Florida Criminal Attorneys Blog

Orlando police arrested Bryan Gavini, a 40 year old man from Killingly, Conn., during an online sting in which Gavini allegedly performed and solicited lewd acts from an Orange County investigator posing as a 14 year old girl.  Gavini, who was arrested at the Peabody Orlando Hotel where he was staying, told investigators he worked for Liberty Mutual Insurance and was in town for a hurricane conference.  Gavini posted $5900 bond and was released from Orange County Jail on Friday.

When chatting with the investigator, whom Gavin thought was a teen girl, the "suspect solicited the detective for various sexual acts."  The investigator with the Orange County Sheriff's Office Sexual Offender Squad entered a chat room posing as a 14 year old girl on Thursday and was quickly contacted by Gavini.

According to a news release from the Orange County Sheriff's Office, Gavini disrobed and committed a lewd act while chatting with what he believed was a 14 year old girl.  The investigator's affidavit also indicated that during the chat, "The male stated his name was Bryan Gavini, and even showed his convention name tag with that name printed on it to the webcam."

It is also alleged that Gavin offered to pay for a cab to bring the person he thought was a 14-year-old girl to the hotel.  Once investigators arrived at the hotel, they texted Gavini to let him know that the "girl" had arrived.  Gavini responded and indicated he was in his hotel room.

When they got to the door of his room, an officer identified himself and asked for permission to enter the room.  "I asked Mr. Gavini if this was the computer he used to chat with (the girl) on and he stated yes," the report said.  "I then asked if he would show me his Yahoo Account and he stated yes."  Gavin booted up the computer but the chat session had not been saved.  The officer also asked to search the computer, but Gavin said he could not give permission because it was a company computer.  Gavini is charged with one count of solicitation of a minor via the internet and three counts of transmitting harmful material to a minor.

Continue reading "Police Online Sex Sting Leads to Arrest of Man from Killingly " »

A food service employee at Walt Disney World has been arrested and charged with 200 counts of possessing child pornography.   According to a spokesperson for the Sheriff's Office, during an investigation more than 5,000 images of young children without clothing on were found on the suspect's computer.

The 32 year old man is being held in the county jail with bond set at $10,000 for each felony count.

Possessing, producing or trafficking in images of actual children undressed or engaged in sexual activity is a crime under both state and federal law.  The First Amendment does not protect either child pornography or obscenity.  Virtually everything that you do on the internet is recorded somewhere, where law enforcement can and will become involved.  Federal and state law enforcement agencies are extremely aggressive in prosecuting those charged with child pornography.

A conviction of child pornography is punished severely where judges have little discretion when handing down sentences.  If you suspect that you are being investigated for any type of child pornography or child sex crime, you need to seek legal representation before you are arrested and charged.  Musca Law will use their experience and knowledge to defend you aggressively and effectively.

If you have been charged with a child pornography crime contact Musca Law to discuss your case, attorneys at Musca Law understand that the stakes are very high.  You can be assured that they will fight to keep you out of jail and diligently work to minimize as much as possible the consequences of a child pornography charge.

Continue reading "Oscar Winning Director Roman Polanksi Charged With Child Rape" »

Continue reading "Sexual Battery on Minor at Disney Orlando Resort" »

The State is investigating a former Ft. Lauderdale Police Officer for alleged sexual battery against, prostitutes. He is accused of forcing prostitutes to perform sexual acts on him while he was on duty, in uniform and driving a patrol car. On at least one occasion he allegedly held a prostitute at gun point and threatened arrest if the women did not comply.

Ft. Lauderdale Police fired the former officer, 26-year old Gerome Steven Wright, after a year on the force for failing to perform while on new hire probation. He is cited for failing to complete reports, driving out of assigned jurisdiction while on duty, lacking knowledge of the law and sleeping on the job.

Three prostitutes have come forward with allegations: 30-year old Lauren Kalb, 37-year old Francis Harris and 45-year old Rhonda Fancois. The State has issued a Probable Cause Affidavit and charges of armed sexual battery may be pending against Wright. No official charges have yet been filed.

Continue reading "Ft. Lauderdale Police Officer Charged In Sexual Battery Case" »

Timothy Smith and his wife Aleisha kidnapped a 15 year old female from a bus stop in Orange County.  While waiting for the bus a van driven by Timothy Smith pulled up to the bus stop where he ordered the girl into the van at gunpoint.  From that point onwards, the girl was held captive and forced to have sex with dozens of men.

Shortly after according to police reports, Timothy Smith was arrested on other charges and placed in jail.  During Timothy Smiths absence Aleisha Smith maintained control by forcing the girl at knife point to have sex with a man in lieu of cash payment for rent. 

