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Bridget Freitas of Pembroke Pines, Florida Punched by Cop, Arrested for Battery

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Bridget-Freitas-240x300Bridget Freitas of Pembroke Pines, Florida was arrested at a University of Miami football game Saturday after she allegedly swatted a police officer as she was being carried out of the stadium for disorderly conduct.

Freitas, 30, is being charged with battery on a law enforcement officer and disorderly conduct. She was released on bond on Sunday. It is unclear if she has acquired the services of an attorney.

According to the arrest report, the alleged battery took place at the Hard Rock Stadium during a football match between the University of Miami and Virginia Tech. Freitas, a registered nurse, was reportedly drunk and acting in a disorderly fashion during the match.

A video of the incident that was posted on social media shows Freitas being carried out by four officers in an inebriated state. Freitas can be seen attempting to slap one of the officers, identified as detective Douglas Ross, who was holding one of her legs. The first slap grazed the back of Ross’ head and the second one caught him on the left side of his face. Ross countered with a right hook to Freitas’ face that knocked her out. Watch the full video here.

When contacted by news sources about the incident, Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez said Ross’ standing with the department has not changed. They are reviewing the video and “immediate chain of command will address the concerns,” Perez told The Miami Herald.

President of Miami-Dade’s Police Benevolent Association John Rivera told The Herald that he has seen the video and believes Ross was justified in striking Freitas because “all he did was react to her actions.”

“Upon lifting (Freitas), (Freitas) swung and struck (Det. Ross) in the face while attempting to get away, causing this Det. (Ross) to strike (Freitas) in the face to gain compliance and control,” the arrest report said.

Miami-Dade police issued the following statement about the incident on Sunday afternoon:

“Promoting a safe and secure environment during any special event is our primary concern. After responding to a disturbance, the person in the video was being removed from the event by our officers for being disorderly. She was subsequently arrested for Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer and Disorderly Conduct/Breach of the peace. Supervisory personnel are aware of the video and are reviewing the incident to ensure compliance with our policies and procedures.”

Freitas was reportedly causing a disturbance in Section 129 of the stadium and police were called to remove her from the stadium. The officers found her “using profanity in a loud and boisterous manner” while arguing with other fans, the report said. She allegedly refused to exit the section calmly and planted herself on the stairs between a row of seats. Two officers tried to pick her up and two other officers, one of whom was Ross, joined to help, and that’s when the video starts.

It is unclear if Freitas will seek legal action against Ross for his needlessly violent reaction. She was reportedly one of two dozen people who were ejected from the stadium, and the second to be arrested that night. The other arrest was also on battery charges.

Source: 11.5.17 Cop punches woman who hit him during ejection from football game.pdf

Former Florida Rep. Dwayne Taylor of Daytona Beach Ordered to Forfeit Nearly $63,000 in Fraud Case

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Dwayne-Taylor-240x300Dwayne Taylor, a former member of Florida’s legislature and Daytona Beach city commissioner accused of using campaign funds for his personal benefit, has been ordered to forfeit almost $63,000 as part of his sentence.

Taylor, 49, was charged with 9 counts of wire fraud on March 9. He pleaded not guilty to all charges the day after the indictment was filed.

According to the 9-page indictment, Taylor allegedly withdrew money from his campaign fund and deposited the cash into his personal bank account. He withdrew money ranging from $100 to $400 on eight different occasions from ATMs and cashed one check, the indictment says.

Taylor reportedly used the funds for various personal expenses, including his wedding in New York City and meals at McDonald’s. The total amount he withdrew came to $2,440, but prosecutors want to forfeit $62,834 as part of his sentence.

The indictment also alleges that Taylor misused petty cash funds and lied about campaign expenditures during his 2012 and 2014 campaigns. He allegedly reported “inflated and non-existent campaign expenses” to hide that he “unlawfully embezzled funds” from his campaign accounts. Taylor was his own treasurer in both campaigns, according to the indictment.

Florida law forbids candidates from using campaign money to pay for personal expenses with the exception of meals, transportation, and lodging associated with the campaign.

Taylor was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2008 and ran for four terms until 2016. He tried to run for Congress in 2016 but was defeated in the primaries. Prior to his election to the state legislature, Taylor was the Daytona Beach City Commissioner from 2003 and 2005.

