Z Law Firm

Being placed on probation can seem like a relief.  Avoiding jail time or prison time surely is a win.  But a probationary sentence is not the end to the case, it is only the beginning.  While on probation, there are terms and conditions that you will need to complete to successfully complete your term of probation.  These conditions typically include community service, classes, and treatment.  Additional conditions may preclude you from visiting certain places or certain behaviors.  If you violate any of these conditions, your Probation Officer will submit an Affidavit of Violation to the Judge seeking to either have a warrant or notice to appear issued.  If you are found in violation, the Court can sentence you up to the statutory maximum sentence that was available to the Court at the time you were originally sentenced.   Often, I have clients come to me feeling helpless and hopeless when they have been violated.  A few months ago, I had a client come into my office sure that he was

          On April 21, 2016, the Florida Supreme Court granted review of the Second District Court of Appeals decision in Queior v. State , 157 So.3d 370 (Fla. 2DCA 2015) on the issue of whether a Probation Officer’s testimony that a probationer has failed a drug test administered by the Probation Officer is competent, non-hearsay evidence for purposes of proving a violation of probation .                In Queior , the State sought to revoke the defendant’s probation of the basis of a positive drug test.   At the hearing on the violation of probation , the State offered testimony from the defendant’s probation officer that they personally administered the drug test and that the test read positive.   The defense objected to the testimony claiming that the State had failed to lay the proper predicate to establish the reliability of the field drug test.   The trial court revoked the defendant’s probation.           The defendant appealed, and the Second District Court of Appeal r