Lakeland Criminal Defense Lawyers

I am often asked one of several questions by people with no understanding of what I do: Why do you defend criminals? How can you do it when you know they are guilty? Don't you feel bad winning when you know you got them off on a technicality? I am very proud of what I do.  I work each and every day to protect people and their Constitutional rights.  I protect them from an overzealous government.  I protect innocent people and people who have made mistakes.  And make no doubt about it, everyone makes mistakes.   I have always been a public servant. I worked for over ten years as a public school teacher.  There did come a point however, when I decided I needed to do more.  I saw kids that I could not reach. They were not going to do their homework for me or learn from me when they weren't safe at home (think back to Maslow's hierarchy of needs ).   When I started law school , I immediately became an intern at the Public Defender's Office .  

Offense Suspension Murder resulting from operation of a motor vehicle; DUI manslaughter where conviction represents a subsequent DUI-related conviction ; 4 th DUI (See section 322.26, Florida Statutes) Permanent revocation Any felony where a motor vehicle is used; failure to stop and render aid when required in a crash resulting in death or personal injury; perjury to the Department under 322.26; conviction of 3 charges of reckless driving within 3 months; conviction of lewdness or prostitution with the use of a motor vehicle; conviction of any offense where there is the use of a motor vehicle and the Court feels it warrants the revocation of driving; fraudulent insurance claims (See section 322.26, Florida Statutes) Indefinite revocation DUI ; Refusal (See section 316.193, Florida Statutes) Anywhere from 6 months to permanent revocation Fleeing/Eluding law enforcement (See section 316.1935,

Our founding fathers very specifically crafted the protection against self-incrimination located in the Fifth Amendment with a purpose.  The protection dates back to English common law when the courts sought to prohibit the use of inquisitorial methods of interrogation.  By the late 1700's, Parliament had begun to recognize the presumption of innocence.  Of course, these ideas were carried over into colonial America and adopted into our Constitution. Through decisions of our Supreme Court, the protection of the Fifth has been well grounded and preserved.  Justice Frankfurter, in Ullmann v. United States , 35 U.S. 422 (1956), stated: "This constitutional protection must not be interpreted in a hostile...spirit. Too many, even those who should be better advised, view this privilege as a shelter for wrongdoers. They too readily assume that those who invoke it are either guilty of crime or commit perjury in claiming the privilege. Such a view does scant honor to the patriots