Florida Criminal Attorney Blog

A 19-year-old man was arrested in Coral Springs, Florida last night sexual assault and attempted burglary. He is believed to have been booked at the Broward County Jail, where he will await an initial hearing. Neither his nor the victim's name has yet been released, perhaps because the crime just occurred last night. It is not yet known whether the defendant has a criminal defense attorney.

The allegations come in connection to an incident last night where the suspect entered a home in the 2300 block of Northwest 95th Avenue at around 8 p.m. in hopes of committing a robbery, according to authorities. Since the weather was cooler last night, said police, many people had their windows or doors open, which presented an opportunity to would-be burglars. There were no signs of forced entry in the case.

"This is a very quiet neighborhood, where most everybody knows each other," said Sgt. Dave Kirkland, a Coral Springs Police spokesman. "At this time, we don't know why this person chose this house." The house is currently believed to have been targeted at random.

Authorities believe that the defendant entered the home thinking that it was unoccupied at the time, with the sole intentions of committing a robbery. It is not known if he was armed at the time of the break-in. However, the home was not unoccupied: a 25-year-old woman was in the home with her newborn baby at the time of the break-in.

Continue reading "19 Year Old Arrested in Coral Springs, Florida for Sexual Assault and Attempted Burglary" »

Jeffrey London, who was first arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on sexual battery and other sex offenses last January, now faces a total of 15 counts after two other victims came forward. London is being held without bail bond at Broward County Jail for his crimes. It remains unknown whether he has retained a private criminal defense attorney in Fort Lauderdale.

Both of the subsequent testimonies are, like the first, from London's former wards. London was a well-known philanthropist in his community and had taken in 15 underprivileged boys over the years. One anonymous donor had even purchased him a house in Coral Springs in which to live with his wards.

"You've got to put out. You've got to be there for them. Love them. Discipline them. Stand by them," he told local media when he was interviewed for his philanthropic work. "You can be the link in a child's life that holds that life together... If you can influence one child, turn one child, from the negative to positive, then you can influence a whole generation."

Continue reading "Jeffrey London Faces More Sex Abuse Charges in Ft. Lauderdale, FL" »

Jeffery London was arrested for sexual battery last week. He is being held without bail bond at Broward County Jail. It is unclear whether or not he has hired a criminal defense attorney to represent him in this case.

According to news reports, the sexual battery charges come after an 18-year-old who had lived with London told a friend from church that London had sexually abused him for the 10 years that he lived with the youth pastor.

The boy alleged that London rewarded him with money or video games for sexual acts. The boy's mother had left him in London's care when he was only 8 years old due to financial hardship.

London, 48, was arrested at his home when he returned from the Bible Church of God in Fort Lauderdale where he had just conducted a bible study there.

London has a history of working at religious and youth organizations. He served as the dean of students at the Eagle Charter Academy in Lauderdale Lakes for 6 years, from 2003-2009. Investigators on the case said that London may have also worked at other local schools and churches. There is no record of London having worked with Broward county schools.

London also was a motivational speaker, anti-drug activist, and skit and playwright for children. In fact, he was known in Fort Lauderdale for taking in underprivileged boys.

Continue reading "Jeffery London Arrested for Sexual Battery in Fort Lauderdale, Florida" »

Carissa Rangel was arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for lewd or lascivious battery, lewd or lascivious conduct, lewd and lascivious molestation, and violation of probation. A judge set her bail bond on the lewd or lascivious battery charges at $25,000, but denied her bond on the probation violation. Rangel was also ordered not to contact the 13-year-old. No word yet on whether or not she has retained a private criminal defense attorney.

According to a police affidavit, the alleged victim, a 13 year old boy, told authorities that he and Rangel went outside his family's apartment, where she kissed and fondled him, exposed herself and urinated on the ground. They then went inside, where Rangel told the boy to lock the door to his bedroom before the two engaged in unprotected sex.

The mother of the teen said she heard moans coming from his bedroom at about 1:15 a.m. and that when she checked on her son, she caught the two having sex in his room. She also says that when she caught Rangel, Rangel told her that she was "getting it done right."

The mother kicked Rangel out of her home and immediately notified authorities.