Taylor faces up to 20 years in prison for each count of wire fraud. He remains free after his conviction on August 31. His sentencing is scheduled for November 30 in Orlando.

Source: 30.10.17 Former Florida Representative Dwayne Taylor Ordered to Forfeit $63,000 in Fraud Case.pdf

Former US Representative Candidate Suing for Seized Truck

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serrano-1-300x204When it comes to civil asset forfeiture, you don’t have to be charged with a crime in order for your property to be seized. Depending on the circumstances, your property can be seized when you least expect it.

That’s exactly what happened to Gerardo Serrano as he crossed the U.S. border into Mexico late in 2015, when his truck was seized without any charges being brought against him.

Serrano’s truck was searched by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents at Texas’s Eagle Pass border crossing on September 21, 2015, as he was on his way to Piedras Negras, Mexico from his home in Kentucky. During the search, the agents found a small ammunition clip holding 5 bullets, which Serrano says was left in the truck simply as a result of his being absent-minded, and promptly arrested Serrano and took him to jail.

Serrano was never charged, and upon his release from jail, he was informed that his truck and ammunition clip were being seized by Customs. The document handed to Serrano said that since he had failed to disclose the clip, his truck was a “conveyance of illegal exportation,” and thus subject to seizure.

Unlike the United States, civilian firearm ownership is illegal in most cases in Mexico, but most of the arrests for this reason happen south of the border. “It’s definitely unusual to search a car that’s leaving the country,” said Robert Everett Johnson of the Institute for Justice, a civil liberties law firm representing Serrano and a longtime opponent of forfeiture, “The normal focus with CBP is on people coming into the country, not people going out of the country.”

“Civil forfeiture allows the government to take your property without giving you any of the protections you get under the Constitution,” Johnson continued, “That’s an open invitation to abuse.”

The federal government has gone back and forth in recent years about what to do about civil asset forfeiture. Under the Obama administration, a number of restrictions made it more difficult for the government to seize property without a criminal conviction, but current Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently reversed those restrictions.

For his part, Serrano wants more than just his truck back. In addition to his truck, the lawsuit filed last month seeks compensatory damages and an injunction against federal agencies prohibiting them from similarly seizing property without prompt hearings in the future. Serrano has made loan and insurance payments on his truck for the past two years without a hearing on the matter, despite his sending of a $4,000 check to Customs which was required to challenge the forfeiture in court.

Customs cashed that check on October 30, 2015, making it over 2 years since his truck was seized. Serrano formerly ran for public office in Kentucky on an explicitly pro-Second Amendment platform, and now he feels disillusioned with the government. “How do they get away with this?,” he said in an interview with the Washington Post, “How could this happen?”

Civil Asset Forfeiture Attorney

If your property has been seized, then you should hire a lawyer. Contact us to set up a free initial consultation and work with one of Florida’s most experienced civil forfeiture defense attorneys.

Sources:

Customs agents seized a lawful gun owner’s truck over five bullets. Now he’s suing to get it back.

Eagle Pass Civil Forfeiture

Former US Representative Candidate Suing for Seized Truck

By

serrano-1-300x204When it comes to civil asset forfeiture, you don’t have to be charged with a crime in order for your property to be seized. Depending on the circumstances, your property can be seized when you least expect it.

That’s exactly what happened to Gerardo Serrano as he crossed the U.S. border into Mexico late in 2015, when his truck was seized without any charges being brought against him.

Serrano’s truck was searched by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents at Texas’s Eagle Pass border crossing on September 21, 2015, as he was on his way to Piedras Negras, Mexico from his home in Kentucky. During the search, the agents found a small ammunition clip holding 5 bullets, which Serrano says was left in the truck simply as a result of his being absent-minded, and promptly arrested Serrano and took him to jail.

Serrano was never charged, and upon his release from jail, he was informed that his truck and ammunition clip were being seized by Customs. The document handed to Serrano said that since he had failed to disclose the clip, his truck was a “conveyance of illegal exportation,” and thus subject to seizure.

