Facts:
My client was visiting Florida a year ago. He rented a boat and during the trip got a ticket for driving too fast in a no wake zone. He went back home and due to some mix up, the ticket did not get paid. He went on about his life until he got a notice in the mail that he had to be in court on a misdemeanor warrant for his arrest!
He wrote to the judge and explained the situation, but he never heard back. He then hired me to straighten out the problem.
The Case:
I researched what had happened. When the boating ticket for $116 did not get paid, the Pinellas County State Attorney’s Office charged him with Failure to Comply, a misdemeanor. A warrant for his arrest was issued.
My client is a businessman from out of state who had never been in trouble before. He clearly never meant to commit a crime. The fact that he was now being charged with a misdemeanor and might have to go to jail over a $116 ticket was ridiculous.
I instructed him on how to pay the boating ticket. As soon as that was done, I ran into court and had the warrant withdrawn. I then spoke to the prosecutor and explained the situation.
The Result:
Within about a month, the prosecutor dismissed the Failure to Comply charge. My client never had to go to jail or come back to Florida. The charge will not affect his record. He was very happy with the speed of our office and the communication in obtaining this result. I felt it was ridiculous that the prosecutor charged him with a misdemeanor in the first place, and I was happy to fix it.