Boca Raton

January 12, 2021

Boca Man Accused of Assaulting Father and Female Family Member | Palm Beach County Domestic Violence Defense Lawyers Whittel & Melton

A Boca Raton man was released from the Palm Beach County Jail Thursday after being arrested Wednesday for allegedly assaulting his father and a female family member.

According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, the man was apparently fighting with his 75-year-old father when another family member arrived hoping to stop the dispute. The man is accused of picking the woman up with both his hands around her neck.

Police included in their report that the father had bandages on both his forearms and blood was starting to seep through them.

The accused was charged with battery on a person over age 65 as well as domestic battery.

Sometimes personal conflicts between family members can result in domestic violence charges. Any type of arrest should be taken seriously, so it is very important to obtain legal help right away. Police, prosecutors, and Florida law do not take domestic violence arrests lightly, so you must protect your legal rights immediately so that you can avoid hefty fines, jail time, and even restricted access to your home and children.

Our Palm Beach County Domestic Violence Defense Lawyers at Whittel & Melton want to help you avoid a domestic violence conviction whenever possible. As former prosecutors and criminal defense attorneys, we have handled numerous cases where our clients have been accused of domestic violence. We can put our experience to work for you and help you through your unique journey with the criminal justice system. Our number one goal is to limit the criminal consequences you are facing after someone like a family member or spouse has accused you of violence. We will handle every aspect of your case from the investigative phase through trial (when necessary). We will do whatever can be done to have your charges reduced or dismissed entirely, but every case is different and presents its own set of challenges.

What Constitutes Domestic Violence?

A person can be charged with domestic violence in the state of Florida for assaulting or harming the following individuals:

A spouse or domestic partner
A boyfriend, girlfriend, lover
A family member
A co-parent
A roommate or other household member that may or may not be a relative

Domestic violence does not just take the form of physical abuse. It can include assault and battery, but can also be classified as psychological abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, making threats, intimidation, harassment, stalking, and even exploitation.

Any time there is evidence that points to abuse, prosecutors are hesitant to reduce or dismiss charges. However, it is quite common for the victim in these cases to not wish to proceed with prosecuting their spouse, partner or family member. In these cases it may be possible to get the charge dismissed so that both parties can move forward with their lives and leave this incident in the past. Continue Reading

May 23, 2019

South Florida Tourist Accident Attorneys

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Key West draw in millions of visitors every year. Some come to shop, take in the bustling nightlife, relax on the beautiful beaches, dine at renowned restaurants, or even take in a Marlins or Dolphins game. South Florida can offer up a little piece of paradise to everyone that chooses to vacation here.

Common South Florida Tourist Injuries

Whether it’s business or pleasure that has taken you to South Florida, you can always face dangers. While no one expects to be injured on vacation, the reality is that it can happen. South Florida tourists may be involved in:

Car accidents
Hotel assaults
Boat accidents
Bus accidents
Taxi-cab crashes
Pedestrian injuries
Slip and fall or trip and fall accidents
Swimming or water-related injuries
Cruise ship accidents

Tourist Attractions in South Florida

Yes, it is true that accidents can really happen anywhere. Some of the most popular tourist attractions in South Florida include the Miami Seaquarium, snorkeling at the first undersea park in the US as they explore John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, Jungle Island, Miami Dade College’s Museum of Art and Design, Miami Children’s Museum, Museum of Discovery and Science, the Bonnet House Museum and Gardens, the Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park, NSU Art Museum, the Old Fort Lauderdale Village and Museum, the Pérez Art Museum, the Stonewall National Museum and Archives, the Stranahan House, the Bass, the Kampong, the Wolfsonian, Vizcaya Museum & Gardens, Everglades National Park, Bayside Marketplace, Little Havana and Calle Ocho, American Airlines Arena, Zoo Miami, Coral Castle, Key Biscayne and Crandon Park, and many more.

Whether you are a sports fan coming to take in a Miami Marlins baseball game or a Miami Dolphins football game, or are attending a concert, or attending a museum or beaches, suffering a serious injury can land you in the hospital in an unfamiliar place. If your injuries are severe, you will not be able to return home for work or school and you will need immediate legal help to make sure you recover full and fair financial compensation for your suffering.

