Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Blog | Blog Posts in 2014

Unlawful Police Stops - Know Your Rights

Posted By The Law Office of Timothy Hessinger || 31-Dec-2014

Under the 4 th Amendment you are protected from illegal searches and seizures. This means, among other things, that a police officer cannot stop your vehicle unless they have "founded suspicion of criminal activity" or have probable cause you have committed a traffic violation. There must be probable cause that you committed a traffic infraction or reasonable suspicion that you have ...

Hit & Run Laws in Florida

Posted By The Law Office of Timothy Hessinger || 15-Dec-2014

According to Florida Statute 316.062, all motorists have a duty to give information and render aid if they are involved in a crash that results in injury or death to another person or damage to another vehicle. This means that if you get in an accident where any type of property damage occurs or a person is hurt, you are legally obligated to stop and exchange information with any other parties ...

The Requirements to Qualify for Expungement in Florida

Posted By The Law Office of Timothy Hessinger || 22-Apr-2014

You may be wondering how a person can have a criminal record even when their charges were dropped or dismissed. The Florida legislature decided that criminal records would be public unless they are sealed or expunged. A person acquires a "criminal history record" when they have been arrested and fingerprinted, regardless if it resulted in a conviction, an acquittal, or a dismissal of ...

What is the Ignition Interlock?

Posted By The Law Office of Timothy Hessinger || 16-Apr-2014

The ignition interlock is a devise that is required to be installed on a person's vehicle if they are convicted of DUI under certain circumstances. The device requires an in vehicle breath test before the vehicle can be started and requires retests at random or specified intervals during the time the vehicle is running. The ignition interlock is required to be installed on your vehicle if any ...

The Differences Between a Misdemeanor and a Felony

Posted By The Law Office of Timothy Hessinger || 15-Apr-2014

A misdemeanor is defined as a "lesser" criminal act while a felony is a more serious criminal offense. In the United States, the major distinction between misdemeanors and felonies is the length of incarceration and the amount of fines attached to the offense. Generally, a crime that is punishable by incarceration for one year or less is a misdemeanor offense, and all other crimes are ...

Marijuana becoming big business in U.S..

Posted By Tim Hessinger || 10-Apr-2014

It has just been forcasted that medical and recreational sales of marijuana will reach 2.2 billion in 2014 and then explode to 8 billion in 2018. Experts are attributing the explosion in forcasted sales to the Cole Memorandum. The Cole memorandum was issued last August by the U.S. Department of Justice and states that the Justice Department will take a hands-off approach to the marijuana industry ...

Marijuana Gold Rush in Florida

Posted By Tim Hessinger || 9-Apr-2014

More than sixty new medical marijuana businesses have incorporated in Florida in the last two months. Entrepreneurs are anticipating the passage of the medical marijuana amendment this November. It has been reported that supporters of amendment have pledged 20 million for TV ads in support of the ballot initiative and that 78% of Florida voters polled say they support the legalization of medical ...

Defenses to DUI Charges

Posted By The Law Office of Timothy Hessinger || 8-Apr-2014

Many who are arrested for DUI mistakenly believe that their case is hopeless. This is not necessarily the case! There are ways to beat a DUI charge and people are doing it every day across the nation. As a Tampa DUI law firm, we have helped many good people get their DUI charges reduces if not dismissed altogether. With so many different factors going into a DUI case - such as the legality of the ...