The police didn't read me my rights

GOLF CARTS AND LOW SPEED VEHICLES (LSVs) We are seeing an increase in these types of vehicles on our roadways and in our neighborhoods. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles has set out a summary of the relevant law: Low Speed Vehicles Section 320.01(41), Florida Statutes, defines LSVs as “any four-wheeled vehicle whose top speed is greater than 20 miles per hour, but not greater than 25 miles per hour.” LSVs must be registered, titled and insured with personal injury protection (PIP) and property damage liability (PDL) insurance. Any person operating an LSV must have a valid driver license in their immediate possession. LSVs may be operated only on streets where the posted speed limit is 35 MPH or less and must be equipped with the following safety equipment: Headlamps; Front and rear turn signals; Stop lamps; Tail lamps; Reflex reflectors, red – one each side and one on the rear; Exterior mirror on the driver side and an interior rear-view mirror or exterior mirror on passenger side; Parking brake; Windshield; Seat belt for each designated seat; and a Vehicle identification number (VIN). As I have indicated previously it is very important to carry uninsured motorist coverage in the event you are struck by one of these kinds of vehicles. There is no requirement under Florida law that an LSV or a golf cart carries bodily injury coverage. Florida courts have held that uninsured motorist coverage applies even if you are hit by golf cart. Golf Carts Golf carts are defined in section 320.01(22), Florida Statutes, as “a motor vehicle that is designed and manufactured for operation on a golf course for sporting or recreational purposes and that is not capable of exceeding speeds of 20 miles per hour.” Golf carts may be operated on roadways that are designated for golf carts with a posted speed limit of 30 mph or less. Golf carts may also cross a portion of a county road which intersects a roadway that is approved for golf carts, or that intersects a golf course or mobile home park. In both examples the roadway should have signs posted that golf carts share the roadway. The operation of golf carts on roads must comply with any more restrictive ordinances enacted by local government and should be verified prior to operating these vehicles. Beginning October 1, 2023, a person operating a golf cart on public roads or streets who is under 18 years of age must possess a valid learner’s driver license or valid driver license, and a person who is 18 years of age or older must possess a valid form of government-issued photographic identification.

WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU’RE IN AN ACCIDENT WITH A GOVERNMENT VEHICLE So if you have been hit by a government owned vehicle the rules are a little different. State government whether it is city, county or state is known as the sovereign. Historically, the sovereign is immune from suit. This concept is called sovereign immunity. Florida has enacted a law under the sovereign immunity statute, section 768.68 Florida Statutes that waives sovereign immunity and allows you to sue a state, county or municipality for damages. The first thing to know is there is a process you have to go through before you can file suit. That process requires you, or your lawyer, to file what is known as a notice of claim. This notice of claim has to be sent to the agency that was involved in the crash and except in the case of municipality and the Florida Space Authority to the Department of Financial Services. This notice is a mandatory prerequisite before you can file suit. Once the notice of claim has been send to the government entity there is a waiting period before can be filed. It is also important to know there is a cap on damages. At present most any one person can recover is $200,000. So even if you go to trial and get a verdict 5 or ten times that much the most the government is obligated to pay you by law is $200,000. There are currently bills in the 2026 Florida Legislature to raise those caps, but as yet that has not been enacted into law. There is a remedy to get a settlement in excess of the the $200,000, but it rarely occurs. This is what is known as a “claims bill”. That is, the legislature has to pass a bill that specifically awards the amount of an actual judgment in excess of $200,000. It is also important to note there is also a cap on attorney fees. The most an attorney can charge is 25% of the recovery. This is less than the typical Florida Bar approved contingency fee contract. When it comes to the typical car accident you also cannot sue the driver. So, for example, if you are hit by a garbage truck owned by the city of Tampa you can sue the city, but not the driver. This is different than the typical accident where you can make a claim against both the driver and the owner of the at-fault vehicle. This is also true of intentional torts such as false arrest by the police. In that situation the claim of false arrest is brought against the city the police officer worked for. What has been discussed so far is about a claim against a government agency of the state of Florida like a city or county, but what about a U.S. government agency? For example you are in an accident with a post office vehicle. The procedure is similar, but there are some significant differences. There is a claim form that must be filled out and filed with agency. This is called Form 95. One of the important distinctions with the Florida notice of claim form is that the amount of damages sought must be stated in the form. This form must be filed within two years of accident and if the agency hasn’t resolved the claim after six months you can then file suit. Suit under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) must be filed in Federal Court and here is the critical distinction with state law. There is no right to a jury trial in a Federal Tort Claims Act case. While that is a definite detriment to bringing this kind of claim, on the bright side there is no statutory cap on damages. There is also a similar limitation on attorney fees. These cases are defended by the U.S Attorney’s office. That is not always the case in claim against a state agency. Some are defended by city or county attorneys and sometimes private law firms are hired. From the experience of this lawyer some other things you can expect if you are in a crash with a government agency vehicle are more police involvement during the investigation of the crash, especially if it is with a police vehicle, more delays in negotiating, a harder line on settlement and a general lack of communication with government risk management. These cases are not impossible, but they can be challenging and more difficult to deal with. Our lawyers are experienced in dealing with sovereign immunity car crashes and can help you get a just outcome if you happen to have the bad luck of getting hit by a government vehicle.e body content of your post goes here. To edit this text, click on it and delete this default text and start typing your own or paste your own from a different source.

