Jacksonville Firearms & Weapons Offense Lawyers

LGL has an experienced Jacksonville gun crime defense attorney who defends  people charged with any and all firearm and weapons related charges.  As a former prosecutors and longstanding defense attorney, Jeremy Lasnetski at LGL has worked on every aspect of firearms and weapons related offenses.

What should I do if I’ve been accused or arrested on a gun crime?

Gun crimes in the State of Florida are extremely serious.  Florida’s gun crime laws include minimum mandatory sentences, enhancement provisions, and other harsh sentences.  This increases the leverage that the State Attorney’s Office has in negotiating these cases.  When the State has more negotiating leverage, they are often more willing to prosecute cases that have less evidence of guilt.  For example, if you felt threatened and fired a warning shot into the ground, the State could charge you with a 20 year minimum mandatory sentence offense.  If they’re evidence is weak, they may still file the case and offer you a sentence well below that 20 year minimum mandatory.  You would be stuck deciding between a possible prison sentence or going to trial and risking a mandatory 20 year sentence if the jury did not believe that you acted in self defense.  This is why it is so important to discuss your case with an experienced gun crime defense attorney right away after the incident occurs.  You need to know your exposure, possible defenses, the likelihood that the State will proceed with prosecution, and other things that only an experienced criminal trial lawyer local to your area can know. 

What is 10/20/Life?

10/20/Life is Florida’s minimum mandatory gun law.  You can read more about it by clicking the link below, but generally speaking, it means that if you are convicted of certain crimes and you possessed a firearm during the commission of that crime, the judge must sentence you to the minimum mandatory sentence.  There is no time off for good behavior, so, for example, a ten (10) year sentence would me that you would serve all ten (10) years.  As a general rule, if possess a firearm during the commission of certain crimes, you would be subject to a ten (10) year minimum mandatory sentence.  If you possessed a firearm and discharged it during the commission of certain offenses, it would be a twenty (20) year minimum mandatory sentence.  If you possessed a firearm, discharged it and caused great bodily harm or death, it would be a twenty five (25) to life minimum mandatory sentence.  Only the prosecuting attorney can waive the minimum mandatory sentence.  The judge cannot go below a minimum mandatory sentence even if he or she wants to.  Minimum mandatory sentences give prosecutors a great deal of power to use or misuse as they see fit. 

What if I pulled a gun on someone, but I was defending myself? 

A recent change to the law took away the three (3) year minimum mandatory sentence for an Aggravated Assault with a Firearm.  In other words, the judge no longer has to give a person three years minimum mandatory sentence for pulling a firearm on someone.  This will effectively allow citizens to more freely exercise their constitutional right to a trial, without fear of being sentenced to a mandatory prison sentence if they are convicted.   We often see this in cases where two individuals get into an argument that escalates and one of the individuals feels threatened and pulls a firearm in self-defense.

Click one of the links below to learn more about specific Florida firearm and weapons crimes: