The Umansky Law Firm

A large drug ring allegedly operating from Central Florida to New York was reportedly broken up by investigators for the Lake County Sheriff's Office last week. Law enforcement officers say the ring spread from Eustis to New York. Detectives claim they served six search warrants in two days and arrested 12 suspects. They expect more individuals will be arrested in relation to this drug ring.

Police reportedly seized over a kilo of cocaine, with a street value of $35,000 and about a dozen guns. The Lake Sheriff's spokesman said this is only a fraction of the drugs tied to this group of individuals.

These 12 people were charged with various complaints ranging from trafficking cocaine, operating a criminal enterprise, and conspiracy to traffic and purchase cocaine. The alleged ring leaders, both men in their 30s, were arrested and charged. They are alleged to have distributed marijuana, cocaine, and crack cocaine throughout Central Florida and New York City.

The five month investigation reportedly involved agencies and police departments from Clermont, Eustis, Lady Lake, Mount Dora and Tavares.

If you or a loved one has been charged with a drug offense in the Orange County or Orlando, Florida area, please contact the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the Umansky Law Firm for an initial free and confidential consultation.

Olympia, Washington's Mayor Pro Tem and incoming Thurston County Treasurer was arrested last weekend and charged with selling marijuana on Feb. 19. The 37-year-old was arrested after a two-month investigation. Local media reports an undercover informant allegedly bought marijuana twice from the accused.

Police allegedly found several small amounts of marijuana packaged in the accused man's home. He posted a $20,000 bond and was released late on the evening of the 19^th.

The future Olympian government official was just sworn in last week to succeed another individual as county treasurer. He was appointed to a City Council position in 2004 and reelected in both 2005 and 2009.

When asked by a reporter to respond to the allegations, he responded he hadn't read them yet and did not understand them. This occurs often when individuals are arrested for different infractions.

Understanding the charges is paramount to your defense when you go before the judge. An experienced criminal defense attorney like those at the Central Florida Umansky Law Firm can explain the charges to you and defend you against them.

This man is innocent until proven guilty, no matter what the public and local media have to say about it. It's easy to forget this is the case, until it happens to you or someone you know. Furthermore, being charged with selling drugs, although extremely serious, is a subjective issue with most people – including the jury. The type of drug, the location (drug laws vary from state to state), and the circumstances surrounding the case will all be at play.

If you have been charged with selling drugs in the Orange County or Orlando, Florida area, please contact the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the Umansky Law Firm. We also take cases from around the state of Florida.

A 29-year-old man was pulled over after a police officer observed a truck with its hazard lights on swerving from the center to the shoulder of the road in Port Orange on Feb. 7. In addition to the swerving, the truck was allegedly traveling 60mph in a 35mph zone. The truck stopped at an intersection and drove up onto the median to avoid another vehicle.

After the officer initiated the traffic stop in a parking lot and approached the truck, dispatch said they had received a call about a possible DUI with a vehicle matching the truck's description and in the same area. The officer said the driver smelled like alcohol and had blood shot eyes.

While waiting for backup to complete a field sobriety test on the driver, he allegedly volunteered he had consumed two beers and taken half a Xanax. Xanax is used to treat anti-anxiety and panic disorders, but is abused for the increased effect when taken with alcohol.

The driver was arrested based on his reactions both before and after the field sobriety test.

When searching his person, police allegedly found half a Xanax tab in the driver's pocket. The driver then allegedly told police he had several more Xanax tablets in his truck. Police searched his vehicle and found a metal container that contained more of the drug.

He is charged with possession of narcotics, possession of drug paraphernalia, and driving under the influence.

If you have been charged with DUI or drug offenses, please contact the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the Umansky Law Firm for an initial consultation. We serve Orange County and Orlando, Florida, as well as the state of Florida.

The ex-Michigan Speaker of the House, Craig DeRoche, was arrested for suspicion of drunken driving near Ann Arbor on Feb. 9. Police allege witnesses saw 39-year-old DeRoche park his car, get out, and walk up to a store. Presumably witnesses called police because they suspected the man was intoxicated.

When police arrived, they saw DeRoche stumbling and falling in the snow. Police gave him a breath test, which showed his blood alcohol content to be 0.249, three times the legal limit for driving in Michigan – as well as Florida.

DeRoche says he plans to cooperate, that the incident is "embarrassing," and not simply another "run-of-the-mill drunken driving incident." While it's obviously impossible to read into this statement, and it could be just another case of a politician or ex-politician trying to salvage a career, it may also speak about a man who has more of an illness than simply made a mistake.

While each DUI case has unique circumstances, the end result is that if you are arrested, you may pay fines or see some jail time. Unless you have an experienced DUI defense lawyer, you may wind up paying because you didn't know your options.

The experienced criminal defense attorneys at the Umansky Law Firm can help you if you have been charged with driving under the influence. Don't attempt to deal with this event on your own.

If you are in the Orange County or Orlando, Florida area, or anywhere else in the state of Florida, please contact the Umansky Law Firm today for a free consultation.

