Sarasota Tackles City’s Growing Homeless Population

14Jul

Sarasota Tackles City’s Growing Homeless Population

July 14, 2016 by Derek Byrd

In Sarasota, Florida, homeless people are becoming more of a mainstay than not. There are far too many, and many of them are homeless because they lost jobs that were good due to the recession.

Sarasota can see the homeless and poor without help, and right next to them is the very wealthy that have nothing to want for. In the city, there is one shelter for all the homeless people, but they are not allowed to sleep outside or in their cars without having to face some sort of harassment, or criminal complaint.

The only shelter in the area can only fit so many homeless per night, so when it is full, the other plighted individuals must find somewhere else to go. Since the weather is nice all year round in that part of the country, they could let them have a camp of some sort, or open more shelters so that they do not have to sleep on sidewalks, benches, and in some cases on streets. These people, are not all alcoholics, or drug attics. No, by far, not, and there are children that are affected.

There is an anti-panhandling law in this city. Those that are homeless, with nowhere to go and no food, cannot ask others for help, or they might reap repercussions from the law. This can hurt the homeless even more, because they can’t get work or housing, and then, they have no where to go. It is almost as if the city just turns its back, and wants them all to die.

The city also closes the parks at dark so that the homeless can’t sleep there, and they have taken out benches, and other such items that might enable a homeless person to sleep there. They have also had outreach teams try to get the homeless to go to the shelter, but there is no guarantee that they will get to stay. It is the hope that they will open up an emergency shelter that can at least help in some way. The Salvation Army will find somewhere for them to stay, but the city is finding that many of them will not accept the help.

The homeless problem will get worse, if it persists. Sarasota needs to talk to other hard hit areas around the country that have a lot of homeless. They need to make more shelters, camps or some place for them to sleep, eat and get back to work and life.

13May

Recent News from the Sarasota Herald- Tribune

May 13, 2015 by Derek Byrd

News from the Herald Tribune

Earlier this May, the Herald Tribune wrote a piece regarding the false arrest of Cooper Moore, for an outstanding aggravated battery assault from June 2014. Cooper was arrested by local police as soon as he landed on the Grand Cayman islands on a vacation with his current girlfriend. While he was being held up, Cooper asked the police to explain why he was detained, but they did not give an explanation and instead locked him up.

At a loss for justice, Mr. Cooper’s parents contacted the Byrd Law Firm, which in collaboration with a private investigator put together a case that was aimed to clearing Cooper Moore’s name. According to the documents, Cooper was wrongfully accused for partaking in a fight at a Florida Smokin’ Joes. However, the investigators found that Moore was not involved, and a witness revealed the correct name of the person who was involved. Due to these findings the charges were quickly dropped.

According to an officer who first responded to the scene, Moore’s name was first brought to him by a bar employee who showed him the suspects Facebook page. Officer Dodge, who was on the scene said that “people lie to us everyday and they don’t want to tell the truth especially if they are associated with someone involved in a crime.”

According to The Innocence Project, misidentification of witnesses in regards to the crime scene is one of the leading reasons of wrongfully convicting and imprisoning people in the United States. The article also points out that the recollection of witness memory of the crime scene is even less credible after they have been shown countless of photographs of the alleged victim.

Further evidence of the case used by lawyers at The Byrd Law Firm was Moore’s alibi and the fact that he was never contacted by the Sarasota Police Department. Cooper was never informed of his alleged involvement in the bar fight, and a warrant for his arrest was issued shortly after. Moore was not aware of these developments until policemen picked him up months later while he was vacationing with his girlfriend.

Derek Byrd, attorney for Cooper Moore, states that the findings regarding his client and other suspects should have been turned over to a detective for the facts to be checked and eventually cleared. Cooper told his attorney that during the night in question, he was home and had records to prove that he never left his apartment.

With the help of his attorney, Derek Byrd, Moore was able to clear his name and no longer face 8 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. He hopes that the police find the right person responsible for this fight and is willing to help in any way he can.

22Jan

Privacy Infringement Upon Fake Facebook Account

January 22, 2015 by Derek Byrd

Derek Byrd A recent lawsuit was settled between the United States and a New York resident who claimed that the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) created a Facebook profile page featuring her in skimpy attire, other compromising situations, as well as photos of her and her relatives and underage son. Although the government does not admit to any fault, they did settle with the plaintiff for the amount of 134,000 dollars.

The profile, which was created with the woman’s real information, was intended to draw in people who were suspected to of being part of a large drug ring. The plaintiff stated that the fake profile Facebook page depicted her as conspiring with law enforcement, which put her life in danger. However, prosecutors have refuted her charges on grounds that she had consented to the profile creation when she allowed the government to use her cellphone and the available data in it.

The justice department is reviewing the files particular to this case, as well as federal practices that deal with public personal information, such as photos, text messages and Google searches. Mariko Hirose, Staff Attorney for the New York Civil Liberties Union, believes that these allegations highlight the immediate need of reviewing old procedures that include law enforcement regulations and how they deal with peoples’ digital identities.

The fake Facebook profile page depicts the New York resident posing on a car in her undergarments, as well as pictures that show her son and other relatives. The agent who impersonated the woman, also send friend requests to a wanted fugitive under said account. Her attorneys focused on creating a case making dealt not only with their client’s infringement on personal information, but also the overarching problem of privacy in this digital age.

A Facebook spokesperson commented on the matter “We ask that you refrain from publishing the personal information of others without their consent. Claiming to be another person, creating a false presence for an organization, or creating multiple accounts undermines community and violates Facebook’s terms,” and has since removed the profile.

23Dec

South Florida Law Firm Convicted Of Fraud

December 23, 2014 by Derek Byrd

Derek Byrd This month, six attorneys were convicted in a case that included a billion dollar fraud from partners and lawyers at a South Florida firm. The organization’s ex administrator helped prosecutors pin down the attorneys involved in the scheme, in exchange for cutting down her prison stay from ten to five years.

The administrator, Debra Villagas, is now working with prosecutors in order to appeal her plea bargain to the U.S. District Judge William Zloch. However, if Villagas and her lawyers succeed, that would mean that the firm’s CFO would also be released sooner than expected in the upcoming year.

The former partner of Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler, is scheduled to serve a 50 year sentence in the federal prison system, but insiders are saying that his time might also be cut short if he chooses to cooperate with federal agents.

Villagas has helped convict a total of six lawyers from RRA, one from another firm in South Florida and civilians who are not involved in the justice system. Villaga’s scheduled court date in relation to the Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler case interfered with her appearance in court for her husband’s murder case.

In a report by the Sun Sentinel, a former county sheriff lieutenant was also placed under arrest for acting as one of Rothstein’s “enforcers.” In a claim, the lieutenant was accused of falsely arresting the ex- spouse of one of Rothstein’s lawyers in order for him to gain full custody of his son. This all came into light after Villegas was placed under questioning from federal agents.

After RRA’s case became public in 2008, the firm went through a great deal of financial difficulties, until it declared bankruptcy in early 2009. The investors who were deceived by the law firm, were awarded close to $67 million on behalf of disbarred attorney Scott Rothstein.