Judge Vacates Tampa Man's Life Sentence

On March 11, 2005 Jamar J. Green was sentenced to serve LIFE in prison for a drug trafficking charge. After years of appeals and post-conviction motions, an appeals court ruled that the jury's verdict of guilty as to "Armed Trafficking in Cocaine" was not supported by the evidence and that Mr. Green should be resentenced on the lesser included offense of Trafficking in Cocaine. The resentencing was scheduled for October 22, 2009, so Mr. Green and his new attorney Joe Caimano aggressively prepared for what would be Mr. Green's best shot at obtaining a fair sentence. In preparation for the resentencing, Mr. Caimano discovered that the original prosecutor, in his effort to obtain an excessively harsh sentence, misrepresented Mr. Green's prior record to the Judge. In addition, Mr. Caimano found that Mr. Green's court-appointed attorney had done nothing to prepare for the sentencing and did not know that Mr. Green lacked the prior record being presented by the prosecutor. At the conlusion of the hearing, the judge, after considering all the arguments, facts, and circumstances of the case, vacated the LIFE sentence and resentenced Mr. Green to time served. In the end, Mr. Green's family was not bitter that the prosecutor acted improperly in 2005, but was more excited and humbled that justice was served and a proper sentence rendered. See more information at www.yourtampalawyer.com.