In the course of a year, the girl was trafficked and sold as a sex slave, where she was held captive and pimped out for money. 

Subsequently a year later, the mother of the girl received a tip on where her daughter was being held captive.

No bond has been set for Aleisha Smith.

In the past six years the US Government has embarked on a clampdown on people who force minors into prostitution, children who are kidnapped, trafficked and held as virtual prisoners.  Human trafficking of minors into prostitution has become a major law enforcement priority. With the intent to convict pimps with hardened prison sentences within the criminal courts. 

According to the Department of Health and Human Services human trafficking is a 9 billion a year industry.  Approximately half of those trafficked are children.   Since the birth of the Innocence Lost National Initiative over 400 children have been recovered with lengthy sentences handed down to those convicted, including multiple 25 years to life sentences.

Florida prosecutors are determined when propagating a case against those charged with a sex crime.  Penalties related to sex crime conviction can vary, dependent upon the seriousness of the sex crime.  Convictions can range from a misdemeanor to a felony. Penalties can include lengthy prison sentences, immense fines, probation, community service, counseling and the loss of numerous legal rights.

As revolting as child trafficking is, those charged are entitled to a rigorous criminal defense.  Musca Law provides its clients with a strategic and aggressive defense.   If you have been charged with a sex crime do not hesitate relative to contacting an attorney that will work diligently to ensure that your rights are protected.

ORANGE COUNTY- Deputy Sheriff Steven Smith, 30, was taken into custody and charged with Domestic Assault after a 911 call from a minor child in the home.  The child reported that she ran into the kitchen to grab the phone and while passing by she saw "my daddy holding my mommy down on the bed and he was going to hit her."  Smith then proceeded to grab the phone from the child, "after he hung the phone up, he told her mommy that she was going to jail", as noted in the arresting officers report.

Smith who is assigned to the narcotics unit has been relieved of duty with pay, while placed in an administrative position pending the outcome of an internal and criminal investigation.

Police Officers are not impervious to criminal acts.  Informal studies show that domestic assault amidst law enforcement is about 40% as opposed to the general population which is roughly about 8-10%.  Double the rate of domestic assault relative to those engaged in other professions.

Although, domestic assault in any form cannot be excused, no other profession places curtailment limits on its associates as they do in the law enforcement field. However, police officers that abuse differ from other abusers in the respect that they are not only tougher but they are more dangerous.  They are tougher and more dangerous by way of training, badge and weapon, not to mention an entire police force to back them up.  One of their strongest weapons in not the gun in their holster, but their ability to intimidate, close off and terrorize their victim. 

In recent studies police departments are failing in accountability relative to how allegations are managed against officers.  Casting a double standard where an officer is not immediately arrested but is put on other duties such as administration while an investigation is pending.  Civilians, facing the same allegations would be immediately arrested and are routinely jailed.  Officers remain uploaded, where departmental authority does not remove the officer's weapon during the investigation.  Most importantly the lack of specific policies set in place where the department is legally bound to manage officers that are implicated in a domestic assault complaint.

Although, domestic assault has numerous definitions, Florida Statute 741.28 defines domestic assault as "any assault, battery, sexual assault, or any criminal offense resulting in physical injury, death of one family or household member by another who is or was residing in the same single dwelling unit." In addition, Florida Statute 741.2901 (2) states "It is the intent of the Legislature that domestic violence be treated as a criminal act rather than a private matter."  

As soon as you or someone that you know is accused or charged with domestic assault, it cannot be emphasized enough that you would need to contact an experienced criminal defense attorney.  When immediately retaining a reputable and committed criminal defense attorney like John Musca, your rights are unhesitatingly protected.   Musca Law will meticulously examine all of the facts, evidence and circumstances that encompass your case so that the best argument can be prepared for the reduction or dismissal of charges.

A Naples man has been arrested for Lewd & Lascivious Battery on a person 12 to 15 years old. The suspect, 25-year old, Pedro Vincent Quijije, met the young girl when she mistakenly called a friend's old cell phone number and he answered. The girl lied to Quijije and told him she was 16.

They developed a telephonic relationship and met at the Coastland mall 2 weeks later. The young girl arranged a phony sleepover at friend's house to fool her parents and instead, met up with the suspect. Quijije and the victim had sex 3-4 times after watching a movie in his bedroom. The next morning the suspect told the victim to take 3 of his roommate's birth control pills at once.

This meeting would not be the only contact between the suspect and the underage girl. The victim told police that they had sex approximately 10 times during two rendezvous. On the second occasion, he again told the victim to take birth control pills that he stole from his roommate.

