Safir Injury and Criminal Defense Law
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The Safir Lawyer Blog

Florida DUI, criminal defense, and personal injury, explained by a forensic lawyer-scientist and former public defender. Seven running series cover the science behind the evidence, the cases in the news, the injury claims, and how a defense actually gets built, all in plain English.

Rory Safir

Every post here is written by Rory Safir, one of only six ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientists in Florida, the author of The Florida DUI Trial Manual, and a former Assistant Public Defender in Tampa.

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The Series

Seven running series, each with its own beat. Pick a lane or read them all.

The Safir WireThe Safir WireLegal news, court rulings, and law changes, read the way a lawyer-scientist reads them.Explore the series ➞Called SafirCalled SafirAthlete and celebrity arrests, broken down by a criminal defense lawyer.Explore the series ➞SafircrackingSafircrackingForensic science, taken apart piece by piece: breath, blood, DNA, drug testing, and the crime lab.Explore the series ➞Fail-SafirFail-SafirFalse alerts, misused databases, and lab failures, and what they mean in a real case.Explore the series ➞Safir HarborSafir HarborHow cases actually get defended, from the first night to the last motion.Explore the series ➞Better Safir Than SorryBetter Safir Than SorryCar crashes, insurance tactics, and what an injury claim is actually worth.Explore the series ➞Rory SafirAsk SafirHave a question about a DUI, an arrest, or an injury claim? Ask it, and the answer may become the next post.Ask your question ➞
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You Get One Shot at a Clean Record in Florida. Spend It Well.

The case is over. The charges were dropped, or the judge withheld adjudication, and you walked out believing that chapter was closed. Then the apartment application comes back denied. The job offer goes quiet....
  • Rory Safir
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The Black Box in Your Car Knows What Happened. Here Is How a Crash Gets Reconstructed.

The other driver's story often changes between the roadside and the insurance claim, and by the time an adjuster is on the phone, a clear rear end or a plain failure to yield has somehow become your fault....
  • Rory Safir
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Hurt in an Uber or Lyft Crash in Florida? The Coverage Depends on One Thing

A rideshare crash is not an ordinary car accident, because the moment an Uber or Lyft is involved, who pays for your injuries turns on a corporate insurance structure the companies built to control what they owe....
  • Rory Safir
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The Call From Campus No Parent Wants: Three Things to Know Before You Do Anything

The phone rang at a terrible hour, or the text landed in the middle of your workday, and now you're managing a crisis from a kitchen table ten minutes from campus or a thousand miles away. I'm Rory Safir....
  • Rory Safir
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The Quiet Deadlines That Decide Florida Crash Claims

Nobody plans to need a guide about car crashes. If you're reading this, the wreck has probably already happened. Maybe your car is in a tow yard. Maybe you walked away feeling fine, and this morning your neck told a different story....
  • Rory Safir
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A Recall Landed on Thousands of Household Products. Does a Recall Mean You Have a Case?

Early in 2026, the FDA announced a recall that swept up more than two thousand products from brands as familiar as Tylenol, Advil, and Coca-Cola, after a Minnesota facility was found operating under insanitary conditions....
  • Rory Safir
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Who Pays My Medical Bills After a Car Accident in Florida?

It surprises many people to learn that after a Florida crash, the first coverage to pay your medical bills is usually your own, even when the other driver was clearly at fault....
  • Rory Safir
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Know Your Rights During Police Encounters in Florida

This article first appeared in The Paraclete, the magazine of the St. Petersburg Bar Association, March/April 2026 edition, pages 40 and 41. Republished here by the author, with citation to the original....
  • Rory Safir
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The Second Fight Has Different Rules: Three Things to Know Before a VOP Hearing

Maybe it was a phone call from your probation officer. Maybe it was a letter with the word affidavit in it. However it arrived, the message is the same: the State says you broke a condition of your probation, and the case you thought was behind you is awake again....
  • Rory Safir
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The Test I Want You to Give Every DUI Lawyer, Including Me

You have a court date you didn't ask for, a paper permit where your license used to be, and a phone full of search results that all say the same three things. Aggressive. Experienced. Fights for you....
  • Rory Safir
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Should I Accept the Insurance Company’s First Offer?

A settlement offer lands a few weeks after the crash, the bills are piling up, and the check would make the pressure stop. The pull to just take it is real....
  • Rory Safir
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Facing DUI Number Two? Start With the Dates on Your First One

You already know what a booking area smells like at two in the morning. You did the DUI school, paid the fine, watched your insurance climb, and told yourself that chapter was closed. Now there's a new case number with your name on it, and you can feel that this...
  • Rory Safir
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The Strangers Already Working on Your DUI Case

You got home from the jail, or from the tow yard, and the house went quiet. That's when it hits you: somewhere across town, a group of strangers is already at work on your case. An officer is finishing a report with your name on it. A file is moving...
  • Rory Safir
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Celebrity DUIs Get the Headlines. Here Is What Florida Law Does for the People They Hit

The headlines arrive in waves. A singer here, an athlete there, another mugshot, another DUI arrest making the rounds online....
  • Rory Safir
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What to Do After a Car Accident in Florida (and the 14-Day Rule That Trips People Up)

The choices you make in the first hours and days after a crash can shape both your recovery and any claim you bring, and Florida has one deadline in particular that catches people off guard....
  • Rory Safir
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The Part of a DUI Conviction Nobody Warns You About

When a machine prints a number about you, the number moves into your head and starts acting like a verdict. Some part of you has probably decided that everything from here is paperwork....
  • Rory Safir
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Know Your Rights During an ICE Encounter

This article first appeared in The Paraclete, the magazine of the St. Petersburg Bar Association, May/June 2026 edition, pages 16 and 17. Republished here by the author, with citation to the original....
  • Rory Safir
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On Court TV: The Forensic Turning Point in the Nancy Guthrie Case

On February 19, I joined Court TV to break down the forensic turning point in the Nancy Guthrie case: DNA recovered from gloves found near the scene was run through CODIS and came back with no match, and investigators turned to investigative genetic genealogy for leads....
  • Rory Safir
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How Much Is My Car Accident Case Worth in Florida?

It is the first question almost everyone asks after a crash, and the honest answer is that no one can hand you a number on day one. Anyone who promises a figure before the medical picture is clear is guessing....
  • Rory Safir
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The Deadline Hiding on the Paper in Your Pocket

If you were arrested for DUI in the last few days, I can guess where your mind keeps going: the court date. Everyone fixates on it. But the deadline that matters most this week is not on the court's calendar....
  • Rory Safir

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Arrested for DUI in Florida, the bookI wrote the book on Florida DUIFree to anyone facing a charge in Tampa Bay. Plain English, nineteen chapters, no law degree required.Get your copy →ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist badgeForensic Lawyer-ScientistOne of six attorneys in Florida with the ACS-CHAL designation from the American Chemical Society.What that means for your case →

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Case Results

Acquittal, Pinellas County: DUI jury acquittal after the HGN eye test was challenged.

Past results are examples only and do not predict, promise, or guarantee the outcome of any other case.

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