Call Us If You Are Injured As A Tourist in South Florida

If you, a family member or friend is injured while on vacation, you may not know what to do. You are away from home and unfamiliar with the city and state you are in. In order to file a personal injury claim, you need to secure local legal representation, as your injury lawyer must be admitted in the state of Florida.

Our South Florida Injury Attorneys at Whittel & Melton are happy to serve Florida residents and tourists alike hold any negligent parties responsible for causing your injuries. If you were injured in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, or any other city in Florida, we can help advise you of your legal rights and options to pursue your case. We offer completely free consultations, and will never collect any upfront fees. We work on a strict contingency basis, and only get paid when your case is resolved.

April 10, 2017

Boca Raton Woman Gets 4 Years for Wire Fraud

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

A Boca Raton woman was sentenced to four years and three months in prison for submitting fraudulent student loan applications online.

According to investigators, the 31-year-old tricked nursing students at the Coral Ridge Training School into giving out their personal information, which she then used to sign up for loans without their consent.

At the time, the woman was an employee at the school, officials said.

Many students found out about the unauthorized loans when they started receiving letters from the loan servicing companies.

Wire Fraud is a very serious criminal offense under federal law. A conviction usually results in stiff fines and lengthy time behind bars. There are 2 major factors that outline if wire fraud was committed:

The accused willfully intended to devise a scheme or means to defraud another person of money or property with the intent to defraud.
The accused committed the scheme through the use of interstate wire facilities, such as telephone, television, email or the Internet.

If you are being investigated for or have been arrested for wire fraud it is vital to the outcome of your case to obtain legal help right away. These types of crimes are usually investigated over a solid period of time by police as they build their case. It is not uncommon for police to reach out to those suspected of committing wire fraud to try and gather more evidence against the accused. If you are under investigation for wire fraud or have already been charged, let our South Florida Wire Fraud Defense Lawyers at Whittel & Melton help you with your defense. We will make sure your rights are protected.

September 15, 2016

Man Sentenced To 16 Years In Prison For Mortgage Scam

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

A man convicted of conspiring to defraud more than 30,000 Americans out of about $31 million was sentenced on Thursday to 16 years in prison.

The California man was also ordered to pay $11.9 million in forfeiture and restitution.

The man was convicted of running a mortgage scheme from November 2011 through May 2014, causing more than 60 homeowners to lose their homes.

The man apparently oversaw about 65 telemarketers and managers in his role as general manager of sales at the company.

Prosecutors claim that the Irvine-based company persuaded homeowners in dire financial shape to modify the terms of their mortgages to make them more affordable.

Four other people convicted in the scheme are awaiting sentencing.

With the housing market where it is currently, prosecutors are going after anyone accused of mortgage fraud to the fullest extent of the law. Rest assured that they will stop at nothing to achieve a conviction for this white collar crime. Their ultimate goal is to make sure that anyone accused of mortgage fraud is proven guilty.

Loan and mortgage fraud can be complicated, and most of these cases are unique. Our South Florida Fraud Defense Lawyers at Whittel & Melton can comb through every shred of evidence in your case to filter fiction from fact, so that we establish the most powerful defense on your behalf. We can aggressively attack the prosecution’s case and make sure your rights are protected.

July 20, 2016

South Florida Doctor Gets 3 Years for Medicare Fraud

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

A South Florida doctor will spend more than three years in federal prison after pleading guilty to falsely diagnosing hundreds of patients in a Medicare fraud scheme.

Court records show the 57-year-old Delray Beach doctor was also ordered Wednesday by a federal judge to pay more than $2.1 million in restitution to the government. The man previously pleaded guilty to health care fraud.

Authorities claim the man falsely diagnosed 387 patients enrolled in the Medicare Advantage program with a rare spinal condition. The patients were enrolled in a Humana Inc. health plan that was reimbursed for each diagnosis by Medicare.

The federal program paid out $2.1 million in excess benefits, 80 percent of which went to the doctor. Almost none of the patients actually had the rare spinal condition, according to reports.

Medicare and Medicaid fraud is taken quite seriously on local, state and federal levels. It is important to note that these cases are heavily investigated before charges are brought forth. With that said, you will most likely know about the possibility of being charged long before an indictment is filed against you.

