DUI Video Saves the Day


A Florida DUI case was reversed following the Second District Court of Appeals conclusion that the circuit court had applied the wrong standard of review.



A Sarasota man was arrested and charged with DUI.  Law enforcement made the arrest for DUI based on their assessment of the man’s level of intoxication during the traffic stop.  The officer testified that the defendant smelled of alcohol, was slurring his words, and had bloodshot and glassy eyes.  The defendant admitted to have been drinking, but advised that he had only one beer and one shot.



A Motion to Suppress was filed on the basis that law enforcement did not have probable cause to make the arrest for DUI.  The key piece of evidence was a dash camera that recorded the encounter.  The county court judge agreed that the video contained no indication that the defendant had slurred speech or was impaired and granted the motion.  The State appealed to the circuit court which reversed the lower court’s order after re-reviewing the evidence.



The Second District Court of Appeal reversed concluding that the circuit court applied an erroneous standard of review as they went beyond determining whether the video on which the county court relied presented competent, substantial evidence to support their conclusions.  It was improper for the circuit court to reweigh the evidence and choose to believe a state witness which the county court chose not to believe. Malone v. State, Case No. 2D15-4460 (Fla. 2nd DCA July 8, 2016).
Location: 501 N Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL 32801, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Do I Need to Hire a Criminal Defense Attorney

Do I Need to Hire a Criminal Defense Attorney If you have been arrested or given a Notice to Appear in Court, it is a wise decision to seek the advice and counsel of an experienced criminal defense attorney .   Although there is no guarantee that the hiring of a lawyer will result in the dismissal of your case, a criminal lawyer can certainly have an impact on the outcome of the case and can guide you through the process to insure that your rights are protected. In criminal law, you can be charged with either a felony or misdemeanor offense.   A misdemeanor offense is one that is punishable by up to one-year in the county jail.   Although less serious than a felony offense, a misdemeanor can still have a major impact on your life.   Hiring the right criminal lawyer for your case might seem like an arduous task.   But taking the time to find the best lawyer can make a big difference.   When looking for a criminal defense lawyer, questions you should ask include:  how long have you
Read more

How Do I Find the Right Seminole County Criminal Defense Attorney

An arrest is not something that anyone ever plans for.  But when it happens, decisions must be made quickly.  Your first order of business is contacting a bondsman to get yourself out of jail.  Once this accomplished, your next order of business is finding a Seminole County Criminal Defense Lawyer to defend you.  Finding the best lawyer can make the difference in the outcome of your case.   First, find a lawyer that you can trust and communicate with.  Too often, I end up handling cases where clients come to me after finding that the lawyer they initially hired never returned their calls.  Communication is important.  Next, find a lawyer who focuses their practice on criminal defense.  Law Firms that tell you that they can help you with your criminal case, personal injury case, and family law case will not be a good fit.  When your liberties are at stake, you do not want a lawyer who primarily handles divorces and car accident cases sitting next to you in court.  Be sure that your lawy
Read more

Violation of Probation

          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
Read more