Tampa Criminal Lawyer Blog

In January of this year, Pasco County law enforcement authorities began to notice a significant increase in the number of boat thefts reported. As many as 60 boats have been stolen just in Pasco County in 2009 already. Police believe they have identified several of the men responsible for a profitable boat theft ring, although they caution that there may still be another ring in operation at this time.

Luis Perez, 28, was arrested for stealing a boat with two engines worth a total of $18,000. The theft occurred on May 22. Perez posted bond and has been released from jail. Police have also identified Jonathon Stone, 22, and Kevin Allen Roach as possible accomplices in the same boat theft ring. Stone and Roach were arrested after they were located with a stolen boat. The pair were booked on charges of burglary, violation of probation, and criminal mischief.

Police say that a group of local thieves has been stealing docked boats. Once detached, they steer the boats to another location, where the thieves strip the boat of all valuables - motors, global positioning system units, fishing gear, and all electronic equipment. They resell the stolen property and sink the stripped-down boat. Police divers have been searching for evidence under the water and recently located a boat motor that they believe members of the ring stole. Additionally, they are continuing to search for more sunken boats.

"With the economy, thieves are looking to make a buck anyway they can," a Sheriff's Office spokesperson said. "It's hard to lock up a boat." Still, law enforcement officials advise boat owners to take extra precautions with their property whenever possible and make sure comprehensive boat insurance policies are up-to-date. Keeping a carefule record of all valuables in the boat is important. Boat owners can even write identifying information on these items in special ink that shows up only under a UV light, which is useful when locating stolen property.

 

As the capabilities of the internet have grown, and especially as the number of people using the internet on a day-to-day basis has skyrocketed, internet-based crimes have also risen. Most involve fraud and seek to steal money from the victim. Famously, there are email scams, like the emails purporting to be from people in Nigeria who can help the reader obtain thousands of dollars that a "relative" allegedly left behind - for a fee. Others, however, are far more subtle - but nonetheless criminal.

More and more, Floridians are using the internet for financial transactions, such as online shopping, banking, and even e-filing taxes. Unfortunately, this has created new avenues for credit card fraud and other crimes. Recently, a Tampa bay area woman was the victim of such a crime, which was perpetrated by a man whom she trusted and considered to be a friend. The crime occurred when the less tech-savvy victim allowed her friend to "help" her file her tax return.

William Alston Clarke, who is 25 and resides in Sebring, faces charges for committing a computer crime with the intent to defraud and attempting to use another person's identification without consent. According to police, Clarke was "helping" his friend e-file her tax return in January. Clarke had access to the victim's financial information, including her W-2 forms, bank account and routing numbers, and Social Security number. He was entrusted with the task of setting up a direct deposit refund for about $1,500 - which he allegedly did, filling in his own bank account numbers. A deposit of the exact amount of the refund due to the victim was subsequently made into his checking account. He has been released on a $6,000 bond.

If you have been arrested for a computer crime or fraud in the Tampa bay area, contact the criminal defense attorneys of Musca Law to discuss your legal rights.

 

Television shows have brought to light the practice of using individuals who claim to have paranormal capabilities - psychic detectives - which along them to solve a crime when other, more traditional investigative methods have failed. The psychic abilities these "detectives" may claim to use could be visions of the past, the sensing of information from objects (such as a deceased victim's clothing), mind-reading, and other paranormal functions. The general public has been highly skeptical of the usage of these individuals for crime-solving and with good reason: after four seasons of the television show Sensing Murder, none of the self-proclaimed psychics have succeeded in solving any of the cases featured on the series. After the show begin airing, some police departments went out of their way to issue public statements to the effect that they do not ever use psychic detectives during investigations.

Some people searching out those who have passed on will be diving in the waters of the Tampa Bay this summer, searching for clues. These ghost-hunters are traveling with a company based in Cape Canaveral that takes tourists on diving trips near the sites of major accidents. For example, divers might swim around the Gunsmoke, a shrimp trawler that sank just a few miles of the Keys in 1977. The vessel was transporting marijuana. Although these dives are not operated by law enforcement officials, they reflect interest in the paranormal, especially communicating with and obtaining information from the souls of those who have died.

Psychics are not a commonly used law enforcement tool and there is no substantial evidence to indicate that they are in any way effective in solving crimes. They are much more prevalent in pop culture than in actual investigations. Police generally rely on observation, witness accounts, DNA evidence when available, surveillance footage, and other hard information to place certain people who have specific motives at the place where a crime occurred.

 

The indoor marijuana grow houses thriving in the area have caught media attention, as the number police detectives are locating has surged. Law enforcement officers with the Florida Domestic Marijuana Eradication Program seized thousands of marijuana plants last year in connection with their operations - many of them undercover and fueled by informants' tips. But what becomes of the marijuana after the law enforcement agency seizes it?

Typically, the police keep the marijuana as evidence. Officers carefully package and label the seized plants, keeping track of them in an evidence warehouse with strict accounting procedures. Then, if and when a criminal defendant's case goes to trial, the State Attorney's Office requests that the police produce the marijuana or other controlled substance at trial. The police officer can testify to the "chain" of possession of the contraband, from its seizure to cataloguing as evidence to its transport to the courthouse for trial. The same procedure is used for other seized evidence important for prosecutor, such as drug paraphernalia and weapons.

