Tampa criminal court case results
- Suppressing drug possession and paraphernalia charge
- facts: Tampa Police Department Air Patrol witnessed our client and her boyfriend flee an altercation in a local park. The ground units received information that a male and female recently fled the scene of an aggravated battery. The victim of the battery was our client's brother. The ground units eventually came into contact with our client walking on Osborne and Himes Avenue with her boyfriend. When the police pulled behind the two suspects the boyfriend turned and began walking towards the officer. Our client kept walking away. When the officer saw our client walking away she ordered her to stop and return to her patrol vehicle. The officer then gave both suspects verbal commands to place their hands on the hood of her patrol vehicle. Our client obeyed the officer and put her large purse on the hood of the officer's vehicle. The officer asked our client if there were any weapons in her purse. According to the officer our client immediately began to cry and admitted that there was "weed and a scale" in her purse. The client denied that the drugs were hers, but the officer arrested her for felony possession of marijuana, and possession of paraphernalia. The marijuana field tested positive and weighed 25 grams.
- We took the officer's sworn deposition during the discovery process. The officer's deposition revealed that she had very little information about our client before she ordered her to stop. The only information she received from the Air Unit was that a male and female had fled the scene of a nearby aggravated battery. She received no description of our client from the air unit. In addition, the officer had no information that our client was involved in the commission of the aggravated battery. As stated above the officer commanded our client to stop and walk over to her. In other words, she was temporarily detained by law enforcement. This type of command, which amounts to a stop, requires an officer to at least have a reasonable suspicion that our client was engaged in some unlawful activity. Our Motion to Suppress the drugs and paraphernalia centered on this issue. After reviewing the case law set out in our Motion the State Attorney stood silent on our Motion to Suppress.
- defense: Our Motion to Suppress the drugs and paraphernalia centered on this issue. After reviewing the case law set out in our Motion the State Attorney stood silent on our Motion to Suppress.
- results: Both the Felony Possession of Marijuana and the Possession of the Paraphernalia were dismissed.
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