Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a psychiatric disease that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels and the ability to conduct daily life activities. The condition was estimated in 2014 to affect 2.2 percent of the population or approximately 5.3 million adults in the United States aged 18 or older. An estimated 51% of individuals with this condition are untreated in any given year.

It has been reported that the majority of criminal cases involve substance abuse, financial pressures or relationship troubles. Many involve more than one of these issues. More and more lately, people seem to be effected by significant mental health issues. Sometimes it can be easy to tell when a client has a problem and it is often very hard to deal with it. Sometimes however, it’s not so easy to tell.

Most judges don’t want to put mentally ill people in jail. Judges and even prosecutors want to get people the help they need in the best way possible in order to protect society. When meeting with clients, an attorney should always ask if they have any history of mental illness. The client should always be honest about this. Sometimes, an attorney is able to work out a settlement which would require the client to continue treatment with his normal psychiatrist, take his prescribed medication and no other punishment.

Regrettably, the clients are not always honest with attorneys or with themselves. Clients deny mental health problems.

Alexander Truluck focuses his practice as a criminal defense attorney in Clearwater, Palm Harbor, Largo, Dunedin and the Tampa Bay area.

For more information, visit our website at http://www.criminallawyerclearwaterflorida.com
or call (727) 799-3550.

You may be visiting Florida from another state, and you are wondering if Florida has an “open container” law. Yes we do. Many states have so-called open container laws, which make it illegal to have an open container of alcohol anywhere in the passenger compartment of a vehicle.  If you are the driver of the vehicle, it is important for you to know that you can be cited under an open container law even if you are not the person consuming the alcohol.

In Florida, an open container is defined as “any container of alcoholic beverage which is immediately capable of being consumed from, or the seal of which has been broken.”  So under Florida law, even an empty beer can can be considered an open container.  If you are the driver of a vehicle where passengers have been drinking, it is in your best interest to ensure that no one bring a “to-go cup” into the car for the trip home.  We said it but it bears repeating – even if you, the driver, are not consuming the alcohol, you run the risk of receiving a ticket under the open container laws.  Penalties range from fines to a potential criminal conviction, so it is not worth the risk.  If you are driving home from a party and have leftover alcohol, store it in a locked trunk to ensure you are in compliance with the law.

If you are cited for having an open container, whether as the driver or the passenger, you may want to talk to an experienced traffic ticket attorney to assist you.  The penalties for open container violations can be severe so before you go at it alone, consider having a lawyer in your corner.

Alexander Truluck focuses his practice as a criminal defense attorney in Clearwater, Palm Harbor, Largo, Dunedin and the Tampa Bay area.

For more information, visit our website at http://www.criminallawyerclearwaterflorida.com
or call (727) 799-3550.