Florida DUI Traffic Ticket Lawyer Blog

An early morning police chase resulted in the arrest of 28-year old Albert Jarell Thompson Jr. Tuesday. The chase took place in Riverside Heights and ended when the car hit a house and Thompson was arrested running from the wreckage. The Tampa man was charged with fleeing the traffic stop, battery on a law enforcement officer, driving without a license, reckless driving and leaving the scene of a crash, according to booking records. (read more)

Officers tried to pull Thompson over on Columbus Drive because they felt he was driving recklessly. When Thompson failed to pull over the officer called for back-up. Police tried to trap him at Highland and Amelia avenues. Thompson slammed his Buick into one of the police cars, pushed it out of the way and then fled. After spotting Thompson’s car in the front yard of a Ridgewood Ave. home, Thompson was spotting fleeing on foot when officers used a stun gun to halt the man and arrested him.

If you or a loved one has been ticketed for a traffic offense anywhere in the state of Florida, please do not hesitate to contact David Haenel at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at fightyourticket.com to discuss the matter.

Starting Tuesday Florida law enforcement officers can pull cars over and issue traffic tickets if the driver of the car or the front-seat passenger is not wearing a seat belt and according to state troopers they are planning strict enforcement of the new law. FHP said troopers will write a $30 ticket for anyone not wearing their seat belt. Florida is now the 28th state to have a primary seat belt law. (read more)

While law enforcement is cheering the change as a way to keep Florida drivers safe, the ACLU is opposed to the law. The ACLU feels the best way to get people to wear seat belts is not to make it a crime and bring law enforcement into the process but when Florida Governor Charlie Crist signed the law on May 6 the ACLU’s battle to keep the potential law off the books died. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration applauded Crist’s decision to sign the law saying it will save 100 lives per year in Florida.

If you or a loved one has been ticketed anywhere in Florida under the new seat belt law, please do not hesitate to contact Stephen Higgins at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at fightyourticket.com to discuss the matter.

Manatee County Sheriffs have charged a Sarasota woman with child neglect after she was charged with DUI with her child in the car. According to the sheriffs Dannis Barrows had a blood alcohol level of .216, which is nearly three times the legal limit in Florida. (read more)

Deputies responded to a citizen’s call reporting a reckless driver Wednesday night at 11:45 p.m. The officers said they gave Barrows the opportunity to call family or friends to take her and her child home but she told deputies she was not intoxicated and never made a call after they waited for 45 minutes for someone to show up.

If you or a loved one has been arrested for a DUI in Bradenton, Sarasota or anywhere in Manatee County, please do not hesitate to contact Darren Finebloom at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at fightyourbradentondui.com to discuss the matter.

The DUI case versus WTVT Ch. 13 morning anchor Russell Rhodes got a little more difficult for Tampa prosecutors on Thursday when a Hillsborough judge threw out the blood evidence. The judge ruled that Rhodes gave consent for the blood test while under duress and was not informed by the officer that he was not required to sign the form. (read more)

County Judge Cheryl Thomas granted the defense motion to suppress the blood sample agreeing consent was not given voluntarily. Rhodes was arrested at Channelside and tests showed a blood-alcohol level of 0.178, which is twice the limit of what Florida considers impaired. Rhodes was not given a breath test. Hillsborough sheriff's Deputy Shawn Morrey testified that he informed Rhodes of his options however that testimony was at odds with statements the deputy made under oath in March.

If you or a loved one has been arrested for a DUI in Tampa or Hillsborough County, please do not hesitate to contact Stephen Higgins at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at fightyourtampadui.com to discuss the matter.

Tampa Police reportedly charged Cleveland Cavalier guard Tarence Kinsey with DUI on Tuesday. According to reports officer Anthony Portman saw Kinsey driving erratically and speeding in his Bentley. The NBA player failed a field sobriety test but refused to take a Breathalyzer. He was arrested and bail was set at $500. (read more)

Kinsey was in his first year with the Cavaliers and played in 50 games for the Eastern Conference Champions. Kinsey played collegiately at the University of South Carolina and spent the first two years of his career as a member of the Memphis Grizzlies. Kinsey’s average points per game has decreased every year since posting 7.7 per game in his rookie season.

If you or a loved one has been arrested for a DUI, please do not hesitate to contact Stephen Higgins at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at fightyourtampadui.com to discuss the matter.

Teenager Jordan Vasquez recently gave a statement to the State Attorney’s Office about a fatal hit-and-run crash in which she claims the officer made her an offer and an internal Tampa Police Department document says “they are awaiting a response”. (read more). Nobody involved is speaking to the media about the situation involving the death of Melissa Sjostrom who was struck and killed by a vehicle walking across South Hyde Park Avenue near Azeele Street.