Continue reading "Naples Man Arrested for Allegedly Having Sex with an Underage Girl " »

Naples, Florida. The Band Director for Gulf Coast High School, Robert Hamberg, resigned after being accused of having sex with a student.

The police report describes the relationship between Hamberg and the high school freshman as flirting within the classroom at first. The relationship escalated and the two became closer than they should. Hamberg disclosed his marital problems with the student and she confessed her strong feelings towards him.

Eventually, the student-teacher relationship went way past inappropriate. Hamberg and the freshman student started having sex within Gulf Coast High School and at his home.

He is out on $175,000 bond and awaiting trial on seven charges of Lewd & Lascivious Battery on a child between the ages of 12 and 15. If convicted on all seven charges, Hamberg faces a maximum sentence of 105 years in prison.

Continue reading "Esquire John Musca Discusses the Recent Sex Crime Involving Gulf Coast High Band Director" »

Miami, Florida. Two convicted sex offenders have filed lawsuits with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) challenging the County of Miami-Dade and its distance law. A distance law enforces how far away a convicted sexual offender must remain away from children prone areas. The State of Florida requires that convicted sexual offenders remain at least 1,000 feet away from where children congregate. This includes, but is not limited to, daycares, playgrounds, schools, bus stops, etc.

 The American Civil Liberties Union is an enforcement group established to protect the rights of individuals as set forth in our country's Bill of Rights and Constitution. The lawsuit brought forward by the ACLU against the County of Miami-Dade argues that the government has gone further than the State of Florida requirements. Miami has an ordinance in place that requires convicted sexual offenders to stay at least 2,500 feet from locations where children gather.

The Plaintiffs, 22-year old Brian Exile and 31-year old Elliot Bloom, claimed in their suit that Miami's ordinance is so strict that they are unable to find suitable housing. The men have stated that the County of Miami-Dade has violated their basic civil rights to their need for shelter.

Continue reading "John Musca, Esq. Discusses How Miami Sex Offenders Forced to Live Under Bridge Due to Distance Law" »

In the first part of this article, we began discussing some little known sex crimes in Florida law such as transmitting obscene messages over the telephone, which are still technically on the books, but have been mostly unenforced. In this article Florida criminal lawyer John Musca will discuss some other largely unenforced Florida criminal statutes.

Chapter 798 of Florida's statutes deals with both adultery and cohabitation. Section 798.01 prohibits the crime of "living in open adultery." In Florida it is still technically a crime for a person to live in an open state of adultery. In order for a person to be guilty of this crime they must live "openly" with a person who is married to someone else. There has not been much case law in Florida criminal courts on the issue of how open a person has to be with his adultery in order to be convicted of a crime because the crime has been so rarely enforced.

Chapter 798.02 criminalizes "lewd and lascivious" cohabitation between any man and woman not married. The section also criminalizes "any man or woman, married or unmarried," who engage in open and gross lewd and lascivious behavior. Both the offenses of cohabitation and living in open adultery are second degree misdemeanors under Florida law, meaning that they are technically punishable with time in jail. It is unclear whether the cohabitation and adultery sections of Florida's criminal code would still be legal in light of the United States decision in Lawrence v. Texas, which held that the state of Texas did not have a rational basis to criminalize private, consensual and non-commercial sex between adults. Both laws have been so rarely enforced that the constitutionality of either provision has not been tested in the courts.

The Florida criminal code is a series of documents that reflects both the early history of the state as well as modern revisions, says Florida criminal attorney John Musca. Older parts of the criminal code punish obsolete offenses that may have offended 19th century sensibilities, but are no longer deemed matters of concern for the modern public. In the first part of this article, we will examine a few of the sex crimes which are still on the books in Florida, but have not been enforced much, if at all, in the last few decades and are generally thought to be non-criminal offenses by many Floridians.

Chapter 847 of the Florida Statutes regulates criminal offenses under the category of obscenity. Most of the offenses under the statute deal with either child pornography or other sexual abuse of children, which are considered high priorities for law enforcement. There are also other lightly enforced parts of the section which deal with other regulations of obscenity. Florida statute section 847.0147 criminalizes any selling of obscene adult services or messages over the telephone. Under Florida and Federal law "obscenity" is a certain type of indecent communication which is not protected by the First Amendment. The United States Supreme Court has defined obscene material as that which "appeals to the prurient interest in sex."

Floridians might wonder, then, why there are still 900 numbers and other telephone services which seem to advertise obscene material available over the telephone in the state of Florida, there are two reasons why this practice continues on. First, state officials have not invested much time in preventing obscene telephone services, determining instead that other criminal offenses constitute higher priorities. Second, many telephone services of a sexual nature involve material which is considered indecent, but not obscene for purposes of a criminal conviction. In part two of this article we will look to other little-enforced sex crimes in Florida law.