July 30, 2014

Information from Informants Now Fair Game in Criminal Discovery: Jailhouse “snitches” no longer protected by rules of criminal procedure

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

The Florida Supreme Court amended the Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure last week, stripping Florida state prosecutors of their discretion to disclose information about informants. Under a new rule that lifts the curtain on the jailhouse snitches who long have been the source of false testimony in criminal cases, juries will be provided a more complete picture of the context of an informant’s testimony.

The Innocence Commission estimates that as many as 15 percent of convictions later overturned by DNA testing involved false testimony by informants at trial and that informant perjury was a factor in nearly 50 percent of wrongful murder convictions and in 46 percent of exonerations for death row inmates.

New Procedure rules protect defendants from self-serving informant testimony

June 10, 2014

Three Men Arrested for Fraud in Palm Beach ATM conspiracy

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

Three men– a native Russian and two Latvians–were recently arrested by Federal Agents who say that the men were using skimming devices on ATMs in Palm Beach County.

Reports say that the men were charged with conspiracy to knowingly use with intent to defraud one or more counterfeit access devices and knowingly possessing with intent to defraud device-making equipment.

According to the federal complaint, the men’s apprehension started with an investigation by Customs and Border Protection officers who fell upon a package originating from Turkey at a mail hub in Kentucky. The package contained a “flexible shaft machine,” and 15 skimmers or similar devices used to capture credit card information.

February 24, 2014

Boca Raton Drug Crimes Attorney:: Most-Wanted Drug Lord Is Captured

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

On Saturday, dozens of soldiers and police officers descended on a condominium tower in Mazatlán, Mexico, acting on a tip that Joaquín Guzmán Loera — a notorious drug kingpin known as El Chapo— was hiding out in the complex.

El Chapo had eluded such raids for 13 years since escaping from prison, by many accounts in a laundry cart. With an army of guards and enforced loyalty, he reigned over a worldwide, multibillion-dollar drug empire that supplied much of the cocaine and marijuana to the United States.

Guzmán’s Sinaloa Cartel is considered the largest and most powerful trafficking organization in the world, with a reach as far as Europe and Asia, and has been a main combatant in a spasm of violence that has left tens of thousands dead in Mexico.

February 11, 2014

Boca Raton Bankruptcy Fraud Attorney: Government Objects to Reality Star Theresa Guidice’s Motion for Separate Trial

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

Real Housewives of New Jersey Reality Star Theresa Guidice and her husband “juicy” Joe Guidice are charged in U.S. District Court with Bankruptcy Fraud, Mortgage Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Wire and Mail Fraud.

The defendants’ motion for separate trials is at the center of the high profile couple’s most recent legal woes. Initially they were charged with trying to hide assets while in bankruptcy. The newest charges, conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, bank fraud, making false statements on loan applications stem from Government allegations that the couple prepared a mortgage loan application stating that Teresa Giudice worked as a real estate agent and made $15,000 a month. In reality, authorities claim she was not employed.

Call the Boca Raton Bankruptcy Attorneys at Whittel & Melton

Call the Boca Raton Bankruptcy Fraud Attorneys at Whittel & Melton

January 15, 2014

Man dies of self-inflicted gunshot wound after shooting Boca Raton woman and boy

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

The Palm Beach Post is reporting that the Boca Raton man who shot and critically injured a woman and a boy at a suburban Boca Raton home on Friday night, later died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office believes the incident was domestic violence-related.

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The shooting took place shortly after 7 p.m. in the Villa San Ramon neighborhood south of Clint Moore Road and west of Florida’s Turnpike. The 40-year-old woman was shot in the leg while the boy was reportedly shot in the abdomen. Both are expected to survive.

There was one other girl in the home, who was uninjured.

The women fled to a neighbor’s house screaming for help and a police helicopter as well as SWAT units were involved in securing the scene.

Commonly, there are mental health elements involved in domestic disputes, as appears to be the case in this event. The Boca Raton Domestic Violence Attorneys at Whittel & Melton are skilled at handling the many layers a domestic violence case may have, and handle these matters with delicacy and tact.

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