Tampa Police have been searching for evidence to implicate Vasquez in the hit-and-run and have searched her home and seized computers and phones hoping to uncover evidence against the teen who was 16 at the time of the accident. The teen has only been issued a citation for civil careless-driving but that was dismissed when the detective who issued the citation failed to show up in court to testify.

If you or a loved one has a traffic ticket in Tampa or Hillsborough County that you need help with, please contact Stephen Higgins at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at fightyourtampadui.com.

The breath test machines police use to arrest suspected DUI drivers are under fire and a recent ruling in Sarasota, Florida is just fanning the flames. Two judges threw out results in 72 cases on Tuesday based on technical aspects of how the Intoxilyzer 8000 works. When prosecutors were unable to answer defense attorney questions about the machines, judges threw the test results out. (read more)

For nearly four years Finebloom & Haenel along with several other attorneys in Sarasota and Manatee Counties have tried to determine the reliability of the Intoxilyzer 8000. Throughout their research they discovered numerous problems with the machine. Based on the problems Finebloom & Haenel requested that the State of Florida turn over the source code. A review of the code by Defense experts would allow them to determine if the machine is reliable. The State fought the Defense requests arguing that there has been no evidence presented that the machine was unreliable. The Court in Sarasota & Manatee disagreed and ordered the production of the code to Defense experts for their review. The State then argued that they did not have the code in their possession. As a result, Finebloom & Haenel requested the Court in Sarasota and Manatee Counties to issue a subpoena directly to CMI the manufacturer of the Intoxilyzer 8000.

The Judges in Sarasota and Manatee Counties did issue that subpoena and CMI for the last two years has refused to release the code to Defense experts based on the fact it is a trade secret. This argument fails to hold water and now the prosecution of almost 450 cases has been compromised. In 72 of the cases the Court ruled that the machine was not an approved machine; therefore, if the Defendant was read the implied consent warning the test will be excluded from any trial. DUI's in Florida are governed by the Implied Consent law. If you look at the bottom of your license it specifically states that the operation of a motor vehicle constitutes consent to any sobriety test required by law. However, the law also states that you only consent to an approved machine and the Courts have ruled in those 72 cases the machine is not approved therefore the breath test results are not admissible into evidence.

In total, 450 cases weigh in the balance. This latest ruling goes one step further then the court's previous rulings. The Courts in Sarasota and Manatee formerly ruled that the State would have to provide expert testimony in order to have the Defendant's breath test results admitted into evidence. The State would have to show that the machine is scientifically reliable. Prior to these rulings, the State simply had to show that the machine was tested on a monthly and yearly basis and complied with the rules.

If you or a loved one has been arrested for a DUI even if the arrest was not due to the Intoxilyzer 5000 or 8000, please do not hesitate to contact Darren FInebloom at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at www.fightyourdui.com to discuss the matter.

Last week 32 men and women graduated in Sarasota but not from any local college. The graduates celebrated finishing Sarasota’s DUI Court, which is a four-phase program including comprehensive alcohol and drug treatment, close supervision and full accountability. (read more)

The mission of the yearlong program is to reduce the number of repeat offenders by giving DUI drivers alternative treatments. The Sarasota DUI Court was started last year and spearheaded by Judge David Denkin. It is the third one in Florida but a fourth is scheduled to open up in Manatee County.

As this article shows, if you have received a DUI there are many options you can be offered. If you or any loved one needs help with a DUI in Sarasota, please contact David Haenel at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at www.fightyourdui.com to discuss the matter.

A traffic crash on N. Dale Mabry in Tampa led to the arrest of local Bay 9 News reporter Jason Lanning just before midnight Wednesday. Lanning was charged with driving under the influence by Tampa police and released after posting bail. (read more)

According to the arrest report, Lanning rear ended a car and then continued on for several block striking road signs along the way. Lanning was given two breath tests and registered .044 and .047, both below what is considered to be impaired by law enforcement. Police then conducted field sobriety tests and arrested Lanning. An employee at Tampa’s Bay 9 News since 2003, Lanning was said to have alcohol on his breath and glassy and bloodshot eyes according to the police.

If you or any loved one needs help in fighting your Tampa DUI, please contact Stephen Higgins at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at www.fightyourtampadui.com to discuss the matter.

James Hasley, Sr., a 54-year old Manatee County resident, was arrested and charged with leaving the scene of an accident last week. According to the Florida Highway Patrol a woman in the back of Hasley’s pick-up truck was thrown from the bed when Hasley swerved after she pounded on the roof of his cab (read more). The woman was taken to a St. Petersburg hospital by helicopter with serious injuries.

Hasley told troopers he saw the woman fall out of the truck and dropped of his son to check on her while he drove home. He said he left the scene due to the fact he was worried he would have been charged with a DUI had he called the police once the women was injured. Hasley was released on $5,000.00 bail.

