start driving the wrong way down Okeechobee Blvd. until a police car made an aggressive maneuver in front of his vehicle.

In fact, this eye witness, Charles Humphrey, claims that the boy's van was stopped with a flat tire at the intersection of Okeechobee and Royal Palm Beach Blvd. when he saw he saw a police car swerve in front of the boy's van and come to a stop.

Humphrey says the boy then started up his van and took off, hitting the deputy's car in the process. The deputy then fired shots at the boy, causing the boy's van to crash into two other vehicles before coming to a stop.

"He was screaming, 'Sorry, I didn't mean it,'" Humphrey said.

While all the facts of this case are still undetermined, this case stinks of police abuse of force.

Continue reading "Abuse of Force? PBSO Deputy Shoots Boy in Palm Beach, Florida." »

Unbelievably, the Palm Beach Sheriff's Office released 25 year old Julio Gomez from jail after more than five months in jail. Deputies now admit that they arrested the wrong man on first degree murder charges.

This case is profoundly shocking since cops failed to match this Julio Gomez's birthday to the real Julio Gomez they were seeking. Why did it take five months to figure this out??

The truth is that this Julio Gomez is probably a poor Mexican migrant worker living in Palm Beach County and is a person without the social or financial means to make his voice heard.

I am extremely offended by this case. I bet you if Mr. Gomez was a celebrity, a Palm Beach socialite, or someone with money, he wouldn't have even been arrested and if he was, he wouldn't have languished in jail for over five months.

Julio Gomez deserves compensation and he deserves justice. According to news reports, Gomez was released after cops realized his birth date did not match that of their suspect. His claims of innocence were also bolstered by affidavits from friends who said he consistently worked and lived with them.

Just because Gomez is likely a poor farm worker, does not mean he deserves to rot in prison. This man was wronged by law enforcement and it should be set right.

I hope Mr. Gomez stands up for himself and hires a lawyer who can fight for his rights.

Hopefully he will heal from this experience and get on with the rest of his life.

Alexander Griss, a 26 year old former police officer, was found guilty of Reckless Driving today in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Griss was on trial for vehicular homicide for allegedly killing a pedestrian with his police cruiser.

According to internal affairs reports, Griss allegedly had a history of speeding in his police vehicle, both on and off duty. In the month before this accident, Griss was said to have driven his police car in excess of 90 mph over 90 times. In fact, investigators claim to have found 15 instances where he drove in excess of 110 mph. This includes one instance on a stretch of A1A where the speed limit is only 30-35 mph, where he drove in excess of 114 mph.

However, the jury never heard this evidence.

Instead, the heard about the victim's problems with drug and alcohol abuse. According to Griss' defense lawyer, the victim supposedly staggered out onto Federal Highway while high on crack cocaine and under the influence of "copious amounts" of alcohol.

Continue reading "Alexander Griss Found Guilty of Reckless Driving in Fort Lauderdale, Florida" »

Officer Justin Krashefski, 27, of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, was relieved of duty Wednesday after detectives searched his patrol car and found three oxycodone pills, a razor blade, and a straw. He is now facing criminal prosecution for Possession of Oxycodone, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Solicitation to Commit a Felony.

This search was conducted after a confidential informant allegedly told investigators that Ofc. Krashefski had contacting him about buying pills.

Acting on the tip, investigators then set up a sting operation. The informant was given five pills and was sent to meet Ofc. Krashefski. While investigators surveilled the meeting, Krashefski was allegedly seen buying the pills for $20.

Ofc. Krashefski has since been arrested and was being held with a bond of $4,500.00. Even though, he is facing a maximum of 11 years in prison, he will likely get nothing worse than probation because he is a first time offender.

It is unknown whether or not Krashefski has retained a criminal defense lawyer to represent him in this case.

Krashefski may also be a good candidate for drug court. If so, he will have to subject himself to a drug evaluation, any recommended treatment, including detox and aftercare, as well as regular drug testing. If he is able to successfully complete the program, Krasehfski's case will be dismissed by the court.

Continue reading "Fort Lauderdale Cop Arrested for Drug Possession" »