A Sarasota County judge didn’t buy into the ruse used by a couple of sheriff’s deputies who gained entry into a Sarasota home by telling the homeowner they were with the Florida Department of Children and Families. The Sarasota County sheriff’s deputies suspected Matthew Kennedy was operating a marijuana grow house but they didn’t have enough proof to get a search warrant so they found another way to get into the home as reported by Todd Ruger of the Sarasota Herald Tribune.
The judge ruled that the deputies told Kennedy that they had legal authority to enter his home, which took away his right to consent to a search. Because of the illegal search and seizure the judge threw out all the illegally gained evidence which included drug paraphernalia and 36 marijuana plants. Kennedy is still charged with felony cultivation of marijuana but the charges will be hard to prove without the iullegaly obtained evidence.
If you have been charged with a drug crime in Bradenton, Sarasota or Manatee County and are in need of aggressive legal representation, please do not hesitate to contact Criminal Defense Attorney Darren Finebloom at 1-800-FIGHT-IT (1-800-344-4848) or online at FightYourDrugCrime.com to discuss the matter. Also you can contact Darren via email or by stopping in our Sarasota offices located at 200 N. Washington Blvd.