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Ponte Vedra Beach Housewife Accused of Violation of Probation in St. Johns County
Just when you thought Quinn Gray had vanished from the scene, here she comes, on her way back into court on an alleged violation of probation. Gray, who now goes by the name Quinn Hanna, made national headlines two years ago after faking her kidnapping and trying to extort $50,000 from her husband while she ran off with her lover for the weekend. Hanna was sentenced to seven years of Florida probation and, as part of the deal, she was to pay back the costs of the full-scale investigation police embarked when she was thought to be taken against her will. As a condition of that St. Johns County probation, Berger also ordered Hannah to receive a substance abuse evaluation and a mental health evaluation and to follow any recommended treatment; attend two AA/NA or similar-type meetings a week; consume no alcohol; have no violent contact with her ex-husband, Reid Gray, or his family; have no contact at all with her co-defendant Jasmin Osmanovic; have no contact with the media in regards to Reid Gray and the Gray children; pay $2,500 cost of prosecution; and pay $43,000 cost of investigation to the St. John’s County Sheriff’s Office. If you are charged with violating terms of your probation, you need an experienced Jacksonville probation attorney that knows the ins and outs of the law. News4Jax is reporting Hanna’s probation officer is recommending she be placed on two years Florida house arrest for six probation violations – mostly involving failure to pay. Court records show she owes more than $43,000, the television station reported. Probation violations are serious charges and can often mean you’ll face the maximum amount of time you could have received before you were placed on probation. It can often be the hook the state uses to give a back-door jail sentence – setting conditions a defendant is unlikely to be able to meet. But, for you to be found in violation, the state must prove your actions constitute a “willful and substantial” violation. This means you had to knowingly break a significant term of your probation. First of all, Florida does not have a debtor’s prison. If it did, it’d probably be full. But it doesn’t, so you cannot be hauled downtown and booked on a violation for being broke. Our Jacksonville criminal defense attorney has represented hundreds of people accused of violating their probation. We will represent you at a hearing where you can present your side of story. In the Hanna case, for example, her probation agreement says she cannot speak to the media about her ex-husband Reid, from whom she tried to extort $50,000, or the couple’s children. Hanna provided a statement to Dateline NBC for a two-hour special the newsmagazine ran on the case last month, which her probation officer is claiming was a violation. Hanna’s attorney told the television station she didn’t speak about Reid or the children, so she was well within her right. Probation officers do not have the final say on what is or is not a violation. That’s for the judge to decide. Having a Jacksonville criminal defense attorney who knows the ins and outs of a “willful and substantial violation” is critical if you are accused of violating your probation. If you need a criminal defense attorney in Jacksonville or the surrounding area, call Mussallem and Associate, PA at 904-365-5200 for a free consultation.