Pinellas County law enforcement officials periodically burn drugs and other illicit items that are no longer necessary for prosecution. If a defendant pleads guilty or is convicted at a trial, and there are no appeals or the appeals have been exhausted, the officers are cleared to dispose of the items. The items burned include large quantities of marijuana, child pornography, and other illegal items. Officials are hoping to increase the frequency with which they are permitted to burn the items, due to the growth of a poisonous mold on marijuana plants left in the hot warehouses. The mold is toxic for humans and can cause respiratory illness. None of the warehouses used for evidence storage have air conditioning or fans, so the plants frequently mold, according to a sergeant from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office. "It doesn't matter what you put it in, it gets moldy. It really is horribly nasty," Sergeant Michael Dailey said.

If you have been arrested for possession of marijuana or cultivating marijuana plants, contact the Tampa drug defense attorneys at Musca Law as soon as possible.

In some areas, the growers who supply the underground, illegal marijuana industry with fresh drugs tend to their plants outdoors. In the Tampa bay area, however, police have observed a significant surge in so-called "grow houses" - indoor marijuana plant growing operations. These indoor marijuana farms may be set up in abandoned or rented warehouses (perhaps with a fake business name), rented apartments, or even the home of an entrepreneurial marijuana grower.

A grower who is familiar with the cultivation of the plant can comfortably yield about $90,000 every three months, upon harvesting the plants. Although this sounds like a comfortable lifestyle, one former grower described his "paranoia" regarding his operation: I had no friends. No girlfriend. I couldn't have family over. I couldn't order pizza," the grower-turned-informant told a local newspaper. For a period of five years, he kept the plants, but did not spend the money on lavish cars or other accoutrements of a wealthy lifestyle. Instead, he shunned other people, stayed indoors, and put on weight due to his fear of being discovered.

Tampa detectives say that the number of grow houses has been increasing. Since the economic recession hit, more regular people looking to make money have joined in. Last year, law enforcement officials located over 100 grow houses in Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties alone. Statewide, police seized nearly 80,000 marijuana plants, worth about $287 million in terms of their street value. About a tenth of the total plants seized were in the Tampa bay area. Officials also arrested more than 1,000 people in connection with marijuana grow house operations in Florida in 2008.

Marijuana grown inside a grow house fetches, on average, about $3,500 per pound. Depending on the variety, however, the value can easily increase to $5,000. Marijuana grown outdoors, by contrast, is worth only $775 on average. The controlled climate conditions allow growers to cultivate more potent - and more valuable - marijuana plant varieties.

 

Many Floridians have pets they love and adore, from the mundane cats and dogs to the more exotic pets like iguanas, snakes, hedgehogs, and chinchillas. Some pet owners like to take their best friends everywhere with them, but local animal advocates remind Tampa residents that it is important to always look out for a pet's well-being. In fact, certain intentional or negligent acts that have the potential to harm a pet could result in an owner facing animal cruelty charges.

Tampa has hot, humid summers, which is important to remember if you like to tote your pet around town with you. Unfortunately, dogs and other animals are not welcome at all locations, and it is a bad idea to leave your pet in the car. Even with cracked windows, the inside of a vehicle can reach scorching temperatures that could make your pet uncomfortable. Worse, longer exposure could cause your pet to suffer serious health complications, like heat exhaustion, or even die.

Nineteen-year-old Amy Chantarak seems to enjoy taking her pup everywhere she goes. The shopper was charged with animal cruelty after she left her dog in her car at the grand opening of the new Ikea store. Animal control officials responded after another shopper observed the three-month-old puppy, Mr. Snuggles, trapped in the vehicle. The shopper notified a police officer who was at the event. Mr. Snuggles had been trapped in the overheated car for at least 40 minutes. The outside temperature was about 90 degrees, making the inside of the car approximately 120 degrees, even with cracked windows.

Animal control officials rescued Mr. Snuggles and took him to the animal shelter. They plan to ask the court to re-home the brown and white dog, as they believe Chantarak is an unfit owner. Interestingly, Chantarak was charged with the same offense about two years ago, when police found a different dog locked in her car. She had left the dog in the car so as not to aggravate the allergies of people in the home she was visiting. Chantarak did not appear at her court date.

Tampa police want to get the word out that the 911 emergency line is for just that: emergencies only. People who abuse the 911 system can face criminal charges and might be subject to jail time and fines. Still, the police department is reluctant to arrest first-time offenders, instead usually issuing warnings. Most people charged with abuse of the 911 emergency system in Tampa repeat callers, who are usually either pranksters who fail to understand the seriousness of the police department's efforts to address real emergencies or, in other cases, the mentally ill.

In 2009, Tampa police have already reported charging several people with misdemeanors related to their phony 911 calls. Still, compared to the nearly 50,000 phone calls the emergency services line handled in March, few people are actually penalized. The operators believe that the prevalence of cell phones has led to an increase in non-emergency calls.

Some of the more ridiculous lately include two 11-year-old brothers who repeatedly prank called the system. The outcome of their case was not disclosed because they are juveniles, but the boys were already on home detention, apparently imposed by the juvenile court for an earlier offense. They called 911 saying things such as, "I want to have sex with you," and trying out various curse words. Jonathan Hill, who is 19 years old, reportedly called 911 in February to tell operators about gunshots he heard. As it turned out, there were no gunshots and Hill just thought making a false police report "seemed like a fun thing to do at the time." Police were not as amused as Hill was. Hill was charged with a misdemeanor and fined over $1,300.

A homeless Mexican man called 911 to report a robbery on March 28, but then requested that police turn him over the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. He wanted to be deported, he explained to law enforcement officers, because he could not pay for a plane ticket to return to his home country to see his family. He was fined and released to immigration officers.

The Tampa police urge residents to call 911 only for real emergencies, as clogging up the system can cause the department to take longer to respond to those who are actually in need.

If you have been arrested for a crime in the Tampa bay area, contact the Tampa criminal defense lawyers at Musca Law as soon as possible.