As experienced trial lawyers concentrating on DWI defense cases, my dedicated legal team has defended literally hundreds of individuals over the years who have been accused of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, doctor-prescribed medications, and even illegal substances, such as meth, cocaine, and pot. Many of our clients began their legal fight following a relatively basic traffic stop, which often is the situation in many drunken driving cases.
As long-time drunken driving attorneys, we know that being pulled over by a highway patrolman or local cop can happen for any number of reasons; some as seemingly insignificant as a burned-out license plate lamp or cracked windshield. However, even these relatively innocuous infractions can actually result in the motorists being issued a summons for drinking and driving; many times, an arrest will occur and the driver's vehicle may be impounded.
It really makes no difference where in the Garden State one resides, works or goes to school; DWI and drug DUI police arrests happen all over the state, in such places as Atlantic, Bergen and Monmouth counties, or Newark, Princeton and Atlantic City. As a driver operating on the highways, interstates and surface streets of New Jersey, there is always a possibility that you or someone you know will be stopped by a law enforcement officer for one of dozens of comparatively minor traffic offenses.
Arrested for DWI? It's Important to Understand the Legal Process for a New Jersey DUI
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Is there a faith-based perspective on modern marijuana laws and reforms?
The question in the title of this post is prompted by this interesting article from the Washington Post headlined "Faith leaders wrestle over growing support for marijuana." Here are excerpts: Sunday’s Super Bowl was dubbed by some as the “pot...
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D.Vt.: Touching line not improper lane usage
Defendant’s stop for maintaining his lane was improper, but his giving a false name when stopped was an independent crime. After things went South and he was arrested, he agreed to cooperate with the police, and his cell phone search was by consent. United States v. Williams, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12951 (D. Vt. February 3, 2014). On the lane usage:
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Maryland High Court Holds Police May Not Tase Suspects Without Probable Cause to Arrest
In 2012, the Maryland Court of Appeals issued an opinion in the case of Reid v. State (2012) 428 Md. 289, discussing what measures law enforcement officers are permitted to use to detain a suspect without converting an encounter into an arrest. In Reid, the defendant, David Reid, was convicted on an agreed statement of facts of wearing, carrying, or transporting a handgun, and of being in possession of a handgun after conviction of a disqualifying offense. The statement of facts alleged that Baltimore City police received an anonymous phone call that a tall, black man was armed, and was selling drugs at a particular location.
Upon responding to the reported location, police officers observed and approached Reid, who turned away from the officers. As the officers approached Reid, he fled. The officers yelled for Reid to stop and, when he did not, the officers fired a taser into his back. During a subsequent search, the officers discovered a firearm in Reid's pocket.
Prior to trial, Reid filed a motion to suppress the firearm. The trial court denied Reid's motion, holding that the officers had reasonable articulable suspicion to effectuate a "Terry stop" on Reid, and the use of the taser did not convert the stop into an arrest.
A "Terry stop" is a brief detention of a person by police officers based on a reasonable suspicion that the individual is engaged in criminal activity. The authority for a Terry stop derives from the United States Supreme Court case Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968), in which the Court held that police may briefly detain a person whom they reasonably suspect is involved in criminal activity, and may also conduct limited search of the suspect's outer garments for weapons, if they have a reasonable and articulable suspicion that the person detained may be "armed and dangerous."
On appeal, the Maryland Court of Appeals recognized that, although "the use of drawn weapons or handcuffs does not per se convert a Terry stop into an arrest...a person shot in the back with two metal darts...would reasonably believe that he or she was not free to leave the encounter."
The Court held that the degree of force used to detain Reid elevated the detention to a de facto arrest, requiring a finding of probable cause. Probable cause has been commonly defined as "a reasonable amount of suspicion, supported by circumstances sufficiently strong to justify a prudent and cautious person's belief that certain facts are probably true." Essentially, this means that a police officer has to have information sufficient to support a prudent person's belief that an individual has committed a crime. The Court concluded that, because the officers lacked probable cause to arrest Reid at the time they tased him, the handgun found on him should have been suppressed.
The criminal defense attorneys of Brassel, Alexander & Rice, LLC have extensive experience defending the Constitutional rights of individuals that have been charged with a crime. If you or someone you know has been charged with a crime in Maryland, contact the attorneys of Brassel, Alexander & Rice, LLC today.
