Circumstances leading to assault and battery charges are nearly infinite. Common situations include:

• Bar fights, often fueled by alcohol
• Road rage
• Domestic violence

Any conviction for assault or battery will leave you with a criminal record. It doesn’t matter if you believe that a minor incident was exaggerated. If a criminal court considers you guilty, a misdemeanor or felony conviction to your name is almost sure to complicate your life in ways you cannot now predict. And when a weapon is involved, assault charges will become aggravated assault charges, which are much more serious and come with harsher punishments.

It is, therefore, essential that you find a defense lawyer experienced in assault and battery, you can trust to vigorously pursue the most favorable outcome attainable in your case, such as:

• Charges dismissed
• Reduced charges
• No jail time
• Probation
• Deferred sentencing
• Lessened penalties

Even if you were, in fact, involved in an altercation, you may be able to avoid a criminal record by agreeing to take part in anger management therapy. Self-defense may be a valid defense. The facts of your case will help your attorney devise and recommend a defense strategy most likely to succeed.

Weapons & Firearms Charges: 10–20–Life

The most well-known of Florida’s firearms laws is commonly known as 10–20–Life. The law can be found in Florida Statute section 775.087. 10–20–Life requires a mandatory 10-year minimum sentence for a conviction for listed violent felonies where the defendant actually possessed a firearm. If the weapon was fired during the commission of the crime, the mandatory minimum becomes 20 years. And if someone was seriously injured as result of the discharge, the minimum is 25 years up to life in prison.

10–20–Life has been revised in the last few years to give judges and prosecutors more discretion. This was largely due to outcry from judges, attorneys and family members after some unintended outcomes. One case that stands out involved a father who is currently serving 20 years for firing a warning shot during an argument with his daughter’s abusive boyfriend. He is scheduled to be released in 2028, after serving every day of the 20-year sentence. Thankfully, there are now exceptions for aggravated assault that do not require the imposition of mandatory minimum prison sentences.

Even with these changes, use of a firearm during the commission of one of the felonies listed in the statute will still result in a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 10 years.

Weapons & Firearms Charges: Prior Convictions

If you have any prior felony conviction and are found to be in actual possession of a firearm, you must be sentenced to a minimum of three years in prison.

If you were a previously adjudicated delinquent as a juvenile for a felony crime, you cannot possess a firearm or other concealed weapon until you are 25 years old. There is no mandatory minimum for a conviction for possession of a firearm by a person previously adjudicated delinquent, but it is still a second-degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

All mandatory minimum sentences must be served in their entirety. There is no gain time or early release.

Florida Criminal Defense Lawyers

Contact a respected criminal defense attorney at Avera & Smith to get your defense strategy discussions in motion. If you or someone you know is facing criminal charges in Florida, arrange to speak with a criminal defense attorney at Avera & Smith without delay. We represent college students, individuals caught up in a domestic violence scenario, neighbors engaged in altercations and all types of people accused of harming others.