Florida football player kicked out of diversion program for driving charge

University of Florida defensive tackle, Leon Orr, was in a diversion program for possession of marijuana and possession of paraphernalia charges in Gainesville. According to an article on ESPN.com, while in this program, he received a ticket for Florida Driving on a Suspended License, which is considered a misdemeanor crime. While in this diversion program, Orr was to pay a fine and perform community service hours. After receiving this Florida driving citation, Orr was kicked out of the program and is now facing all crimes in court. His next court date is June 21, 2012.

A Diversion Program in Jacksonville is a device used by the state attorney’s office to divert cases from the criminal justice system. Once someone completes the program, their Duval County criminal charges will be dropped. There are several forms of this program and it typically reserved for first-time offenders. For Jacksonville Juvenile Crimes, the diversion program is called the Youth Offender Program. (also referred to as YOP) If you are arrested in Jacksonville as an adult, there are several diversion options available. The most common Duval County diversion program is called the Pretrial Intervention Program. (also referred to as PTI) If your Jacksonville Criminal Defense Attorney is able to get you into PTI, there are certain conditions that must be met. Some conditions of the pretrial diversion program are completion of community service hours, payment of restitution owed and completion of classes. Another diversion program in Jacksonville is called “Drug Court”. The City of Jacksonville implemented this court to address people who have been arrested in Jacksonville for crimes they likely would not have committed if they had not been on drugs. Drug court takes from one year to 18 months to complete and includes intensive outpatient drug treatment, random testing for drugs and many court appearances.

If you have been arrested in Duval, Clay or Nassau Counties, you should talk to an experienced Northeast Florida Criminal Defense Attorney. If you are a first-time offender, you may be eligible for a diversion program. Call The Mussallem Law Firm at (904) 365-5200 to speak to our Jacksonville Criminal Attorney, Victoria “Tori” Musallem. Our Duval Attorney is available to discuss your case 24 hours a day, 7 days a week