PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — A Fort Lauderdale attorney was found guilty Sept. 5, 2025, and rebooked into the Palm Beach County jail on charges of possession of cocaine, delivery of cocaine and two counts of introducing contraband into a county facility, according to court records.
David Casals, 56, was initially arrested in 2022 after a 2021 jail visitation, when a deputy found 37 sheets of paper containing Bible quotes and pictures of an unknown woman with a cover sheet on top to disguise the papers as legal documents, Detective Philip DiMola wrote in the affidavit.
Deputy Jessica Bryant was checking Casals into the West Detention Center in Belle Glade when she searched a manila folder that contained the suspicious papers, the affidavit said. Bryant noticed a translucent substance on the papers and notified supervisors.
The papers had been disguised to look like a Spanish-to-English translation of an audio file for murder suspect Pedro Concepcion, the affidavit said.
As supervising lieutenants further inspected the papers, Casals told them, "I hope there's nothing in there that shouldn't be," DiMola wrote. Casals was allowed to visit his clients, but the papers were confiscated, the affidavit said.
Forensic testing found cocaine on the papers. In all, the cocaine-doused papers totaled 136.64 grams, and "the portions of the papers tested were saturated with cocaine," the affidavit said.
In 2022, Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Teri Barbera said Casals attempted to disguise legal documents "saturated in cocaine" before entering the jail. Barbera said Casals turned himself in and was later released after posting a $58,000 bond.
According to his Florida Bar profile, Casals has practiced law since 2000 and operated a firm in Fort Lauderdale.
Around the time of his arrest, Casals posted bond and pleaded not guilty.
He was found guilty by a Palm Beach County jury on Thursday and was sentenced to 364 days in the main county jail, with one day of credit. It will be followed by three years of probation.