The teen told police that he had had unprotected sex twice before with Rangel in the City of Hobe Sound. While Rangel is not a stranger to the victim's family, her relationship with the family is unknown.

While lewd or lascivious battery cases between women and teenage boys are uncommon, they are prosecuted just the same as cases where a grown man is the alleged offender.

Contrary to most people's misconception, the "victim's" consent and willful participation in the sex act is not a defense to lewd or lascivious battery. In fact, that is main difference between sexual battery (aka "rape") and lewd or lascivious battery.

Continue reading "Carissa Rangel Arrested in Fort Lauderdale for Sex with Minor" »

Joe Paterno is dead at 85. Penn State sex scandal coach died this morning after succumbing to lung cancer. According to news reports, Joe Paterno was diagnosed with lung cancer in mid-November. The diagnosis came after a follow-up visit to his doctor's office for a bronchial illness.

There is no doubt in my mind that the stress imposed by the Penn State sex scandal played a significant role in Joe Paterno's death.

Obviously I don't say this directly. Rather, I am sure his immune system took a major dip while under the mental and emotional stress of the sex scandal. At his age, it is no surprise that an underlying illness, likely on the brink of explosion, broke the surface following a major emotionally stressful event.

From a criminal law perspective, this means that Joe Paterno will not be able to testify in any trials. At this early stage in the case, it is unlikely that he has even given a sworn statement in the form of a discovery deposition.

While I am not a Pennsylvania lawyer, the Florida Rules of Evidence do permit the perpetuation of a deceased witness's sworn statement under very limited circumstances.

If this case were to go to trial and those circumstances were met, a transcript or a video (if one was made) of the statement would simply be admitted into evidence and presented to the jury.

Continue reading "JOE PATERNO DEAD: How it Effects the Criminal Case" »

I can't believe what I have heard. In an interview with Bob Costas, Jerry Sandusky admitted to showering with children and "horsing around" with them. When asked out right if he found children sexually attractive, Sandusky provided a delayed response instead of an unequivocal "no."

Any normal person falsely accused of a child sex offense would respond with an immediate and and unequivocal answer in the negative.

Even more surprising were the moronic statements made by his lawyer, Joe Amendola, who described Sandusky as a big kid and a jock, stating that "Showering with kids does not make him guilty."

As a criminal defense lawyer, all I did was cringe as I listened to these moronic interviews.

In the world of criminal defense, making statements like these at this stage of the case is akin to a wide receiver intercepting a pass and running the wrong way down the field... on purpose.

It was major folly to reveal their strategic position because there is no way to know what prosecutors can prove and cannot prove this early on in the case.

Continue reading "Jerry Sandusky's Defense is Moronic" »

This is the third and final segment on our series concerning the arrest of Jerry Sandusky for child sex abuse charges. Specifically, this series was intended to address the rapid conclusion so many have drawn about whether or not he is guilty.

As a criminal defense attorney, my role is not to judge guilt or innocence. But as a criminal justice attorney, I am interested in understanding why and how people make the decisions they do when reading about criminal conduct in the media.

In this final segment, I will discuss how criminal defense lawyers can best represent Jerry Sandusky in the ensuing legal battle that he must engage in. Guilty, innocent, or otherwise, Jerry Sandusky has the right to counsel and he has no choice but to invest all he can in his freedom.

This section will address those issues.

For good reason, criminal cases are not litigated in the media or in the public eye. Rather, they are litigated in courtrooms where allegations must be proven using verified evidence (such as forensic evidence and eye witness testimony) and not hearsay, speculation, or other evidence that either waivers or vacillates in its meaning.

Jerry Sandusky needs to hire the best legal team possible. At this stage, he needs to invest everything he has in keeping himself out of prison.

Preserving his wealth or his retirement is not an option at this point. If his case is not handled correctly, he will have no chance at a free life.

Continue reading "Part 3: Why Americans Think Jerry Sandusky is Guilty (Penn State Sex Abuse Scandal)" »

As is already well known, Jerry Sandusky was arrested for child sex abuse charges. In Part 1 of this series, I shared my impressions as a criminal defense lawyer in response to the overwhelming belief that most people have concerning Jerry Sandusky's guilt in this matter.