Unlike the United States, civilian firearm ownership is illegal in most cases in Mexico, but most of the arrests for this reason happen south of the border. “It’s definitely unusual to search a car that’s leaving the country,” said Robert Everett Johnson of the Institute for Justice, a civil liberties law firm representing Serrano and a longtime opponent of forfeiture, “The normal focus with CBP is on people coming into the country, not people going out of the country.”

“Civil forfeiture allows the government to take your property without giving you any of the protections you get under the Constitution,” Johnson continued, “That’s an open invitation to abuse.”

The federal government has gone back and forth in recent years about what to do about civil asset forfeiture. Under the Obama administration, a number of restrictions made it more difficult for the government to seize property without a criminal conviction, but current Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently reversed those restrictions.

For his part, Serrano wants more than just his truck back. In addition to his truck, the lawsuit filed last month seeks compensatory damages and an injunction against federal agencies prohibiting them from similarly seizing property without prompt hearings in the future. Serrano has made loan and insurance payments on his truck for the past two years without a hearing on the matter, despite his sending of a $4,000 check to Customs which was required to challenge the forfeiture in court.

Customs cashed that check on October 30, 2015, making it over 2 years since his truck was seized. Serrano formerly ran for public office in Kentucky on an explicitly pro-Second Amendment platform, and now he feels disillusioned with the government. “How do they get away with this?,” he said in an interview with the Washington Post, “How could this happen?”

Civil Asset Forfeiture Attorney

If your property has been seized, then you should hire a lawyer. Contact us to set up a free initial consultation and work with one of Florida’s most experienced civil forfeiture defense attorneys.

Sources:

Customs agents seized a lawful gun owner’s truck over five bullets. Now he’s suing to get it back.

Eagle Pass Civil Forfeiture

Joselyn Lopez of North Lauderdale, Florida Charged With DUI Manslaughter in Death of Fort Lauderdale Detective

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Joselyn-Lopez-213x300Joselyn Lopez of North Lauderdale, Florida was taken into police custody on October 26 for allegedly causing a car crash over a year ago that led to the death Christopher Sheehan and injured Jacob Snowhite.

Lopez, 30, faces eight charges, including DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide, reckless driving and causing serious bodily harm. During a bond court hearing on Friday, a judge set her bond at $47,000 and ordered her not to drive a vehicle under any circumstances. If she manages to post bail, Lopez is to be placed on house arrest with an ankle monitor and will have to submit to weekly drug and alcohol testing.

According to the arrest report, the alleged crash occurred at 2:30 a.m. on August 20, 2016 along State Road 7 in Coral Springs. Sheehan was driving home with Snowhite after spending the day hunting alligators in the Everglades when Lopez rear-ended his vehicle, causing a fiery crash, the report said. Sheehan, a Fort Lauderdale detective, was killed in the crash, and Snowhite, a Fort Lauderdale firefighter, suffered non-life threatening injuries. Lopez was not injured.

Lopez had reportedly been drinking at a bar earlier that night and was driving at a high rate of speed while under the influence. Investigators determined that she was driving at 75 mph on a 45 mph road when she crashed into Sheehan’s vehicle. Her blood alcohol level less than three hours after the crash was .08, which is Florida’s legal limit. She reportedly showed classic signs of impairment, including slurred speech and the odor of alcohol emitting from her breath.

It is unclear why it took the state attorney’s office so long to charge Lopez. A spokesperson from the office told the press that vehicular homicide investigations are “very complex” for both law enforcement and prosecutors who must evaluate the case and make the “ultimate filing decision.”

DUI manslaughter occurs when a person drives a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, has a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher, and either directly or indirectly causes the death of another person. The charge is a second-degree penalty punishable by up to 15 years in prison, 15 years probation, and $10,000 in fines.

Florida has some of the toughest DUI laws in the U.S. because of all the deaths caused by drunk driving. Law enforcement are required to have a zero tolerance standard for DUI cases, and as a result, Florida’s courts prosecute a large number of such cases every year.

DUI cases carry several penalties in addition to fines and possible jail time, including driver’s license suspension, vehicle impoundment, classes on drunk driving, community service, psychosocial evaluation followed by any recommended treatment, and restitution when appropriate.

Source: 10.27.17 Woman charged with DUI manslaughter in death of Fort Lauderdale detective.pdf