Bobby Joe Helms, who is also known as the "Hyde Park Rapist," was convicted many years ago of committing a series of violent rapes against women in the Tampa area. Helms, who is 52 years old, confessed to 13 of the sexual attacks and ultimately spent 13 years in a state prison. He was eventually released and has resided at various addresses in Brevard County for at least the last one and a half years, law enforcement officials say. Most recently, he has been living in an apartment complex in Melbourne.

Although he has completed his prison sentence, Helms has remained on probation. He was arrested last week after police determined that he had been keeping the company of teenaged girls, including one 16-year-old girl in particular. Her parents were displeased with the situation, although both Helms and the girl claim their relationship was a mentor/mentee friendship rather than a romantic relationship, says Florida criminal lawyer John Musca. Investigators are still looking into their assertion, although that may not matter for Helms. Nis neighbors say that they spotted several teenaged girls coming and going from his home on a daily basis, but that Helms nonetheless "seemed like a nice guy" and that "none of it adds up," discussing his relationship with the young girls.

Helms is back in jail in Brevard County for violating his probation. As a condition of his probation, Helms was not to be in the company of any minors. He was placed under arrest after deputies from the Sheriff's Office observed Helms with the 16-year-old girl, whom he had met at a local college, in his car approximately a mile from his apartment.

If you have been accused of a sex crime or violation of probation in the state of Florida, contact the criminal defense team at Musca Law to discuss the facts of your case as soon as possible.

Heath Miller, a popular band teacher at H.L. Watkins Middle School in Palm Beach Gardens, faces over a dozen charges of sexual harassment, rape, and other illegal sexual contact with his students after a two groups of students have come forward to accuse Miller of having inappropriate sexual contact with them. At least four students, all between 14 and 16 years of age, have accused Miller of having sexual contact with them. One student claimed that Miller had sex with her in the uniform room of the school's band room, the Musca Law Florida criminal attorneys have learned.

Miller first attracted attention throughout south Florida when he fatally shot an intruder who broke into his Wellington home last February, according to Florida criminal defense lawyer John Musca. Miller shot 22 year old Robert Tomlin with a .38 caliber pistol after Tomlin broke into his home wielding a pistol. Local newspapers reported Miller's wife called 911 call frantically, where she told dispatchers that her husband had shot Tomlin and that Tomlin was not moving. At the time, police investigators were not able to discern a reason why Tomlin broke into Miller's house and Miller was not charged with any crimes for the shooting.

Since the recent allegations about Miller's sexual contact with his students, there has been some speculation that Tomlin's break-in was related to Miller's sexual assault allegations. The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office has recently received tips connecting Tomlin to some of the alleged victims of Miller's sexual assaults, but has thus far been unable to verify these allegations. In another twist to this case, Miller's cousin Kevin Whittaker was arrested in May on felony charges of witness tampering for allegedly telling one of Miller's 14-year-old victims to "wash her clothing" to get rid of any physical evidence of a sexual assault. Miller has been placed on unpaid leave from his teaching job and has denied any wrongdoing.

A man from Providence, Florida was arrested today on suspicion of attempting to commit a sexual assault. Law enforcement officials have reason to believe that Dorlee Holmes, 30, attacked an elderly lady, trying to sexually assault her. The victim is 73 years old.

The Union County Sheriff's Office arrested Holmes due to their belief that he was responsible for the June 9 crime. Authorities say that Holmes came up behind the victim as she walked along Southwest County Road 245. He allegedly pushed her onto the ground. The female victim fought back, eventually managing to get her attacker off of her. The attacker ran away after apologizing to the woman. He then escaped in his vehicle.

A police artist rendered a sketch of the suspect after speaking with the elderly victim. The sketch was later used to identify Holmes. Now, law enforcement officials are investigating the possibility that Holmes was behind a markedly similar attack that occurred just over a year ago in Gainesville, in which a woman was out for a run in Haile Plantation. Like the attack earlier this month, the man drove up, left his vehicle, and attacked her from behind. He shoved the woman to the ground and exposed himself. She fought the man and eventually escaped after a violent fight. She was able to get away and contact police from a home near where she was attacked. It is too early to know for sure if the attacks are related, but the first incident has remained unsolved.

Florida law punishes certain crimes against the elderly especially harshly due to the fragile nature of the victims. For example, lewd and lascivious criminal acts committed upon or in the presence of elderly or disabled persons are codified at Florida Statute 825.1025. Lewd and lascivious exhibition in the presence of an elderly person is a third-degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison.