Orlando Criminal Law Attorney Will Rise to Your Defense
Assertive in advocating for your rights
Getting arrested can be a horrifying experience. It can affect every aspect of your life, including your employment, the relationship you have with your family, and your entire future. Your freedom — or even your life — may be at stake. Armed with 27 years of experience in criminal defense, The Law Offices of Tad A. Yates, P.A. will protect your rights and help you attain the best possible result for your case.
Giving your case methodical and thorough investigation
Mr. Yates is devoted to protecting his clients’ freedom. He challenges the prosecution to prove its case and seeks to eliminate or reduce any potential sentence. He knows that witnesses may lie on the stand, that crime scenes can be compromised, and that police officers can make mistakes. He personally speaks with witnesses to gain a full understanding or your case and carefully examines the State’s evidence. He also pores over police records and retains experts to challenge the prosecution’s theories if it aids in your defense.
Zealously defending you against prosecution
Mr. Yates aggressively represents clients charged with all types of offenses, including:
- Assault & Battery
- Burglary
- Criminal appeals
- Domestic violence
- DUI
- Drug offenses
- Federal crimes
- Robbery
- Sex offenses
- Theft
- Violations of probation (VOP)
- Sealing and expungement of criminal records
- Juvenile adjudications
Criminal defense resolutions at the pretrial stage
The vast majority of criminal cases do not go to trial. We can resolve many cases during the pretrial phase through skillful negotiations with prosecutors. The result can be:
- Dismissal of charges — A prosecutor may be convinced to dismiss the case against you for several reasons. Key evidence or witness testimony necessary to prove the case against you may be missing. Dismissals may also be based on the interests of justice. A good lawyer will work to educate the prosecutor about his client in hopes of persuading the prosecutor that dismissal is appropriate. Dismissals can also result from illegal police activity, unreasonable delays in bringing prosecution, and other violations of due process. Dismissal is the most positive outcome possible for an arrested person, though the record of the arrest doesn’t go away without expungement. If your case is dismissed, Mr. Yates can assist you in moving to have your record of arrest expunged.
- Diversionary programs — First time offenders are often eligible to participate in a pretrial diversion program or a deferred prosecution program. In many non-violent cases, the State is willing to sign a contract guaranteeing dismissal of a case in the event that a defendant stays out of trouble for a certain period of time and successfully completes certain conditions such as community service or self-improvement classes.
- Plea bargains — In many cases, Mr. Yates will help you to avoid trial by coming to an agreement with the prosecutor about resolution of your case. In these situations, a client may plead guilty or no contest to a charge or even a lesser offense than originally charged in exchange for the prosecutor’s agreement to a more lenient sentence.
Mr. Yates actively pushes for effective solutions that can avoid prosecution or mitigate punishments.
Making pretrial motions to exclude evidence
Mr. Yates routinely challenges the constitutionality of police procedures used to obtain evidence. If the police resorted to unlawful means, the resulting evidence can be excluded from your case, which can make all the difference when working out a plea bargain or even seeking dismissal of charges.
Unlawful police procedures that Mr. Yates frequently challenges include:
- Improper traffic stops — Police must have a legal basis for stopping a car, such as a traffic violation or erratic driving. If the police illegally stopped your car, your case could be dismissed or valuable evidence in the case might be suppressed (thrown out).
- Stop and frisk — As with traffic stops, police must have reasonable suspicion to stop someone on the streets and to do a pat-down frisk.
- Warrantless searches of homes or vehicles — Police do not need a warrant for every search, but they do need probable cause of illegal activity. If an object is in plain sight or an exigency requires cops to act immediately, a search is permissible. Evidence seized during an illegal search is not admissible at trial.
- Failing to Mirandize asuspect — When police arrest a suspect, they must inform the person of his or her constitutional rights, such as the right to remain silent and the right to have an attorney present at questioning. Any statement made absent those warnings may be inadmissible at trial.
- Denying counsel to a suspect — Once a suspect asks to have a lawyer, police must cease all questioning until a lawyer is provided.
- Compelling a suspect to speak — Pressuring a suspect to answer questions in violation of his right to remain silent likewise will work to invalidate any statement made.
If the police violated your constitutional rights by these tactics or any others, Mr. Yates is prepared to take remedial actions.
Exploring all viable defenses to criminal charges
In most criminal cases, several defenses are possible that can be asserted in the pretrial stages. They include:
- Alibi —If you can prove by credible evidence that you were somewhere else when the crime was committed, you can’t be convicted.
- Entrapment — This defense asserts that the police induced you to commit a crime you had not contemplated.
- Self-defense — You have the right to defend yourself from attack. However, you must show that you were not the aggressor, that you had reasonable fear and that your actions went no further than what was necessary to stop the attack. Similar to self-defense, you might be immune from prosecution under Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law.
- Reasonable defense of a third party — Similar to self-defense, you may show that your actions were necessary to prevent danger to another person.
- Lack of intent — Certain crimes require knowledge of wrongdoing. If, for example, you borrowed someone’s coat and there were drugs in the inner pocket, you would not be in “knowing possession” of the drugs.
Defenses such as these may provide leverage in pretrial discussions and a fighting chance at trial.
When your future is on the line, call an experienced Florida attorney for a consultation
The Law Offices of Tad A. Yates, P.A. are prepared to aggressively advocate for your rights in the courtroom before and at trial, with an eye to pursuing the best outcome available given the facts of your case. Call 407-608-7777 or contact us online today to schedule a consultation.