Tampa Bay Criminal Defense Lawyer - kids and drugs

By Nicholas Dorsten, Esq.

While this blog has written much about drugs or drug trafficking before, an old article I found on the st. Petersburg times archives show just how desperate some people can be when it comes to addiction or illegal drugs...

HILLSBOROUGH - A special education teacher at East Bay High School has been accused of cocaine trafficking, according to the federal Drug Enforcement Administration.
The defendant, a then 33 year old female, faces charges of trafficking in cocaine, from 28 to 200 grams, according to an arrest report.

The accused, who has worked at the Apollo Beach school for six years, turned herself into the Hillsborough County jail at 10 a.m. Friday, said a sheriff's spokesman.

On Wednesday, the DEA and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office served a federal search warrant at the accused's home, seizing about 4.5 ounces of cocaine. Investigators found 112 grams of cocaine upstairs on a television stand, and 7 more grams of illegal drugs stuffed inside a dresser, the spokesman said. An ounce of cocaine in Tampa sold for $600 to $900 back in 2006.

The next day, authorities arrested another man and accused him of trying to deliver cocaine to the defendant.

The two-month investigation into the teacher's drug activity started with a tip to law enforcement, according to DEA special agent Jeannette Moran.

Moran declined to comment further about the investigation.

The accused was released from jail Friday after posting $10,000 bail, according to an arrest report.

No one answered the door at her home in Osprey Run, a gated community along Bloomingdale Avenue in Riverview.

Hillsborough school officials sent a letter to her in jail informing her that she was not to report to work until further notice. She will continue to be paid wages to which she is entitled.

She had resigned as a summer school teacher on Wednesday, according to Hillsborough schools spokesman Stephen Hegarty. As the case evolves, officials will consider whether to suspend Dotter or take further action.

"She's not going to be in the classroom while these charges are over her head," Hegarty said, noting that Dotter's principal said she was a good teacher.

Dotter has taught students with learning disabilities at East Bay High since the 2000-01 school year. Before coming to Hillsborough, she was a teacher at Clearview Avenue Elementary in St. Petersburg.

She graduated from Gibbs High School in St. Petersburg in 1991 and attended St. Petersburg Junior College before earning a degree at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, according to her Hillsborough schools file.

While not everyone knows this, the punishment for trafficking in cocaine differs greatly depending how much cocaine is in a person's possession. In addition, while there is a minimum/mandatory sentence that differs depending on the amount of the drug, in many cases, an experienced criminal defense lawyer may be able to help avoid or minimize the sentence!

Have you or a loved one been arrested for a drug charge or drug trafficking? Then contact the Clearwater criminal defense attorneys of Blake & Dorsten, P.A. for a free consultation today.

For more information, or to speak directly with experienced Clearwater criminal defense lawyers please contact BLAKE & DORSTEN, P.A. at 727.286.6141 or email the lawyers your questions at: info@blakedorstenlaw.com. We are located at 4707 140th Ave N, Suite 104 in Clearwater, across from the criminal courthouse in the airport business center, minutes from Tampa and St. Petersburg.