David M. Edelstein, PA

Three people are dead in Broward County in five weeks. All during police pursuits. All because of stolen vehicles.

Ronald Wilson, 74, was driving through an intersection with the right-of-way when a BSO deputy chasing a stolen Jeep slammed into his truck. He was dead within the hour.

Bonnie Bouffard, 74, pulled onto the shoulder of the Turnpike during rush hour — exactly what you're supposed to do. A PIT maneuver sent a stolen truck careening into her car. Her coworkers didn't know she was gone until she didn't show up for work the next morning.

A young woman — still unnamed — got into a van on a Sunday night and never came home.

I've spent over thirty years as a criminal defense attorney in South Florida. I know how these systems work. And I can tell you: these are not freak accidents. They are the predictable result of a pursuit culture that has never been seriously reformed — not even after Miramar, where police fired 200 rounds into rush-hour traffic and killed two innocent people.

The data is clear. Tighter pursuit policies save lives without letting criminals run free. That's not opinion — it's what the numbers show everywhere they've been tried.

Nobody gets a commendation for calling off a chase. That has to change.

I wrote about it this week. Read it and share it if you think Broward County deserves better.

Three Dead in Five Weeks: BSO's Pursuit Crisis Demands Adults in the Room | Miami Criminal Lawyer | Criminal Defense Attorney in Miami | David M. Edelstein, PA Three Broward County deaths in five weeks expose the deadly cost of Florida's high-speed police pursuit policies

The difference between 2 years and 7 years often comes down to one word.

In federal sentencing, "Role" is rarely just about the +/- 2 points. It is the domino that knocks over everything else.

If you are tagged with an Aggravating Role (Leader/Manager), you don't just lose the guideline points. In many cases, you are also immediately disqualified from the Safety Valve and the new Zero-Point Offender reduction.

Suddenly, a small dispute over "supervision" becomes a 4-level swing and a mandatory minimum sentence.

This blog post explains exactly how to fight these adjustments in the Southern District of Florida, including:

🔹 The "Size" Defense: Why you cannot legally be hit with a +4 Leadership enhancement if the conspiracy involved fewer than 5 people.

🔹 The Amendment 794 Shift: How "essential" participants (like couriers) can still qualify for Minor Role reductions.

🔹 The Burden of Proof: Reminding the court that the Government must prove you were a leader; they don't get to just assume it.

Federal sentencing is not a mechanical calculation. It is an argument.

https://www.miami-criminal-lawyer.net/blog/role-adjustments-in-federal-sentencing

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Role Adjustments in Federal Sentencing | Miami Criminal Lawyer | Criminal Defense Attorney in Miami | David M. Edelstein, PA Role Adjustments in Federal Sentencing When you’re facing federal charges in Miami or anywhere in the Southern District of Florida, one of the first questions you’ll ask is, “What am I realistically looking at?” Your sentencing exposure often turns on the United States Sentencing Guidelines,...

If you or a loved one is dealing with federal charges, knowing what evidence the government has is one of the most important parts of the case.

I just published a new blog post explaining how discovery works in federal criminal cases — what prosecutors must hand over, what they don’t have to share, and how we use this information to fight the charges.

Federal discovery is much more limited than most people think.

If you want to understand the process — in plain English — you can read it here:

👉 https://www.miami-criminal-lawyer.net/blog/discovery-in-a-federal-criminal-case.html

Please share this with anyone who might need it.

https://www.miami-criminal-lawyer.net/blog/discovery-in-a-federal-criminal-case

Discovery in a Federal Criminal Case: What Every Defendant Should Know | Miami Criminal Lawyer | Criminal Defense Attorney in Miami | David M. Edelstein, PA Discovery in a Federal Criminal Case: What Every Defendant Should Know When you’re facing federal charges, one of the first questions you’ll ask is, “What evidence does the government have against me?” In the federal system, the answer comes through a process called discovery. If you or some...