Pumphrey Law Blog

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense Social Share

In Florida, criminal mischief is a serious offense. Criminal mischief occurs when someone willfully and maliciously damages the property of another. It can be classified as either a misdemeanor or felony, depending on the value of the damage. When someone says “criminal mischief,” most think of acts like vandalizing a building via graffiti, breaking someone’s window, or a similar act …

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense Social Share

In Florida, criminal mischief is a very serious offense. It occurs when someone willfully and maliciously damages the property of another person without their consent. Depending on the value of that damage, criminal mischief can either be considered a misdemeanor or a felony. In some cases, repair costs may be used to calculate the damage to someone’s property for purposes …

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense Social Share

In Florida, someone may be charged with online solicitation of a minor (Fla. Stat. 847.0135(3)) after sending an allegedly solicitous digital communication to what turns out to be an undercover officer. In such a case, a viable defense may be to argue entrapment – that the defendant was not predisposed to commit the act and was induced to do so …

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense, Theft/Property Crimes Social Share

In Florida, criminal mischief and theft can either be charged as a felony or a misdemeanor. Criminal mischief (Fla. Stat. 806.13) occurs when someone willfully and maliciously damages the property of another. It is also commonly referred to as vandalism. Theft (Fla. Stat. 812.014) occurs when someone obtains, uses, or attempts to obtain or use the property of another for …

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense, Violent Crimes Social Share

In Florida, aggravated assault is a very serious criminal offense. If someone is charged, one of the most common questions is whether aggravated assault (Fla. Stat. 784.021) is a felony or a misdemeanor. The answer is that aggravated assault charges are always a felony in Florida. Aggravated assault can occur in one of two ways: Aggravated assault with a deadly …

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense, Violent Crimes Social Share

In Florida, aggravated assault (Fla. Stat. 784.021) is a very serious felony offense. It is a third-degree felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a $5,000 fine. Aggravated assault can occur in one of two ways: Aggravated assault with the use of a deadly weapon without intent to kill  Aggravated assault with intent to commit a separate …

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense, Theft/Property Crimes Social Share

If someone is charged with burglary (Fla. Stat. 810.02) in Florida, they will quickly realize this is a very serious felony offense. Thus, it is important to understand lesser-included offenses – as requesting an instruction on a lesser-included offense at trial may lead to someone avoiding a conviction for burglary (and instead being found guilty of misdemeanor trespass, or nothing …

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense Social Share

In Florida, a call to 911 can be used in court if it meets specific criteria. While the audio of a 911 call is not always admissible at a criminal proceeding, certain characteristics may allow it to be introduced into evidence. Depending on the content of a 911 call, whether or not it is played can impact the outcome of …

August 28, 2025 Don Pumphrey, Jr. Criminal Defense, Violent Crimes Social Share

In Florida, someone may fire “warning shots” in response to an imminent threat of death or great bodily harm. These are shots that are not intended to kill or even injure a victim – but are instead fired to indicate that someone is armed and willing to use additional deadly force if this becomes truly necessary to defend themselves or …