Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Sarasota Man Sentenced For $500K COVID-19 Benefit Fraud, USAO Says
SARASOTA, Fla. (WFLA) – A Sarasota man was sentenced to time in federal prison after the U.S. Attorney’s Office said he “engaged in a scheme to defraud several federal and state programs by obtaining COVID-19 related benefits.” Randy Xavier Jones, 34, will spend five years and one month in federal prison for wire fraud… Read More »
It Is Easier For A Registered Florida Sex Offender To Go On A Caribbean Cruise Than To Visit A Local Park And Other Little-Known Facts
When a judge reads out your sentence after you have pleaded guilty to a crime or been convicted at trial, the first thing most people do is to start counting the days, hours, and minutes until their sentence can be over and they can put this unpleasant experience behind them. Anyone who has been… Read More »
Instagram Is Florida’s Biggest Snitch
On Instagram, everyone is richer, cooler, and better looking than they are in real life. Sometimes, though, Instagram and other social media sites inadvertently show you sides of people that they do not want you to see, especially if you are a law enforcement officer. If you have an active social media account and… Read More »
Frequently Asked Questions About DUI In Florida
Some illegal actions are more socially acceptable than others; almost everyone has temporarily parked their car on someone else’s private property without permission, for example, even though the law considers this a no-no, and some of us have the parking tickets to prove it. Likewise, in many parts of Florida, cannabis possession exists in… Read More »
Florida Theft Laws
In common usage, the word “theft” refers to any act of stealing or taking tangible or intangible property from its owner without the owner’s consent. When you get charged with theft, the implication is that the only way you harmed the victim was by taking their property. Therefore, the penalties for theft are less… Read More »
Can You Avoid Prison Time For A Sex Crime Conviction?
Although most communications are protected under the First Amendment right to freedom of speech, many laws are in place that prohibit people from publicly humiliating and harassing each other. For example, creditors cannot contact you about your outstanding debts while you are at work or post publicly visible messages about your debts on social… Read More »
Former Police Officer Sentenced To 30 Months In Prison For Possession Of Child Exploitative Images
Today’s teenagers know their way around cell phones, and they have since before they could talk. When a parent gives a preteen their own phone for the first time, the exchange usually involves dire warnings about how little control you have over pictures of you once you post them online. Of course, the worst… Read More »
French Man Arrested For Drug Trafficking When Entering The United States To Compete In Beard And Moustache Contest
Gal Vallerius is a citizen of the world, holding passports from France, Israel, and the United Kingdom. Before his illegal activities were exposed, however, he was a big fish in two relatively small ponds. Perhaps everyone is anonymous on the Internet, but your identifying features eventually give them away, no matter how hard you… Read More »
Police Officer Acquitted Of Molesting Teens After Victims Refuse To Testify
Many cases of sexual assault do not result in criminal cases because the victims refuse to press charges, fearing that, if they did, they would have to testify in court and face their accusers in the courtroom. The outcome of many sex crime cases that go to trial (remember that most cases do not… Read More »
Facing Drug Charges In The Age Of Operation Phantom Chase
For decades, lawmakers acted as though being as “tough on crime” as possible was the best way to win the “war on drugs” and prevent overdose deaths. In recent years, as the discipline of addiction medicine has evolved and as the reasons and means of obtaining drugs have changed, laws have also changed, too. … Read More »