Central Florida Beaches and Rip Currents

This Memorial Day weekend in Central Florida was a tragedy for a few families on the beaches of Florida's Eastern Coast.  Three people died after being taken too far offshore due to the rip currents present on the beaches.  More than 500 people had to be rescued as well because of the rip currents taking them out to sea.

Having grown up in Central Florida, I know of the vicious rip currents that are commonplace amongst the beaches of the East Coast of Florida during Late-May to Mid-June.  For those who have never been caught in a rip current, they are very deceiving.  Rip currents, at least as I have experienced, are not violent; they consist of a relatively calm sea chop that causes a person to quickly drift further offshore and generally not in a straight direction.  Ten minutes out in the water in a rip current could easily take you more than 500 feet offshore.

Even though a rip current is not generally "rough" per se.  They can be, the near constant chop can make it difficult to swim, as the seawater continuously hits you in the face as you paddle towards the shore.  It is true, you must paddle diagonally when adrift in a rip current, and you must not expend all of your energy in a furious paddle.  With a determined, calm, and constant breaststroke, you should be able to break through the pull of the rip current and regain your lost ground.  It is heartbreaking to see anything lose their life, but especially to something as simple as a rip current.

ByrdLaw, P.A. appreciates the effort of the lifeguards at the Central Florida beaches who rescued more than 500 people this weekend.  The lifeguards couldn't save everyone, but considering the huge number of people adrift at sea this past weekend, they did an awesome job, and should be commended for their dedication.

www.byrdlawfirm.org

Central Florida Criminal Law Tips (NOT LEGAL ADVICE) to Providing the Least Evidence in a DUI Investigation.

This is strictly a legal guide for what to do when you have pulled over by the police in Florida and you know that you may very well have been drinking too much. A DUI is a misdemeanor with life-altering consequences as there are mandatory minimum penalties for even a first-time DUI in Florida.

1. What to Do When Pulled Over

   1. Turn off your vehicle, turn your interior lights on, do your best to gather all of your paperwork (driver's license, insurance card, registration) before the Law Enforcement Officer arrives at your window. 2. Maintain your hands on the steering wheel, and when the Officer arrives at your window simply provide your documents. 3. Do not make admissions about drinking. 4. Do not attempt to explain in detail where you are coming from, (this can be difficult when impaired), instead invoke your fifth amendment rights.

2. The Field Sobriety Exercises

   1. Assuming you are noticeably under the influence, a Law Enforcement Officer will eventually ask if you will perform some Field Sobriety Exercises (FSEs), politely decline and say "they are a false test of a persons faculties". 2. A properly trained Law Enforcement Officer will then inform you of the "Safe Harbor Doctrine", this requires an Officer to inform you that if you fail to perform the exercises, that he/she will have to make their probable cause determination based on what they have seen thus far. In plain language this means that you are almost certainly going to jail, but remain steadfast and decline to perform the FSEs. 2. Do not speak or ramble, the Officer will be able to hear the slurring or over-enunciation in your voice if you do. 3. When you have been arrested, do not speak and simply sit in the vehicle silently on your way to the jail.

3. The Breath Test (EXTREMELY IMPORTANT)

   1. Assuming that there was not a breath test machine in the Officer's vehicle, you will be given the opportunity to provide a breath sample (two actually) at the DUI Breath Center. There will almost certainly be another person in the room with you, the breath test operator. 2. Remain quiet, only answering direct questions (such as name and whether you wish to perform the breath test) 3. There is a very significant chance that there may be a video pointing directly at your face in the DUI breath center, it is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT THAT YOU APPEAR AS SOBER AND ALERT AS POSSIBLE AS THIS VIDEO CAN AND WILL BE USED AS EVIDENCE EITHER FOR OR AGAINST YOU AT TRIAL. 4. During this process, you should inquire as to wanting to speak to an attorney, you will then be read a ruling from the District Court of Appeal that informs you that at this stage of the proceedings you do not have a legal right to an attorney, which will seem to fly in the face of the Miranda Warnings that you have just been read. 5. The breath machine will begin to warm up, you will then be asked if you would perform a breath test, you should now answer "no, I heard about the problems with the machine", and then say nothing more. 6. You will then be read Florida's Implied Consent DUI warning which will inform you that you will lose your license for a period of up to one year. This warning intends to confuse or pressure a person into providing a breath sample, decline again "the machine has had problems, no". 7. THROUGHOUT THIS ENTIRE PROCESS IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER TO BE POLITE AND TO COURTEOUS AND TO NOT SPEAK UNLESS NECESSARY, AND NEVER MAKE ANY ADMISSIONS OF GUILT. REMEMBER, SOME OR THE ENTIRE INVESTIGATION MAY BE ON VIDEO.

Additional resources provided by the author

This guide is not geared necessarily towards those drivers who are on the borderline. This is a helpful guide for those drivers who know that they shouldn't have been driving and made a regrettable mistake to get behind the wheel.