Broward County | Sex-Crime Defense
An investigation involving a sexual allegation can affect your family, work, and sense of safety before a charge is filed. Miller & Jacobs offers a private starting point for understanding the accusation, the available evidence, and the decisions ahead. The first step is a careful review, not a public response.
Have investigators contacted you or served court papers? Call 954-465-8733 with the agency name and any deadline. Follow existing orders. Do not contact the reporting person, pressure witnesses, delete records, or post a defense of the allegation online.
Explain the concern through an appropriate channel
Review the law and facts of each allegation
Preserve context and examine the evidence
Representation from our Pompano Beach office
The exact allegation, evidence, and immediate obligations
Three Starting Points for a Defense Review
What acts are police looking into? Has a charge been filed? What have you been asked to do next? Each sexual offense has its own legal requirements. A useful first meeting sorts out these points before turning to possible defenses or penalties.
Read Florida’s Sexual-Battery StatuteProtect the Process
Save an investigator’s request and seek advice about responding. Do not lie or interfere with the investigation. Follow no-contact and other court restrictions even if someone invites communication. Tell your lawyer about any separate school, employment, family, or injunction proceeding.
Countywide Case Coordination
Identify the actual investigating agency and every case number. Related proceedings may have different deadlines and restrictions. Our Pompano Beach sex-crime defense page addresses an early private review, and our Fort Lauderdale sex-crime guide discusses defense preparation. This county page connects the evidence and decisions across the case. For additional local context, see our Hollywood sex-crime defense guide.
Preserve the Record Lawfully
Tell counsel where relevant information may exist. Keep ordinary records you already lawfully hold unchanged. If material may be illegal to possess or share, do not open, copy, download, or forward it. Ask your lawyer how it should be addressed through lawful procedures.
Keep the papers describing the allegation. Write down the sequence you remember and mark uncertain dates or times. Separate what you personally know from what others have told you since the investigation began.
Identify relevant ordinary messages and the surrounding conversation. A selected screenshot may omit timing or context. Do not delete unfavorable material or contact another person to create a new explanation for an old exchange.
Identify lawful records that may address where people were or who used an account or device. Explain shared access accurately. A location or account entry needs interpretation; it should not be treated as conclusive without review.
Tell counsel about every interview, statement, and document you signed. Explain who was present and whether a recording exists. Your lawyer can review the circumstances and the actual words rather than relying on a short summary.
The existence or absence of a test result does not by itself answer every allegation. Your lawyer can assess the relevant records, their limits, and whether qualified expert review is needed. Do not try to obtain another person’s private records improperly.
Identify people with firsthand information and explain what they may know. Leave appropriate outreach to counsel. Do not pressure witnesses, suggest wording, or encourage anyone to delete or withhold information.
Preservation is not permission to redistribute. Give counsel a description of relevant devices, accounts, and record holders. Do not forward intimate images or potentially unlawful material to prove a point. Lawful handling is part of the defense plan.
Read the Actual Statute
Sexual battery, lewd-or-lascivious offenses, and other sexual charges are not interchangeable. The ages involved, the alleged act, and the specific statutory provision matter. Consent is not an available defense to every offense, and lack of physical resistance does not establish consent. Start with the actual charge rather than a general assumption.
Review Florida’s Registration StatuteThe Charged Conduct
Read the allegation and statute together. A defense review should identify the disputed facts and the evidence offered for each required element. Separate counts may raise different questions and should not be treated as one broad accusation.
Age and Consent Rules
The law may treat age, capacity, authority, and consent differently depending on the offense. For example, Florida section 800.04 bars certain consent and mistaken-age defenses. Discuss the precise provision before relying on a claimed agreement or belief.
Evidence and Reliability
Review consistency, context, identification, and the sources of information. An allegation should be investigated carefully, without assuming that reporting behavior or a lack of injury proves truth or falsity. Focus on evidence relevant to the actual charge.
Consequences
Ask how the case could affect registration, supervision, contact with others, and work. Each charge needs its own review. A short sentence may still have lasting effects. Find out what duties and limits a proposed outcome would create.
Start With a Private Case Review
Bring the request or notice and explain what needs attention
Call 954-465-8733You do not need to prepare a public defense before seeking advice. Tell us whether the matter is an investigation, an arrest, or a filed case, and identify the next date. The consultation can clarify the work needed and how to share information appropriately.
Request a Free ConsultationA Local Place to Discuss the Case
1600 S. Federal Highway, Suite 1101
Pompano Beach, FL 33062
Prepare a Fact-Based Defense
Our Broward County criminal-defense hub explains broader investigation and court issues. Sexual allegations call for careful coordination of statements, digital records, forensic evidence, and legal requirements. The defense should be built on that work rather than an assumption about how a case must end.
Broward Criminal-Defense OverviewThe Stage of the Matter
A request to speak with police, an arrest, and a formal charge are different stages. Explain where the case stands and what response is due next. Keep any written request or notice for your lawyer.
The Complete Timeline
Write an honest timeline of the events that matter. Note how you know each date or time and mark any gaps. Do not guess at missing details just to make the account sound complete.
Digital Attribution
Account names, devices, access, and file data can raise different questions about the proof. Tell your lawyer about shared use or a dispute about who created or sent the material. Do not alter devices or seek material that may be illegal to check the claim yourself.