Outside of Umatilla in late September, 2009, a man driving a Toyota Prius struck and killed a 49-year-old woman while she was riding her bike. The accident occurred around 8:00am.

The driver, an unemployed construction worker, told the police the sun was in his eyes when he hit the cyclist. He was travelling east and hit the cyclist from behind. According to investigators, the driver said he held up his hand to block the sun, and then heard a "boom." He looked in his mirror and saw the cyclist lying in the middle of the two-lane road. The cyclist was not wearing a helmet and died later at the hospital of her injuries.

A witness said they saw the driver make a U-turn after the crash and come back to the accident. The driver then told the witness to dial 911.

So far, so good. However, the driver was given a toxicology test that revealed his blood alcohol content to be 0.186, double the 0.08 allowed for drivers under Florida law. He also tested positive for marijuana. The driver admits he consumed five or six beers the night before and assumed he was able to drive.

Police gave him the test after they noticed he was unsteady on his feet, had bloodshot eyes, and alcohol on his breath. They also determined he was driving with his passenger side tires off the side of the road, where a bicyclist would be riding. As a result, the man was charged with a DUI. It then took police four months to charge him with manslaughter.

The driver now faces up to 15 years in prison if he is convicted of the second-degree felony.

If you or a loved one has been charged with a crime in Orange County or Orlando, Florida, or anywhere else in the state of Florida, please contact the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the Umansky Law Firm for an initial case consultation.

Grammy award-winning rapper Lil Wayne is expected to be sentenced this afternoon for a gun possession charge he pleaded guilty to In New York. His plea agreement calls for Lil Wayne, born Dwayne Carter, to serve one year in prison. However, with good behavior, he could be out in eight months.

He pleaded guilty in October to attempted criminal possession of a weapon. He admitted he loaded a .40-caliber semiautomatic on his tour bus in July 2007. The weapon was found when the bus was stopped by police after a Manhattan concert.

Carter claimed in a Rolling Stone magazine interview that he was looking forward to prison. However, his plea deal means that he will be spending his time in New York's city jail system rather than state prison. This is the same system rapper Foxy Brown spent eight months in for a probation violation.

Though Carter's jail arrangements are not being discussed, he may be separated from the general population due to his fame. The rapper performed at last week's Grammy Awards ceremony, won best rap solo performance in 2008, has had several No. 1 hits, and sold millions of copies of his albums.

Still, he'll be spending a year of his life in jail. While this may build cred due to his fame, if a normal everyday Joe is charged with the same crime, he should not expect the same treatment. Almost every single person who pleads guilty to this kind of charge will do their time in the prison system and not come out to thousands of adoring fans and a large bank account like Lil Wayne. However, by hiring an experienced criminal defense attorney, you may have your sentence reduced, or even have the case thrown out.

If you have been charged with a crime in Orange County or Orlando, Florida, or anywhere else in the state of Florida, please contact the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the Umansky Law Firm for an initial case consultation.

A 28-year-old woman who worked for a company that processes E-PASS payments was arrested after she allegedly photocopied customer checks and sold them to others who stole money from the compromised accounts. She has been charged with conspiracy to commit organized fraud and fraudulently using personal-identification information, both felonies.

Authorities say the woman worked as a customer service representative and took the bank account numbers of people, and sold them to others who then put their own names on the checks and cashed or spent them. About three dozen people were affected by this.

An investigation began in September 2008 when Orange County Sheriff's Office stopped a woman in a traffic stop and found copies of Expressway Authority customer checks on her. She and several others were arrested for cashing counterfeit checks throughout Florida. During the investigation, investigators allegedly found checks, drivers licenses, and bank account numbers for dozens of people who were not customers of E-PASS.

The worker at the center of the investigation is currently being held in Orange County Jail on $50,150 bail.

If you have been charged with fraud or theft in the Orange County or Orlando, Florida area, or anywhere else in the state of Florida, please contact the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the Umansky Law Firm. We offer a free initial and confidential case evaluation.

Elmore Torn, better known to the world as actor Rip Torn, was arrested last Friday in Connecticut after allegedly breaking into a bank after hours. Making things worse for Mr. Torn are that he was extremely inebriated and carrying a loaded gun. The 78-year-old actor allegedly broke a window of the Litchfield Bancorp in Salisbury, according to police.

Torn appeared in court on February 1st and pleaded not guilty to the burglary and gun charges. He was shackled at the wrists and ankles to several other prisoners. Torn was allegedly so drunk at the time of his arrest that he believed he was in his own home when he was arrested.

Torn posted $100,000 bail and agreed to enter alcohol rehab as soon as he is released.

The actor has had several run-ins with the law over the last few years, all of them alcohol related. He has two past DUI arrests in New York, and was given probation in a DUI case in Connecticut last year.

In the inevitable statement from "sources close to the actor," his family has attempted multiple interventions to get him to stop drinking with very little to show for it. He apparently believes he has made progress in cutting down from four pints of alcohol a day to one pint.

If you have been charged with theft or burglary in Orange County or Orlando, Florida, or anywhere else in the state of Florida, please contact the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the Umansky Law Firm for an initial and confidential consultation.