Crimes Against Sea Turtles

Many traffic stops that end with the driver or other vehicle occupants getting felony charges begin under mundane circumstances. It could be something as simple as making an illegal turn or driving out of turn at a four-way stop. Things might escalate if the driver has a suspended license or if the police see something suspicious in plain view in the car. That suspicious something is usually drug paraphernalia, but here in Florida, plenty of things that would never be present in someone’s car catch the eyes of police and lead to vehicle searches that yield drugs and other illegal items. Case in point, only in Florida would a toy school bus in a car make police think that the toy was full of drugs. In Florida, the cause for suspicion often has to do with the various kinds of wildlife native to the Sunshine State, or else to exotic species that fit in so well here that, if they can manage to crawl or slither out of the car while the police are busy arresting the driver, then if they manage to be fruitful and multiply, they stand a chance of becoming the next big introduced species to make it look like they have been here all along; they could be Florida’s next green iguana, nutria, or Nile monitor lizard. Here, our Miami drug crimes defense lawyer explains how sea turtle eggs on a floor mat in a van led to a man’s arrest on suspicion of drug possession and other offenses.

Florida Sea Turtle Protection Laws

The fact that Florida is home to two crocodilian species is reason enough to brag. Southern Florida is the only place in the world that is home to both an alligator species, namely the American alligator, and a crocodile species, namely the American crocodile. This is not the most impressive thing about Florida’s reptilian biodiversity, though. No fewer than five species of marine turtles nest on Florida’s beaches and include Florida’s waters as their native habitat. These are the Green Turtle, the Hawksbill, the Leatherback, the Loggerhead, and Kemp’s Ridley Turtle. The Endangered Species Act of 1973 lists at least some of these turtle species as endangered species; therefore, they are entitled to the same federal protections as all other endangered wildlife. In addition to this, Florida law protects all five species of marine turtles. Pursuant to Florida law, it is illegal to harm turtles or disturb their nests or habitat. Anyone who wishes to conduct research involving turtles or to interact with them for educational purposes must get special permission from the state. By this logic, it is illegal to possess sea turtles or sea turtle eggs without a permit.

Police Search Van and Find Drugs After Man Leaves Sea Turtle Eggs in Plain View on Passenger Side Floor Mat

It is easy to understand why someone would want to collect sea turtle eggs; they are as beautiful a reminder of our home as anything one might find washed up on the beach, from coquina shells to starfish to sand dollars. A Florida man had little to cheer him up except the promise of a new generation of sea turtles, but things took a turn for the worse. After an aggravated battery charge, the court ordered the man to stay away from his ex and her house.

Despite this, the police found him asleep in his van within a forbidden distance of his ex’s house, and they woke him up to tell him he could not be there. An officer saw sea turtle eggs on the floor of the car, on the passenger side floor mat, and this prompted the officer to search the car. The search yielded many other illegal items, from cannabis and drug paraphernalia to fentanyl, methamphetamine, and a single Xanax pill. Now the defendant is facing criminal charges for drug possession and drug paraphernalia, as well as for violating a restraining order and for illegal possession of sea turtle eggs. The defendant told the officer that he had found the eggs on the beach after two nests had washed away, and he assumed that the eggs were not viable.

Contact Our Criminal Defense Attorneys

A South Florida criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing criminal charges for illegal possession or sale of drugs in addition to charges that can only happen in Florida, such as illegal possession of sea turtle eggs.  Contact Ratzan & Faccidomo in Miami, Florida for a confidential consultation about your case.

Sources:

clickorlando.com/news/local/2025/09/17/florida-man-arrested-in-flagler-county-had-sea-turtle-eggs-drugs-in-his-possession-deputies-say/

myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/wildlife/sea-turtle/protection/#:~:text=Florida%20Statutes%20restrict%20the%20take,afforded%20to%20marine%20turtle%20habitat.