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San Diego Police Car Pursuit Criticized
A car chase that took place in our city earlier this year placed the public at risk, and should have been called off, according to the chairman of PursuitSAFETY, a national non-profit organization that is dedicated to reducing the number … Continue reading →The post San Diego Police Car Pursuit Criticized appeared first on .
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Driving Under the Influence in the Spotlight
At approximately 4:00 am on Thursday, January 23rd, Miami police arrested Justin Bieber for driving under the influence, drag racing, resisting arrest, and driving with a suspended license. The now-infamous ‘Baby’ singer admitted that he had taken prescription drugs, smoked marijuana and consumed alcohol prior to getting behind the wheel of his yellow Lamborghini. He was jailed briefly after a police officer witnessed the alleged drag race.
Drinking and driving, reckless endangerment, and driving with a suspended license are all serious crimes the privileged popstar believes he should not serve time for. CNN reported that Bieber was “cocky” and “insulting” when Miami police tried to give him simple instructions. He was profane and belligerent. Instead of acting remorseful or apologetic, Bieber paraded around the tropics and showboated via social media.
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Could Florida Medical Marijuana Card be Denied - Chapter 893 Statute if Florida Legalizes Medical Marijuana? - Part 5
How Could a Florida Medical Marijuana Card be Denied Issuance?How Could a Florida Medical Marijuana Card be Denied Issuance?This series continues to explore how Marijuana Laws in the Florida Statutes might be changed should the voters, the courts, and/or the legislature be so inclined. Here are some issues that will outline How a Medical Marijuana Card could be Denied under the proposed language of the law:(a) The county health department or the county’s designee may deny an application only for any of the following reasons:(1) The applicant did not provide the information required by Chapter 893 of the Florida Statutes, and upon notice of the deficiency, did not provide the information within 30 days.(2) The county health department or the county’s designee determines that the information provided was false.(3) The applicant does not meet the criteria set forth in this Chapter 893.(b) Any person whose application has been denied pursuant to subdivision (a) may not reapply for six months from the date of denial unless otherwise authorized by the county health department or the county’s designee or by a court of competent jurisdiction.(c) Any person whose application has been denied pursuant to subdivision (a) may appeal that decision to the department. The county health department or the county’s designee shall make available a telephone number or address to which the denied applicant can direct an appeal.#MedicalMarijuanaStop Worrying. The Call is Free, the Relief can be valuable. 1-877-793-9290 .
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81-Year-Old Jailed Without Bond For Feeding Black Bears
An 81-year-old Florida woman is being held without bail for repeatedly defying police requests to not the feed the wildlife near her home – specifically the local black bears. Sebring authorities said they gave Mary Musselman numerous warnings before they finally hauled her down to the station, but many in the community feel the officers […]The post 81-Year-Old Jailed Without Bond For Feeding Black Bears appeared first on The Appelman Law Firm Law Blog
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Defrauding Dick's: Circuit Reaffirms "Right to Control" Theory of Mail and Wire Fraud
United States v. Viloski, No. 12-265-cr (2d Cir. Feb. 4, 2014) (Walker, Cabranes, and Parker) (summary order), available hereViloski, a lawyer and real estate broker, was a broker/consultant for development projects of Dick's Sporting Goods. The trial evidence showed that he acted as a consultant for real estate transactions in which he accepted a consulting fee, a portion of which he secretly passed on to Joseph Queri, an employee of Dick's. In other transactions, Viloski did no consulting work, but accepted a consulting fee that he passed on to Queri in its entirety.The jury convicted Viloski of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, substantive counts of mail fraud, money laundering, and other charges. The government's theory of fraud was that the defendant had engaged in a "scheme to deprive another [i.e., Dick's] of potentially valuable information that could impact on economic decisions." On appeal, the Circuit affirmed Viloski's convictions, holding that this theory of fraud, premised on the right of a company to control its own assets (including the right to receive accurate material information regarding an employee's kickbacks), was a valid one, and that the theory was adequately set forth in both the indictment and in the jury instructions. The Court further held that the deprivation of "potentially valuable information" was sufficient to constitute fraud. Accordingly, the district court properly denied Viloski's motions to dismiss the indictment, to enter a judgment of acquittal, or to grant a new trial.Viloski did prevail on one issue: the Circuit held that the district court, in imposing forfeiture in excess of $1.2 million, erroneously failed to consider the factors in United States v. Bajakajian, 524 U.S. 321 (1998), to determine whether the forfeiture order violated the "excessive fines" clause of the Eighth Amendment. Thus, the Court remanded the forfeiture order with instructions to the district court to consider the Bajakajian factors.
