You could be at the wrong place at the wrong time, or just hanging out with the wrong crowd. But if any of these situations land you with a criminal charge for “first degree felony burglary”, then excuses will do you no good. Time to lawyer up. Just about every bank in the United States is federally insured, so a bank robbery is considered a federal offense. If you are charged with committing a bank robbery, you and your attorney will be going up against the federal government’s eager prosecutors.
What makes up a “first degree burglary”? Usually any burglary involving assault, battery and being armed, will mean the stiffest charge. A first degree charge is punishable by up to 30 years in prison in the state of Florida. The minimum mandatory sentence is 10 years. But before that doom and gloom scenario, let’s talk about the best possible defense.
Your attorney can work to disprove the government’s case against you. What if you are being “ratted out” by some ex-friends with an axe to grind, or perhaps it’s a simple case of mistaken identity? Negotiations play an important part of the legal process. Your defense lawyer can negotiate with the prosecution for reduced charges and sentencing, if you can’t prove your innocence 100%. And if you think not having a weapon during the robbery means you will get off easy, think again. Even without a weapon involved in the robbery, you can still face a prison sentence that can last as long as 10 years.