My question involves criminal law for the state of: Florida.(edit)
Hello! I have a friend who was incarcerated on 5/2/16
What I know so far: In the public records it shows PRINCIPAL ROBBERY WITH A DEADLY WEAPON 812.13(2)(a) Felony / First Degree;(My friend usually does carry a knife on his person)
The gentleman he was with had Robbery with a deadly weapon and aggravated assault. This man also has prior history of robbery and battery in 2013.
My friend only has prior misdemeanors one of driving with an expired tag AND Petite theft(about 8 years ago)
My friend is in jail with a 30k bond limit and I see robbery can be a minimum of 10 year sentence. I called an attorney and they said they will represent him for 5,000.00 which is ALOT of money for his family and me!
My friend story states: He met this guy and knew him for a few weeks and wanted a drive home so he took him home. On the way he wanted to stop at the gas station(the gentleman) and buy some beer so he did. My friend never got out of his truck and next thing you know the gentleman walks out with a case of beer and they leave.
I suppose the store owner called the police and stopped the truck because it got the license plate of the truck via surveillance camera at the store. The gentelman had robbed the store owner and assaulted him per the public records.
My question: Can my friend really be sentenced to 10+ years if he really is innocent? It would be near impossible to prove either way if he knew the robbery would occur or if he didnt... It would be a matter of raising "doubt" on the situation.
How would I know if its ok to hire a defense attorney or could I correspond with the public defender to ensure they got a handle on things? I do admit law and order marathons have skewed my judgement on public defenders.
Would there be a way for me to file a motion of discovery to see the tape and the police reports?
Thanks for the help!

