509.143 Disorderly Conduct on the Premises of an Establishment; Detention; Arrest; Immunity From Liability

Fort Lauderdale/Miami Criminal Defense Lawyer Bradford Cohen has experience is handling cases involving Criminal Disorderly conduct on the premises of an business. Essentially, this is getting into a fight or brawl or doing something that would outrage a sense of public decency at a bar, restaurant or retail establishment. Bradford is commonly asked the questions like, “Was the manager of the restaurant allowed detain me?” “Is anyone who is not a Law Enforcement Officer allowed to detain me?” The straightforward answer is, Yes. According to the statute, an owner or the person operating the establishment may take you into custody and detain you in a reasonable manner and for a reasonable time if the that person has probable cause to believe that you were engaging in disorderly conduct in violation of Florida Statute 877.03 on the property that the individual is running. There are many defenses to this crime and in the State of Florida an individual can claim "self defense" as an affirmative defense to Disorderly conduct on the premises of an establishment. Let criminal Defense Attorney Bradford Cohen Defend your case in court.

So the next question is, Bradford what if the fight resolved itself? What if the fight/brawl was broken up? Can the owner/ operator of the premises still detain me? So long as the person, has reason to believe that the conduct in question was creating a threat to the life or safety of the people in the business, the manager or owner can detain you. And after you have been detained the statute makes it mandatory that the owner or manager call a law enforcement officer to the scene immediately after detaining a person.

Can the Officer arrest me? The law enforcement officer may arrest you either on or off the premises and without a warrant so long as the officer has probable cause to believe that the person being arrested created a threat to the life or safety to people. That’s why your first call after being charged with this crime should be to our office at 888 COHEN LAW.

The net question often asked is if we sue the police or operator of the establishment for false arrest, false imprisonment, or unlawful detention? Yes we can. If when held in detention and you were mistreated, held for an excessively long time, restrained in an unreasonable way, these are all grounds for a suit. But so long as the Operator or Law enforcement officer can show that they have probable cause to have detained you in the manner they did, the Statute prevents you from suing.

The next question Bradford is often asked is what degree of crime is it? A felony? A Misdemeanor? In this case the statute specifically states that anyone is charged with this crime is “guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in Florida Statute 775.082 or Florida Statute 775.083.” But a person who resists the operator or a law enforcement officer during a detention or arrest, they are then guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree. (Unless you did not know or did not have reason to know that the person seeking to detain or arrest you was the operator of the establishment or a law enforcement officer.)

What is a Misdemeanor of the first degree? First degree misdemeanors are the most serious misdemeanors in Florida, punishable by jail terms of up to one year and fines of up to $1,000. That’s why if you have been arrested or charged with this crime your first call should be to Fort Lauderdale/Miami Defense Attorney Bradford Cohen at our offices at 888 COHEN LAW.

Here at Bradford Cohen Law we want to help you in your Breach of the Peace/ Disorderly Conduct on the premises of an establishment case. We will aggressively fight the charges pending against you. Call our office at 888 COHEN LAW to discuss your case and let our law firm use our years of experience in Criminal Defense assist you in obtaining a fruitful resolution to your case whether you are in the Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Dade or West Palm Beach areas. Bradford Cohen has been very successful in defending these types of crimes throughout his career.