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Circuit Court of Cook County will be open
Please be careful as you travel in the snow. As of 5:40 am, the Circuit Court of Cook County was scheduled to be open today. Please give yourself enough time if you have a court date. For up to date news on the court, here is its website: http://www.cookcountycourt.org/ Please drive safely.Lori G. LevinAttorney at Law180 N. LaSalle, Suite 37 [...]
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Kinderschutz: Rechtsmediziner klagen an
Woche für Woche werden in Deutschland etwa 70 Kinder krankenhausreif geprügelt, getreten, geschüttelt, gebissen, gewürgt oder verbrüht. Im Durchschnitt überleben davon drei die Folgen der Misshandlungen nicht – ohnehin wird nur ein Bruchteil der Fälle aufgedeckt oder angezeigt. 200.000 Fälle – 320 getötete Kinder pro Jahr Experten gehen jedoch von einer weitaus höheren Dunkelziffer aus. […]Original: Kinderschutz: Rechtsmediziner klagen an
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Research review II: Sexual predator controversies
Original Article
Excerpt:
Following up on last week’s research review, here are some new articles from the ever-controversial practice niche of sexually violent predator cases:
FACTS? WHO CARES...
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Teen Charged in Murder of Australian Baseball Player Turns Witness
Stephens County Special Judge Jerry Herberger delayed the conclusion of a preliminary hearing for two Duncan teens accused of murdering a jogger, but not before a third teen accused in the case offered some startling testimony as a prosecution witness. James Francis Edwards, Chauncey Allen Luna, and Michael Dewayne Jones were 15, 16, and 17 […]
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The Dayton Municipal Court Traffic School Program
The Dayton Municipal Court Traffic School Program enables approved defendants, who have voluntarily entered a Plea of Guilty to a minor misdemeanor traffic citation, issued within the jurisdiction of the Dayton Municipal Court, to have their cases dismissed and no points assessed to their driving records upon successful completion of the program and payment of the program fee. The Traffic Safety Class fee is $250 and this fee is non-refundable. The Traffic Safety Class is held at the Dayton Municipal [Read the full post. . .]
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West Palm Beach Man accused of sexual assaulting a Plantation child
A 21-year-old West Palm Beach man is accused of having sexual relations with a four-year-old girl in 2009, Plantation police are alleging. The arrest report alleges that the attacks occurred in 2009 when the man was 17. He and the young girl lived in Plantation at the time and he would show her pornographic DVDs […]
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What Imagine Dragons Did Before They Performed on Saturday Night Live
Before he took the stage of SNL, Dan Reynolds sat down to listen to a message recorded halfway around the world by two activists he had never met.
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Manton man charged with sex offender reporting violation
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Hampton DUI Manslaughter Charge Reduced to Probation
It took less than two hours for a Hampden Superior County jury to figure out that the defendant was guilty. They found her guilty of an alcohol-related charge, but not motor vehicle homicide, in a chain-reaction accident that claimed the life of a Holyoke man back in 2011, according to MassLive. The 33-year-old driver was sentenced to three years of probation, against a prosecution request for a 1 and a half-year jail sentence.
The accident happened when the now sentenced driver slammed into a parked SUV back in June of 2011 on Lincoln Street. The woman who was fatally injured in the accident ran outside of her home to help a victim in the flipped car, only to be hit by a passing vehicle and killed. The second driver in this case was initially charged with negligent vehicular manslaughter, but that case was later dropped.
Our drunk driving accident attorneys in Massachusetts feel it important to point out that the first driver's blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit. Unfortunately, this case illustrates the limits of the criminal justice system. As a part of the sentence, the convicted driver is required to abstain from unprescribed drugs and alcohol, submit to a random alcohol and drug screening and attended three Alcoholics Anonymous meetings a week.
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Michigan legislature nearing enactment of Miller fix without retroactivity
As reported in this AP article, headlined "Mich. House OKs Sentencing Rules For Young Killers," a state that has imposed LWOP on a very large number of juvenile murderers is getting close to revising its laws in response to the...
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The Police Have to Get a Search Warrant Before Looking at the Contents of Your Cell Phone
In the case of Cedric Smallwood versus the State of Florida, Mr. Smallwood was arrested for robbing a convenience store. Following his arrest, the police seized a cell phone that belonged to him and looked at some incriminating pictures …The post The Police Have to Get a Search Warrant Before Looking at the Contents of Your Cell Phone appeared first on Chapman Criminal Defense Firm.
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