Statements and Context
Compare each statement with the setting in which it was made and other records. Your lawyer can weigh differences without treating each one as proof that the charge fails. Point out where a full recording exists.
Legal Challenges
Searches, interviews, identification procedures, and other evidence may raise legal questions. Ask what a proposed challenge addresses and what a ruling would change. A defense should not depend on a promised technicality.
The Decisions Ahead
Discuss what is known, what is disputed, and what further work could change the picture. Review any offer for the offense, sentence, and duties that would last beyond the case. Do not focus only on the main penalty.
Dignity and Careful Preparation
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A serious defense begins with listening carefully, asking precise questions, and explaining the next decision in plain language.
Tell us about the effect on work, family, housing, and other responsibilities. These concerns belong in the planning discussion. They should be addressed without public attacks, pressure on others, or promises that an investigation can be kept out of every public record.
Build the Plan Around the Case
The plan should identify immediate obligations, lawful evidence preservation, investigation needs, and future decisions. Ask how updates will be provided and how to share a new request or notice. Clear communication matters when several proceedings overlap.
01
Identify the agency, filed counts if any, and current court orders. Check the next date and attendance instructions. Continue following restrictions while a change is being considered.
02
Identify ordinary records already lawfully held and other potential sources. Do not delete or redistribute material. Seek advice about any file or device that requires special legal handling.
03
Compare accounts, messages, evidence used to identify a person, and forensic evidence. List missing records and key questions. Ask whether an expert could help review the proof.
04
Apply the actual statute to the alleged conduct and disputed proof. Evaluate any supported motion and explain its purpose. Avoid treating general online advice as a defense to a different charge.
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Review investigation, negotiation, and trial preparation in light of the record. Ask what other information could change the recommendation and which decision needs attention now.
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Before accepting an offer, ask about registration, supervision, restrictions such as contact limits, and other effects. Discuss record relief and related cases separately. Keep the court orders and written rules.
Know What Representation Includes
Confirm the attorney handling the matter and the work covered by the engagement. A criminal case, injunction, employment process, or appeal may require distinct attention. Identify those issues at the start instead of assuming one agreement includes everything.
Investigation status and court obligations
Lawful preservation and record requests
Statements, digital evidence, and expert needs
Charge and long-term consequence review
Motions, negotiation, and trial preparation
Ask how sensitive information should be provided. Do not send intimate or potentially unlawful material through a general contact form. Describe the issue first so the firm can explain the appropriate next step.
Meet the Defense Attorneys
Partner | Trial Attorney
Review Partner Mark J. Miller’s professional background. Ask how the firm would approach the evidence, preparation, and decisions in your case.
Mark Miller's Professional Background
Partner | Trial Attorney
Learn about Partner Rick S. Jacobs. Discuss the communication and court responsibilities involved in a Broward County defense.
Rick Jacobs's Professional BackgroundBefore the First Conversation
Bring the notices you have and explain what information may exist elsewhere. Be candid about earlier statements and difficult facts. Do not contact another person to strengthen your account or collect sensitive material through improper means.
Collect arrest paperwork, charging documents, hearing notices, and investigator requests. Include the agency name and every case number.
Bring release terms, no-contact orders, injunctions, and any related written instruction. Tell counsel about a practical problem without assuming you can disregard the order.
Describe devices, accounts, ordinary communications, and other sources that may matter. Ask before transmitting sensitive material. Do not download, copy, or forward potentially illegal files.
Write down relevant events in your own words. Mark uncertain details and identify what you learned later. Include prior interviews or conversations about the allegation.
List people with firsthand information and what they may know. Provide contact information you lawfully have and let counsel plan appropriate outreach.
Mention school, work, family-court, licensing, or other matters involving the same events. Bring notices so deadlines and scope can be coordinated.
Questions Before the Next Step
The actual charge and current stage determine the advice. These answers identify common starting questions for a private case review.
Yes. An investigation can involve important decisions before a formal charge is filed. Keep the investigator’s request and discuss the allegation and response with counsel. Do not assume that an informal conversation has no legal significance.
No. Different offenses have different rules, including age and capacity requirements. Florida section 800.04 excludes certain consent and mistaken-age defenses. The precise statute must be reviewed before relying on either argument.
No. Florida’s sexual-battery law does not equate a lack of physical resistance with consent. The alleged conduct and applicable legal requirements need a careful factual review without assumptions about how a person should have reacted.
Do not contact the reporting person to resolve or discuss the allegation without legal advice, and never violate an order. Direct or indirect pressure can create additional problems. Let counsel assess appropriate lawful steps.
Do not open, copy, download, or forward material that may be illegal to possess or share. Describe the issue to counsel first and ask about lawful handling. Do not delete evidence or alter a device to interfere with the investigation.
Registration depends on the applicable legal criteria and disposition, not simply a broad allegation label. It must be reviewed before a decision. Do not assume that a short sentence or withhold eliminates registration concerns.
Not automatically. Separate proceedings may have their own orders and deadlines. Bring all notices and explain related issues so counsel can identify what remains active and what representation includes.
Call with the agency or court papers, next date, and immediate concern. Ask how to share sensitive information appropriately. You can begin by describing the issue without transmitting intimate or potentially unlawful material.
