In a recent Palm Beach County felony
drug trafficking case, criminal defense attorney Andrew D. Stine was able to gain an acquittal on all counts of a three count indictment -against seemingly insurmountable odds.
Florida law states: “Any person who knowingly sells, purchases, manufactures, delivers, or brings into this state, or who is knowingly in actual or constructive possession of, 4 grams or more of any morphine, opium,
oxycodone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, or 4 grams or more of any mixture containing any such substance, but less than 30 kilograms of such substance or mixture, commits a felony of the first degree, which felony shall be known as “
trafficking in illegal drugs”…and such person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 3 years, and the defendant shall be ordered to pay a fine of $50,000.”
The case seemed like a slam dunk for the State – they had a full confession from the defendant, the police caught the defendant inside the pharmacy
buying the drugs with a false prescription, the doctor testified at the trial he did not sign the prescription pad and the defendant had an extensive history of
drug crimes.
West Palm Beach attorney Stine put together a trial strategy that refuted the earlier testimony. He maintained that the police, narcotics detective, prescribing doctor and the pharmacy all made critical errors in the case. The plea offer was 5 years in the Florida Department of Corrections but through vigorous cross examination, the detective admitted to making an error, and the doctor and the pharmacist were unsure of their testimony.
Following deliberation, a jury found the defendant not guilty of
drug trafficking and doctor shopping. Criminal defense
attorney Andrew Stine gained an acquittal for this person who was accused of these crimes.