Orlando Personal Injury Law Blog

An 18-year old Clermont teen has been arrested and accused of selling marijuana to high school kids. Police became suspicious of the youth after observing what appeared to be a significant amount of traffic into and out of the home.

Police say that a tip led them to the youth's home. After surveilling the two-story home for a period of time, authorities began to pull over various vehicles that had visited the home. The stops led to numerous arrests. Based on these arrests, officers assumed the teen was selling marijuana to students of East Ridge high school.

Last week, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) announced a joint effort with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to crack down on drunk driving this holiday season. The campaign, titled, "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over," was kicked-off to address the special threat posed to drivers during the six weeks between Thanksgiving and New Years. During this season, more people are killed or injured in car crashes in Central Florida than any other time of year.

Although the state has shown a 15 percent decline in drunk driving fatalities in the past year, the state still remains one of the nation's most grievous offenders. According to a MADD report, 27 percent of all roadway deaths in the state were attributed to drinking and driving. Last year, 660 people died in alcohol-related car crashes.

A new Florida law that tightens regulations on narcotics prescriptions is the latest in multiple states' efforts to eliminate so-called pill mills. The move comes amid increasing crackdowns by federal law enforcement officials on prescription drug use for non-medical purposes.

USA Today reports that, in recent years, the use of prescription drugs like oxycodone over street drugs like ecstasy has increased significantly. Because Florida has had relatively loose restrictions on when and how narcotics can be prescribed, it has become a popular state for "drug tourists" seeking painkillers for themselves or to sell to others. Florida visitors and residents have obtained narcotics prescriptions from doctors and clinics that handed out large prescription amounts without much scrutiny.