Winter Park, FL Attorneys, Lawyers and Law Firms

Nicholas Christopher Ferro was denied a third trial for the death of Marques Butler in 2009.

Ferro's first trial had ended in a hung jury. In his second trial, he was convicted of murder in the second degree last September.

However, he had asked for a third trial with Miami attorney Carlos Gonzalez pointing out several things, the main of which is that the charges should not have been murder in the second degree because of the scant amount of time that Ferro and Butler have known each other before the incident happened.

According to Ferro's defense, a murder in the second degree charge would require that the perpetrator and victim are familiar with each other thus the need for a time requirement on how long they have known each other basing on the murder laws of Florida.

However, the judge said the amount of time is not required.

With Ferro's demand for a third trial denied, a life imprisonment sentence looms for him.

William Walker was handed a minimum of 24 years and a maximum of 60 years in prison after admitting to rape charges.

Walker submitted a guilty plea to allegations that he raped four women who are disabled in a span of 12 days in 2012.

The judge said Walker is a danger to society and rehabilitating him may not help.

Philadelphia criminal defense lawyer Catherine Berryman said Walker was abused while growing up.

Larry Brinkin, who used to work for the Human Rights Commission of San Francisco, entered into a plea deal agreement on his child pornography charges.

The plea deal saw a second charge of child pornography distribution dropped against the 67-year-old Brinkin.

Under the plea deal, Brinkin will spend six months behind bars and another six months of house arrest. Afterwhich, he will undergo probation for four years.

Brinkin, who is a staunch supporter of the LGBT advocacy, will also be entered in the list of sexual offender and is ordered to go through therapy.

Randall Knox, an attorney in San Francisco, said that Brinkin has been deeply sorry for what he has done and has fully understood the damage that child pornography can inflict on victims.

A plea deal agreement has Broderick Kenyo Smith admitting to manslaughter instead of capital murder in the death of Arlando Maurice Pritchett in 2012.

The plea agreement will have Smith serving just a year in jail for a split sentence of 10 years.

His jail stay will be followed with probation for three years.

Should Smith violate his probation, he could be made to serve the rest of his 10-year sentence.

According to the police, Pritchett had an argument with a cab driver prior to his shooting while Smith admitted that he had been driving a cab during the time of the incident.

Birmingham defense attorney Charles Salvagio said Smith had shot Pritchett because the latter had robbed him.

Jeannette Silvia is looking at a life in prison after a jury found her guilty of murdering Michael Ramirez.

The body of 59-year-old Ramirez was found inside a motel room paid for by Silvia and her ex-boyfriend, Joseph Santos-Torres, who is also charged in connection with Ramirez's death.

Evidence presented in trial showed that Ramirez had paid Silvia for sex then a few days later, Ramirez was made to go to the motel where he was found dead.

Sarah Christensen and Phil Dubois, Colorado Springs defense attorneys, downplayed their client, Silvia's participation in the murder, saying that it was Santos-Torres who killed Ramirez and all she did was helped him escape as he had asked.

The jury, however, did not buy it.

Santos-Torres himself is awaiting trial.