Licensed Professionals Facing Online Sex or Internet Charges in Florida
When a nurse, doctor, teacher, lawyer, pharmacist, real estate agent or financial advisor is charged with an online offense, two cases often begin at once. One is the criminal case. The other is the review of the license that took years to earn. In Florida, many online sex-offense charges come out of undercover operations, and some are filed in federal court rather than state court.
Attorney Ron Frey has been practicing law for over two decades and has represented numerous nurses, teachers, doctors, lawyers, pharmacists, real estate agents, financially licensed people and other licensed professionals. If you or a friend or family member is a licensed professional facing an online investigation or charge, call or text (813) 775-2276, answered 24/7, for a free, confidential initial consultation by phone, video or in person.
How Undercover Online Investigations Work
Many online cases do not involve an actual child. Instead, a law enforcement officer may pose online, in a chat app, on social media or on a dating site, as a minor or as a parent of a minor. Both Florida and federal law address this kind of conduct, and the penalties can be serious. Because these cases are built on chats, screenshots, recordings and device searches, the details matter. What was said, how the conversation was preserved, and how any phone or computer was searched are all questions the defense can examine. The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, and the government has to prove each element of the charge. Learn more on our computer and internet crimes and sex offense charges pages.
State Court or Federal Court
The same online conduct can be charged in state court, in federal court, or in both. Which court handles a case can affect the potential penalties and how the case moves forward. Our post on whether an internet case lands in state or federal court and our federal offenses page explain more, including what to expect after a federal arrest. Prosecutors work within the limits set by the law, the evidence and the judges who hear each case. How these rules apply depends on the facts and on current law, so your situation should be reviewed on its own, not based on what you read online.
How an Arrest Reaches Your Licensing Board
For a licensed professional, the criminal case is only part of the picture. Nurses, doctors, pharmacists, teachers, lawyers, real estate agents, financial professionals and other licensees may have reporting duties to a licensing board, an employer or a regulator, and some boards can act quickly after an arrest. Those duties differ by profession, change over time and depend on the facts of each case.
Don’t rely on general information online or on an AI tool to decide what you must report, when or how. Your situation should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis under current laws and regulations, and any response should be tailored to you. Before you talk to investigators, your employer or a board, talk with a lawyer. Our professional license defense page explains more about protecting a license while a criminal case is pending.
Why Call Before You Talk to Investigators or the Board
Investigators sometimes contact a professional at work or at home and ask to “clear things up.” Employers, compliance officers and licensing investigators may ask for a written statement. Anything said or written in these conversations can become evidence in the criminal case, the licensing case, or both. Before you answer questions, sign a statement, consent to a search of a phone or computer, or file a report with a board, talk to a lawyer about what you are required to do, what you are not, and the timing.
Attorney Ron Frey defends the criminal case with the licensing consequences in mind from the first conversation. He is licensed in Florida, Ohio and North Carolina, admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court and to the federal courts of the Middle and Southern Districts of Florida, and is a conference speaker and published author. Every case is different.
Talk With Attorney Ron Frey
If you face any stop, search, seizure, inquiry, investigation, arrest or target letter, contact a lawyer. That includes a call from a detective, a federal agent, an employer or a licensing board, or a target letter.
Consultations with Attorney Ron Frey are free and confidential, and they can be held by phone, video or in person. If you or a friend or family member is a licensed professional facing an online investigation or charge anywhere in Florida, call or text (813) 775-2276, answered 24/7.
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