Here I am in the courtroom on a little break in a trial. Most cases don't go to trial. Yours probably won't either, but from the minute you have been injured by someone else's carelessness you need to think about it as if it were. So there are a lot of common misconceptions people have about accident injury cases that I would like to talk about a little. So, for example, what if the person who hits you got a ticket. The jury will never hear that. They will never see the crash report nor hear the officer's opinion about who was at fault in the accident. They will never hear that the person paid for the ticket or admitted fault by paying the ticket. Most crash investigations by the police do NOT take photographs so don't assume the police take them. If you are hit by a careless driver and you unfortunately must sue them because their insurance company won't settle, the jury will never hear they have insurance, who the company is or what policy limits they carry. They will also not hear about offers that were made or the insurance company's delay in settlement. Except in rare circumstances, the jury will never hear that the person who hits you has a bad driving record. If you think you deserve compensation for loss of enjoyment of life, pain, discomfort, inconvenience then under Florida law you must have a permanent injury. That doesn't mean you have to prove something catastrophic like an amputation, but it must be permanent. You must prove damages. Somebody hit you; they wrecked your car but that is not enough to get you completely compensated. The damages you are entitled to (if you can prove them) are the reasonable value of medical bills, medicals bills incurred in the future within a reasonable degree of medical certainty, lost wages, loss of earning capacity in the future, pain and suffering in the past and the future. Each of these items is important in understanding the potential value of your case. They are important in trying to negotiate a fair settlement. For example, if you claim lost income because of injuries you sustained in a crash, you are going to need to have your tax returns to show what it was before and after the accident. Paradoxically the courts do NOT let you prove things like you couldn't pay your mortgage or you had to take out a loan to make ends meet. The rationale for this law is that the relative wealth of the parties is not relevant to injuries caused by the crash. I've spent a little time talking about some things a jury will not hear now I would like you to know about some things a jury will hear and like I said, your case probably will never go to trial but a defense attorney or insurance company in negotiations will bring these things up. Number one is prior accidents and injuries claimed in those prior accidents. All your medical records from those prior accidents are relevant if they involve the same body part you claim was hurt in the most recent accident. The other side gets to look at these medical records when they are defending your claim. If you have been convicted of a felony or a crime of dishonesty (like petit theft) you can be asked if it’s less than ten years old on the witness stand. People don't like hearing this, but it is admissible in court. Then there is surveillance. Insurance companies hire private investigators to follow people around all the time. These private investigators frequently film people who have claimed injuries from car accidents. It is perfectly legal and a way insurance companies try to "catch" people doing something inconsistent with their claimed injuries. Insurance companies during litigation, that is after a lawsuit is filed, can hire doctors of their choice to examine you and give opinions as to whether you were injured or not from the accident. You can guess how these opinions turn out most of the time. Finally, there is social media like Facebook, Instagram or TikTok. It is extremely common for insurance companies to comb through your social media to find anything can to prove you weren't hurt. Did you post a photograph from a vacation? They get to use that. I'm sure there are things I haven't thought of, so I'll add to this as more misconceptions arise.

