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As we try and protect ourselves each day from the deadly virus and adhere to the CDC guidelines in exercising social distancing, safer at home living, donning facial masks, and sanitizing hands many landlords are faced with the anxiety and reality of non paying tenants during this trying time in our nation.

The Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office in Tampa, Florida has instituted the Reducing Impaired Driving Recidivism Program (RIDR) for a first time DUI offenders. If you have been arrested for DUI you may be eligible for RIDR however a first time DUI arrest is NOT an automatic entrance into the program.

Field Sobriety Exercises or (FSE) are exercises designed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to measure an individual’s ability to perform certain divided attention tests.

The Florida legislature has sent the Governor a new bill concerning racing in the state of Florida

If you ask 10 people to define impairment you will probably get answers such as slurred speech, stumbling, falling, glassy eyes, swaying, loss of balance, tipping over, etc.

Just what is reckless driving? Certainly it can be deemed as subjective as it is a certain behavior behind the wheel of an automobile or on a motorcycle.

I get this question often and just this week I was in court for on a Claim for Damages. There are two ways in which a landlord can recover against the tenant for damages. If the landlord is holding a security deposit then they may send the tenant a Notice of Claim to the Security Deposit and/or File a Damages Claim against the tenant.

A few years ago both the Thirteenth Circuit (Hillsborough County) and the Sixth Circuit (Pinellas and Pasco Counties) set up what is generically called Veterans Courts. These Courts were set up to assist Military Veterans and active duty personnel who had found themselves arrested for the first time. In the Thirteenth Circuit, the programs official name is the Hillsborough County Veterans Treatment Court (VTC) Program and in the Sixth Circuit the programs official name is the Sixth Judicial Circuit Veterans Treatment Court (VTC). These Courts are unique in that not only are the Courts, the States Attorney Office and the Public Defenders Offices involved but so is the local VA facilities.

In basic terms it is an electrical device, which is attached to your vehicle’s ignition. When a driver wishes to start their car up they must first provide a breath sample into the device. If the breath sample shows a breath alcohol content (BAC) level above 0.025 the vehicle will not start. A judge may order/require a threshold lower than 0.025 depending on the facts of the case.

I am always asked how does one figure out whether they are too intoxicated to drive? My answer has always been the same whether it was when I was in law enforcement, or as a prosecutor or now as a defense attorney, don’t take a chance, don’t drink and drive! Take a cab, Uber or Lyft, or use a designated driver or public transportation. There are just too many ways to safely get out and about when one is drinking which does not involve you drinking and then getting behind the wheel of an automobile.