Author Archives: Jay Butchko

Why Do So Few Domestic Violence Arrests Lead To Criminal Prosecution?
When the police arrive at your house because of a domestic violence call, it is probably after a series of fights that escalated but then deescalated quickly, before the police could get involved. In some ways, a domestic violence arrest is a point of no return; the family law courts certainly take it as… Read More »

Three Men Face Charges For Broward County Real Estate Theft Conspiracy
Some things are harder to steal than others. Many items are easy enough to transfer from the rightful owner’s house or from a retail store and into your pocket or backpack. Vehicle theft requires you to do some fancy wiring and then put your foot on the gas before anyone else figures out what… Read More »

Kodak Black Avoids Prison After Positive Drug Test
Bill Kapri, a recording artist who performs under the stage name Kodak Black, has been a fixture of South Florida’s hip hop scene since he was in his teens. He has also had his share of legal troubles, only some of which have to do with drugs. In the summer of 2022, Kapri was… Read More »

Car Dealership Employee Faces Theft Charges For Paying Herself Unauthorized Bonuses
Until recently, Ariel Rutenbeck worked at a Chevrolet dealership in Clearwater. News sources do not indicate her position title, but they did say that she was one of only two employees who had access to the dealership’s payroll system. The company’s Chief Financial Officer conducted an audit of the payroll system when reports showed… Read More »

The Best Way To Protect Yourself From Arbitrary Driver’s License Suspensions Is To Hire A Criminal Defense Lawyer
Cars are as inevitable a part of the landscape in South Florida as palm trees. The shapely automobiles of South Beach, Clematis Street, and Jupiter Inlet are truly a sight for sore eyes, while the bumper to bumper traffic on the roads that lead to and from I-95 is as much of an eyesore… Read More »

Is Super Meth The Next Big Drug Epidemic?
Every so often, the media makes a big deal about a new addition to the drug supply. The media hype often comes with a heavy dose of stereotypes about the users of those drugs. All of those feature stories on the evening news about inner city crackheads, trailer park meth heads, and apathetic young… Read More »

New Study Supports Ketamine Therapy As A Treatment For Cocaine Use Disorder
If you are judging by the number of overdose deaths, fentanyl is the most dangerous drug out there. In fact, opioids have dominated the headlines about addiction, overdose, and drug-related crime in the United States for more than a decade. Many people who have suffered from opioid use disorder began their relationship with opioids… Read More »

Drug Enforcement Administration Classifies Delta-8 As A Controlled Substance
A few years ago, the green iguana was the most noteworthy ubiquitous green thing in the Sunshine State, but by now the iguanas have become such an ordinary part of the landscape that it is no more surprising to one than it is to see an American alligator or an ageless octogenarian. Like so… Read More »

Delray Beach Man Faces Criminal Charges For Threatening FAU Employees By Email
The First Amendment right to free speech protects you from criminal prosecution in the event that you express an unpopular opinion or criticize the public actions of a public figure. Acts of speech that threaten specific acts of violence against specific people, however, still count as crimes, and the First Amendment does not protect… Read More »

Delray Beach Doctor Who Supervised Drug Testing For Dozens Of Addiction Treatment Practices Gets Prison Sentence For Healthcare Fraud
Plenty of newsworthy stories about COVID relief fraud have come out of Florida, but it doesn’t take a pandemic to make Floridians look at widespread ill health and see dollar signs. Healthcare is big business everywhere in the United States, but this is especially the case in Florida, where you can hardly take ten… Read More »