HOW NOT TO GET YOUR CAR SEARCHED AND GET ARRESTED A frequent issue motorists run across is traffic stops that lead to searches that lead to arrests. There are a number of common-sense rules to avoid traffic stops, but more equally important are steps to take to avoid arrests. First, your car. Are all your lights working, is there a headlight out or tag light out. Check your car every time you get into it to make sure these lights are functioning properly. It is extremely common to get pulled over for a tag light or headlight out. Is the registration sticker on your tag valid. People overlook this all the time. If your registration is expired you should take care of that immediately. There is a yellow sticker, in Florida, that is affixed to the tag and this sticker has a month and year that usually corresponds to the birth date of the person the car is registered to (but not always). We see many traffic stops based the claim that window tint is too dark. This is purely a judgment call by police officers and it appears there is no real criteria by which officers are examined or tested to know if they really have the ability to judge whether a tint is unlawful just on eyesight. At this point it doesn’t seem like courts in Florida are too concerned about mistakes officers make on judging whether tint is too dark or not. Officers do make traffic stops based on tint where they are wrong. Police officers carry a device that allows them to measure window tint after a traffic stop. So what is the solution? There is not a real black and white answer to this question. My suggestion is if you having the windows on your car tinted make sure the people doing it have testing devices that verify the tinting complies with the law. If you are stopped based on a claim your tint is too dark I would highly suggest you ask to officer to test the window. Some other common-sense suggestions are: know where your driver license is, know where your proof of insurance is and know where your registration is. Not being able to retrieve these items in a reasonably timely fashion can lead to suspicion which can lead to further investigation. It is also common that when people move they do not update the address on their license. This is actually a violation of the law. You have a very short window to do this. Try to take care of this as soon as possible. Don’t have open containers of alcohol in the car. Don’t drink in the car. Don’t have joints, blunts or other marijuana items in the car that create a smell. Smell of marijuana will get your car searched. If you have a firearm in the car make sure it is securely encased, preferably in a holster with the fastener snapped. An open firearm seen by police is going to create a potentially dangerous situation. If you are stopped it is probably advisable to tell police you are legally in possession of a firearm and let them know where it is. If you have a felony conviction do not drive a car with a gun in it. Drug paraphernalia is going to get your car searched. Don’t have it in the car. Remember the police can look through windows open or closed, they can use flashlights to look into your car. In short, make sure your vehicle’s registration is up to date, have required documents like your driver license, don’t have tint too dark, make sure the equipment on the vehicle is in proper condition, don’t have open alcohol in the car or drugs and have firearms secured. Use your common-sense and stay safe.

It is extremely common to slip, trip and fall in a situation where there is an unexpected hazard. This can be in a store, a business, restaurant, a sidewalk or someone's home. It is important to understand that if you are injured and want to consider whether you should attempt to hold someone responsible for your injuries you must take steps to protect yourself immediately. What can you do to help yourself. So first, in most situations. particularly in a store, an employee or passerby will show up almost immediately. It cannot be emphasized enough, GET THEIR NAME AND NUMBER WITHOUT DELAY. Second, if you have a phone photograph what caused the fall whether it was liquid, a crack in pavement or whatever. It cannot be emphasized enough that witnesses disappear and the identify of employees in stores, for example, become forgotten within days of the incident. I cannot count the number of times a client has told me there were people all around, including employees and they didn't get anybody's name. In follow up claims or litigation the store cannot seem to produce the names of employee who was not only present, but sometimes actually caused the incident. it is extremely important to understand a business is not liable just because you fell on their premises. For them to be liable there has to be negligence. Indeed, even the fact that you may have fallen on liquid in an aisle at store does not make the business liable. There has to be proof of negligence. For example, in the scenario of falling on a liquid, how long had it been there, what color was it, is there circumstantial proof that it had been on the floor long enough for employees to have discovered it and cleaned it before you fell. It cannot be emphasized enough. KNOW WHY YOU FELL. The best time to figure this out is right after it happened. Was there water leaking from a cooler, was there spilled liquid from an item stocked on a nearby shelf. Look at your surroundings. Were there shopping cart tracks in the liquid, (showing that it had been there for a while). Whatever it is, is going to get cleaned up almost as soon as you report it and then the evidence will be gone. The name of the employee who cleaned is likely to disappear as well. These cases are difficult. The more you do to help yourself on the scene the better your chances of a favorable outcome. If there are no witnesses or an employee does not show up on the scene of your fall, report it to management immediately. Don't finish shopping, don't go home and come back. REPORT IT IMMEDIA'TELY. Demand a copy of the incident report. They may not give it to you, but ask for it anyway. Stores and businesses typically have management fill out incident reports. Get the name of the manager or person who took down information from you. Again, the identity of these people has a way of becoming a mystery later on that the business can't seem solve. Don't delay in seeking medical treatment. If you're in pain do something about it. Going to a lawyer before you seek medical treatment is a bad idea. The more you help yourself the more we can help you.