Everyone has usually heard of “Double Jeopardy” at some point. Well, Florida courts have found that you can’t be tried and convicted twice for the same crime, and you can’t receive multiple punishments for the same crime. Gibbs v. State, 698 So.2d 1206 (Fla. 1997). The Florida Supreme Court has also found that you can’t be convicted of both trafficking cocaine AND possession of the SAME cocaine.  Gibbs v. State, 698 So.2d 1206 (Fla.1997); Trice v. State, 755 So.2d 808 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000).

Possible Defenses to Possession

4th Amendment Illegal Search and Seizure:  South Florida criminal defense attorney Scott Saul will work closely with you to gather all essential facts in order to develop the best possible defense and secure the most favorable outcome in your case. Every case is different. That is why it is important to hire a law firm with experience, and with attorneys who are accessible to you instead of speaking to legal secretaries and paralegals. We’ll sit down with you and look at all the facts and circumstances surrounding your arrest including the reason for the stop (illegal tints is a law enforcement all-time favorite for traffic stops), any searches that were conducted or other actions of law enforcement to determine whether or not the investigation was conducted lawfully. If the police don’t follow the law, the Constitution demands that any evidence recovered against you illegally (“fruit of the poisonous tree”) can’t be used against you in any subsequent case. Attorney Scott Saul will make sure the police and prosecutors play by the rules!

South Florida criminal defense attorney  Scott Saul is very experienced in examining lawful stops, and making innovative and creative arguments within the confines of the law and case precedent to get criminal charges dismissed before the case reaches a trial phase. After careful examination, if the initial stop or subsequent search in your case appears to be suspect,  South Florida criminal defense attorney  Scott Saul   will file a motion to suppress the evidence, or in some circumstances a motion to dismiss. These motions could be critical. Winning a Motion to Suppress under Florida’s Exclusionary Rule, or winning a Motion to Dismiss will result in preventing the prosecutors from moving forward with the case and being forced to enter a “Nolle Prosequi”, or the case being dismissed by the Judge. South Florida criminal defense attorney  is very experienced is experienced in both writing and arguing successful pre-trial motions.

The State Must Prove It!:  South Florida criminal defense attorney  Scott Saul  will closely scrutinize the details of your case to reveal a lack of evidence or any other weaknesses in the case and bringing them to the attention of the prosecutors and judge. Once the prosecutors understand that they have a weak case in terms of being able to prove both knowledge and control of the illegal substance.

As you can imagine, there is a whole host of other defenses that could be raised such as identity. The State’s reliance on a single latent print as the entirety of its evidence presented to prove identity is insufficient without evidence that the fingerprint could have been made only at the time the crime was committed. Jaramillo v. State, 417 So.2d 257 (Fla. 1982); Williams v. State, 308 So.2d 595 (Fla. 1st DCA 1975).

Whether or not the drugs were actually illegal (was it only “field tested” or sent to FDLE for additional testing to determine that it was in fact illegal drugs) could also play a significant part in your defense. Obviously if the drugs are not actually illegal narcotics, we may have the charges dropped against you entirely. Call us to talk about your case and let us determine any possible defenses you may have.