Legal Question in Criminal Law in Florida

My daughter's fiance was arrested for possession of cocaine with intent to sell. There was a joint task force between a local city and DEA. He does not have money for a lawyer. I am concerned about the legal representation he will receive with the public defender's office, so I decided to get the discovery and see how strong the case was. I went to the city and got what they had (which was nothing), but they referenced a DEA case. I called the DEA office and asked for the records department, but instead they transferred me to the agent working the case, who proceeded to grill me about why I wanted the information and told me that because they were a federal agency they didn't have to release that information.

I was told that discovery used to prosecute a case is public record and as such any individual has a right to request that information. Is that correct??


Asked on 7/14/11, 11:29 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Craig Epifanio Craig Epifanio, P.A.

No, it is not correct. It is public record but it is not accessible to anyone who is not represented by an attorney. Even attorneys, along with everyone else, cannot access DEA investigations while the investigation is pending. It sounds like the investigation is pending so they do not have to release that information.

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Answered on 7/14/11, 2:55 pm


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