Lee County Criminal Defense Attorney

Reviewed by Jason Mayberry, a Florida attorney who handles state and federal criminal defense matters in the Tampa Bay area. Last updated July 31, 2026.

Jason Mayberry has defended serious state and federal charges across Florida for close to 20 years, first as a prosecutor and since then on the defense side. I bring what matters in the most serious cases, which is real experience handling the charges you are facing within the federal district your case sits in. Call me at (813) 444-7435 and I will tell you honestly where your case stands.

Where Are Lee County Criminal Cases Heard?

Florida state charges from Lee County are prosecuted in the Twentieth Judicial Circuit, established in 1970, which covers Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry, and Lee counties. Lee County cases are heard at the Lee County Justice Center at 1700 Monroe Street in Fort Myers, with the Justice Center Tower at 2075 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The prosecuting agency is the State Attorney’s Office for the Twentieth Judicial Circuit, located at 2000 Main Street in Fort Myers.

Federal charges are a different system entirely. Lee County falls in the Fort Myers Division of the Middle District of Florida, and those cases are heard at the United States Courthouse and Federal Building at 2110 First Street in Fort Myers. The Fort Myers Division also covers Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Glades, and Hendry counties. This matters for my clients, because the Middle District is where I already practice federal cases regularly, so a Fort Myers federal case requires no new admission and no handoff to another lawyer.

Florida sentences non-capital felonies under the Criminal Punishment Code, Fla. Stat. § 921.0024, which totals points for the primary offense, any additional offenses, victim injury, and prior record on a scoresheet. The lowest permissible prison sentence in months is calculated by subtracting 28 points from that total and reducing the remainder by 25 percent, and a total of 44 points or fewer generally permits a non-prison sanction. Fla. Stat. § 775.082 sets the outer limit by felony degree, from five years on a third-degree felony to thirty years on a first-degree felony, with life available on a life felony. The scoresheet, not the charge alone, often decides how much exposure a case actually carries.

Criminal Cases I Handle in Lee County

My Lee County practice concentrates on the cases where the exposure is highest and the government’s investigation is most involved:

• Federal sex crimes: Federal sex offenses including alleged exploitation, enticement, and possession charges, many of which carry mandatory minimum sentences and lifelong registration consequences.
• State sex crimes: Florida sex crime charges such as sexual battery and offenses that trigger sex offender registration.
• Federal crimes: Federal cases generally, including wire, mail, and healthcare fraud, and federal drug offenses prosecuted under the Sentencing Guidelines.
• Serious drug offenses: Drug charges from possession through trafficking, where weight alone can trigger a mandatory minimum.
• Violent felonies: Violent crimes including aggravated assault, aggravated battery, robbery, and homicide.

Why Do Federal and Sex Crime Cases Call for Different Handling?

These are the cases where the gap between a general practitioner and someone who does this work regularly shows up fastest. A federal case brings the United States Sentencing Guidelines, mandatory minimums, and a presentence report that shapes the sentence months before anyone walks into court. Much of the fight happens before charges are even filed, during the investigation, when a target letter or a search warrant arrives and the decisions made in the first days set the course of everything after.

Sex crime allegations carry their own problems. The evidence is often digital, the forensic analysis is contestable, and the consequences of a conviction reach far past the sentence into registration and where a person can live and work. As a former prosecutor, I know how these cases get built, and I look for the places where the government’s proof does not actually establish what the charge requires.

Federal sentences follow a different framework entirely. The court calculates an advisory guideline range under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, then must weigh the factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) at a hearing governed by Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32. Following United States v. Booker and Gall v. United States, the guideline range is a starting point rather than a mandate, though any statutory mandatory minimum still sets a floor the court cannot go below absent a recognized exception. Where a case turns on financial loss or drug quantity, the guideline calculation itself is often the most contested part of the proceeding.

What Evidence Matters in a Lee County Criminal Case?

Serious cases in Lee County are won or lost on specific evidence, and what matters shifts by charge. A federal child pornography case turns on the forensic image of the seized device, its chain of custody, and whether hash-value matching and file metadata actually show knowing possession rather than inadvertent access. A federal fraud case turns on the government’s own paper, including wire records, emails, and financial transactions, and on the loss amount the government calculates for sentencing, which is often more contested than guilt itself. A drug case turns on the lab analysis of the substance, its quantity relative to the mandatory-minimum thresholds, and the legality of the stop or search that produced it. A violent or sex offense case turns on the injury and medical evidence, witness consistency, and, where registration exposure is in play, the timing and content of any statement the accused person gave a detective. Evidence not preserved early is often gone: device data gets overwritten, provider retention windows close, and a witness’s memory of events fades.

How I Can Help in Your Lee County Criminal Case

When you hire me, you work with me. I review the discovery, I file the motions, I deal with the prosecutor, and I stand next to you in court, whether that court is the Justice Center in Fort Myers or the federal courthouse on First Street. I keep my caseload deliberately limited so that serious cases get the attention they need, and I would rather be involved early, while evidence can still be preserved and choices are still open, than after a case has hardened.

I will also be honest with you about what your case looks like. If the government’s evidence is strong, you will hear that from me, along with a realistic plan for limiting the damage. If it is weak, I will tell you where, and I will make the State or the government prove it.

Will You Need to Appear in Court?

In most cases, yes. A person arrested in Lee County is typically booked into the Lee County Jail, run by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, and brought before a judge for a first appearance, where bond is addressed. From there a state case moves through arraignment, discovery, motions, and negotiation at the Justice Center. Federal cases follow their own track, beginning with an initial appearance and detention hearing at the Fort Myers federal courthouse.

Some appearances can be waived or handled by counsel, and some cannot. I will tell you exactly which dates you must be present for and prepare you for each one, so you are never walking into a courtroom without knowing what is about to happen.

What Should You Do Now?

Do not discuss your case with anyone other than your lawyer, including on the phone from the Lee County Jail, where calls are recorded. Request a copy of the arrest report and, once one is filed, the probable cause affidavit, and hold on to any paperwork the Lee County Sheriff’s Office or a federal agent gave you at the time of arrest, including a property receipt if a search was executed. Write down what you remember about the arrest or the search while it is still fresh, including who was present and what was said. Keep track of every court date and confirm with me which appearances I can handle for you and which require you personally.

Frequently Asked Questions About Lee County Criminal Charges

Which court will hear my Lee County criminal case?

Florida state charges from Lee County are prosecuted in the Twentieth Judicial Circuit at the Lee County Justice Center in Fort Myers. Federal charges are prosecuted in the Fort Myers Division of the Middle District of Florida, at the United States Courthouse on First Street.

Do you handle federal cases in Fort Myers?

Yes. The Fort Myers Division is part of the Middle District of Florida, the same federal district where Jason Mayberry already maintains a regular practice. No separate admission is required, so his federal work transfers directly to Lee County cases.

What happens after an arrest in Lee County?

A person arrested in Lee County is typically booked into the Lee County Jail, run by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, and brought before a judge for a first appearance. Getting counsel involved before that hearing protects your rights and can affect the bond decision.

Contact a Lee County Criminal Defense Attorney

If you are facing a serious charge or a federal investigation in Lee County or Fort Myers, the sooner I am involved, the more I can do. I offer a free consultation, I handle these cases personally, and I will give you a straight assessment of what you are up against. Call The Mayberry Law Firm at (813) 444-7435, or reach me through the contact page. You can also read more about Jason Mayberry and his background as a former prosecutor.