In this section, I will discuss how we, as people, draw such conclusions in one case, but not in another. I think it is an interesting subject and certainly is one of great importance to anyone involved in the criminal justice system.

Basically, a person will ask two fundamental questions before they make a decision. First, is the claim plausible? Second, can the claim be verified?

In between these two points lies a distance of leeway. The amount of leeway afforded will vary from instance to instance. A person's tolerance for leeway will also vary depending on the nature of the claim and the magnitude of it is scope.

The more improbable a claim is, the less leeway afforded and the more verification required.

Continue reading "Part 2: Why Americans Think Jerry Sandusky is Guilty (Penn State Sex Abuse Scandal)" »

Jerry Sandusky was recently arrested, as many of you already know, for alleged child sex abuse. To make matters worse, two Penn State school administrators are also charged with covering up a report of child sexual assault that was allegedly witnessed in the showers. Since his arrest, Sandusky has been released from jail on a $100,000 bail bond.

For those who do not follow college football, Jerry Sandusky is the former defensive coach for Penn State. In fact, he was so well regarded that many touted him as the eventual successor of Joe Paterno, Penn State's head coach.

But Joe Paterno doesn't have clean hands in this scandal either. News media is reporting that he was made aware of the sexual assault in the showers too. He may have reported it to school officials, but it appears from the news that he failed to report it to police.

Penn State's athletic director, Tim Curley, 57, and vice president for finance and business Gary Schultz, 62, were charged with perjury.

At the present time, Sandusky is facing seven counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, eight counts of corruption of minors, eight counts of endangering the welfare of a child and seven counts of indecent assault.

From my perspective as a criminal defense lawyer, I believe this case has all the makings of a presumed guilty child sex case. Meaning, most normal people who hear the allegations will immediately presume Sandusky is guilty without ever reviewing a single shred of evidence.

Continue reading "Why Americans Think Jerry Sandusky is Guilty (Penn State Sex Abuse Scandal)" »

Dr. Edwin Harvey Hamilton, was arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for sexual battery last Wednesday. Surprisingly, the alleged victim is a patient of Dr. Hamilton who claims that the sexual battery occurred during a visit to his general practice office. According to the alleged victim, Dr. Hamilton inappropriately touched her breasts and sex organs without her consent.

In a bizarre twist of facts, the patient's sister was able to make an audio recording of the struggle between Dr. Hamilton and the patient after the patient's cell phone mysteriously redialed the last called number - which just to happened to be her sister's number. According to police, the audio recording has been entered into evidence.

After spending a night in jail, Dr. Hamilton was released on a $5,000.00 bond.

This case has "set-up" written all over it... at the very least, it begs a much deeper investigation by criminal defense lawyers.

First of all, I would want to know more about the circumstances that led to the alleged sexual battery. In other words, was the alleged touching of a sexual nature or was it done as part of the medical examination Dr. Hamilton was performing?

Why was the patient there to see the doctor in the first place? Was it a routine examination or one because she was ill or had some other medical problem? Specifically, was palpitation of the breasts and an inspection of the genitals medically warranted or appropriate?

Continue reading "Dr. Edwin Hamilton Arrested for Sexual Battery in Fort Lauderdale, Florida" »

Jeffrey Brown, has been arrested for sexual battery in Coral Gables, Florida. For those who do not know who he is, Jeffrey Brown is a defensive tackle for the University of Miami Hurricanes.

Brown turned himself in to the Coral Gables Police Department and was later transported to the Miami-Dade County Jail. He is being held on $10,000 bond.

According to police, Brown admitted to having sex with a severely intoxicated female student in a campus dorm room. As a result of his arrest, the university has suspended Brown from its football program indefinitely.

According to the alleged victim, Brown helped her to her room under the pretense that he was there to help her since she was feeling ill from drinking too much. At some point thereafter, Brown allegedly forced sex onto the victim even though she told him to stop many times. The victim further claims that she was unable to fight Brown off due to her own drunkenness and the fact that he is 6'3" and weighs 295 pounds.

As a criminal defense lawyer, I can tell you that these drunken sexual battery cases are difficult for prosecutors to prove. Many cases of these types result in guilty verdicts for lesser offenses.

Continue reading "Jeffrey Brown Arrested for Sexual Battery in Coral Gables, Florida" »