Delivery of Cocaine within 1000 Feet of a Daycare Facility

If you are facing charges that include being within 1000 feet of a daycare facility, you probably already know that your charges can be enhanced if, in fact, the crime you are being accused of occurred within 1000 feet of such a facility – whether or not you knew it was there. But did you also know that the State must prove this fact as an element of the offense against you? In other words, it isn’t sufficient that they say it happened within 1000 feet – they have to prove it!

To establish that the facility is in fact a “daycare facility” under the law, the State must prove that the facility “provides child care for more than five children unrelated to the operator” and that the facility “receives a payment, fee or grant for any of the children receiving care, wherever operated, and whether or not operated for profit.”Florida Statute 402.302(2). If the State cannot or does not prove this element, your case is not subject to the enhancement.

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