If you or anyone in your family needs help with a DUI in Bradenton or has a traffic ticket anywhere in Manatee County, please contact David Haenel at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at www.fightyourbradentondui.com to discuss the matter.

Jairo Ramirez of Orlando was charged with a DUI and causing a personal injury crash early Saturday morning on I-4. The 24-year old Orange County resident allegedly admitted to police “You got me” after police say he failed a series of field sobriety test on the shoulder of I-4 at approximately 3:00 a.m. Sunday morning (read more).

The accident involved 10 cars and shut down the highway for nearly two hours. Tests conducted at the county DUI center showed Ramierz’s blood alcohol level was 0.107 which is above the 0.080 that the state defines as intoxicated. Three motorists involved in the crash suffered minor injuries and were treated at local hospitals according to reports.

If you or any loved one needs help with a DUI charge or any criminal or traffic violation in the state of Florida, please contact Darren Finebloom at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at www.fightyourorlandodui.com to discuss the matter.

The cost of driving in Florida is getting ready to be dramatically increased beginning September 1. Rates will be hiked for everything from renewing your driver’s license to getting a title for your new car and the new costs are considerably higher. Rate increases will be anywhere from 54% to 1400% in one case. (read more)

The additional costs stem directly from the state needing to balance the budget and make-up for large shortfalls in revenue generation. What does this mean to you? Well it used to cost $20 to renew your Florida Driver’s License but it will now cost $48, an increase of 140%. Registering your SUV or larger car will now cost you over $71 instead of the $46 you used to pay. As if the auto industry wasn’t suffering enough already when it comes to new car sales, there is more bad news on that front starting September 1. Registering your new car will now cost over $400 which is an increase of 110% from the old fee.

Driving is expensive with these new fees and the price of gas increasing but when you add a traffic ticket to the mix it can be too much to handle. If you or a loved one has traffic ticket that you need help with, please contact David Haenel at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at www.fightyourcase.com.

We all love being able to bypass long lines of cars waiting to pay tolls thanks to Sunpass…well maybe not all of us. The courts in Miami Dade County are now being overrun with Sunpass toll violations due to a little-noticed tweak in the state law that now requires violators to appear in court if they want to avoid costly points against their driving record (read more). In Miami Dade County nearly 30% of all traffic citations last year were related to Sunpass toll violations. With the popularity of the program, things are only expected to get worse in the future.

Toll violations never used to require seeing a judge until recently. Violators just had to go to the clerk's office and pay the ticket. During the 2007 legislative session, tucked inside a 142-page transportation bill, lawmakers deleted the provision allowing clerks to withhold adjudication. To avoid three points, scofflaws now have to attend court to make their case to a judge. Combine that with more efficient ticketing processing and Sunpass toll violations have become a major part of the daily business in traffic courts around the state.

If you or a loved one has a Sunpass toll violation or any traffic ticket that you need help with, please contact David Haenel at 1-800-FIGHT-IT or online at www.fightyourcase.com.

In order to collect over $35 million in federal funding, Florida Governor Charlie Crist recently signed into law a bill which allows Florida law enforcement officers to pull over motorists if they are not wearing their seat belt. Until the signing of this most recent bill, Florida law enforcement could cite motorists or passengers, but only if they stopped their vehicle for some other lawful reason. With the passage of this new law, Florida will be eligible to collect Federal highway safety dollars which will help fund law enforcement activity throughout the State of Florida. A seat belt ticket in Florida is not a moving violation, however the fine is just shy of $100.00 in most counties. According to a May 2009 Research Study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, The Increase in Lives Saved, Injuries Prevented, and Cost Savings if Seat Belt Use Rose to at Least 90 Percent in All States Florida could save over 175 lives per year if seatblet usage was around 90 percent. Currently, seat belt usage in Florida is around 79 percent. What these articles and publications on seat belt usage do not discuss the effect that this law will have on Florida motorists. Not unlike current Florida statutes on failure to maintain a single lane, failure to use a signal when changing lanes, or obscure tag laws, these new laws come at a price for our freedom and fiscal protection. Florida has extremely aggressive Ticket It or Click It campaigns and the new law should go far in padding the coffers of all state agencies. In addition, it is of utmost concern that the courts will see an increase in cases challenging evidence obtained from traffic stops which began as a result of a driver not wearing their seat belt. Since most DUI arrests occur at night, and the reason for the stop is almost always a possible defense, the stopping deputy or trooper should be 100 percent certain that the person they are stopping is not wearing their seat belt. A seat belt stop is akin to having one headlight out or a tag light out, as no "bad" driving is exhibited.

The Law Firm of Finebloom and Haenel has offices in Sarasota, Clearwater, Tampa, and Orlando and represents motorists across the State of Florida on any traffic related case. Our attorneys can be reached anytime by calling 1-800-FIGHT-IT.