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“How can you represent those people?”

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The classic crack made at many a cocktail party. Every defense lawyer suffers through the ordeal of offering a dissatisfying response (at least to the tormentor) to this barely concealed insult. I have no intention of dragging out the usual suspects, but rather I want, for a change, to ask the question myself. Not for the perverse enjoyment of it, but because I sincerely want an answer. It is hard to follow the terrorist “trials” being conducted at Guantanamo because so much of them and the evidence is classified. So at best we get a partial through-the-looking-glass peek at what is going on. From my point of view much of it seems discouraging. Two cases on point. Mustafa Hawsawi is accused of assisting the 9/11 hijackers by supplying money and travel arrangements. According to the released portion of the Senate Torture Report, Hawsawi was subjected to unauthorized “enhanced interrogation techniques.” (Orwell would have a field day with this government…

DUI Offender Endangers 11 Seniors on the Road

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Last week, the driver of Snohomish Senior Center van was pulled over and charged with a DUI by the Washington State Patrol. The stop occurred on Highway 2 and happened after the driver's 11 elderly passengers called for him to stop. The driver, a 45 year old Lake Stevens man, has not only been charged with DUI, but also 11 counts of reckless endangerment. As KIRO 7 reports, the seniors were being transported to a community tulip festival when they noticed that the driver—who was also on the phone and eating at the time—began to swerve on the road. The van reached Highway 2 and, shortly after, struck two jersey barriers. Passengers spotted nearby troopers and were able to convince the driver to pull over. Investigators found a depressant and hydrocodone in his DUI blood test. KIRO 7 has also found that this is not the driver's first DUI charge. He was also charged with DUI in 2014. Those charges are still being processed by the court system. He will…

Suspected DUI Motorist Files Claim Against City of Chicago After Release of Video

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A DUI suspect is filing a claim against the city of Chicago after video caught a group of Chicago police officers clubbing the main while he lay on the pavement. According to the claim the man, Sean Reardon, was pulled over for a broken tail light and expired tags before being struck multiple times without provocation leading him to suffer multiple broken bones and other injuries. However according to police, Reardon had a warrant for his arrest and attempted to flee from police. Police say he then resisted arrest and refused to show his hands. In addition, Reardon was found to have a blood alcohol content of .14 (.08 is the legal limit) and also had cocaine and methamphetamine in his blood.  Reardon was already on probation for an earlier DUI. The post Suspected DUI Motorist Files Claim Against City of Chicago After Release of Video appeared first on Maryland DUI Lawyer | DWI Attorney | Blog.

Respondent, M.F., is charged with murder

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Respondent, M.F., is charged with Murder in the Second Degree. At the time of the accident, respondent was 13 years old. This case stems from the death of respondent's newborn baby. On January 14, 2005, the deceased was found inside a paper bag on the steps of church. Respondent was arraigned in Bronx Criminal Court for the murder of the deceased on March 21, 2005, the case was removed to Bronx Family Court where respondent made her initial appearance on March 22, 2005. The fact finding began on March 7, 2006 and concluded on November 30, 2006. On it's direct case, the presentment agency, represented by the Office of the Bronx District Attorney, put forth several witnesses. AMP, respondent's friend, KP, AMP's sister, Emergency Medical Technician and Paramedic, Detective IB, Detective Joseph JN, Detective RG, Medical Examiner and L.B., the father of the deceased baby. Emergency Medical Technician and paramedic testified that on January 14, 2005 he was…

Saving Your Driver License With A Drug Conviction

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Drug Convictions Lead to a Six Month Loss of Driver License If you get a drug possession conviction, Utah law generally requires that you lose your driver license.One of the most annoying collateral consequences of a drug conviction is the loss of a driver’s license. This is true for the simplest of marijuana possession charges to the most serious of charges includes possessing cocaine and heroin. Utah Code 53-3-220 reads: “…the division shall immediately suspend for six months the license of a person upon receiving a record of conviction for (i) any violation of: (A) Title 58, Chapter 37, Utah Controlled Substances Act; (B) Title 58, Chapter 37a, Utah Drug Paraphernalia Act; (C) Title 58, Chapter 37b, Imitation Controlled Substances Act; (D) Title 58, Chapter 37c, Utah Controlled Substance Precursor Act; or (E) Title 58, Chapter 37d, Clandestine Drug Lab Act…” Thus, every person who has a few grams of weed can…

How a First OUI Charge Can Turn Into Jail Time

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In Maine, most first-time convictions for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol (OUI) result in stiff fines and a suspension of your driving license. However, there are some circumstances that could land you behind bars for more than 48 hours, even if you've never been arrested for an OUI before. If you don't want an OUI stop to result in an arrest and a weekend in a cell, remember that these are things that you should avoid doing at all costs: Have a BAC at or over 0.15% In Maine, like all states, the standard for OUI is a 0.08% blood alcohol content (BAC). This is commonly measured by a police officer during a traffic stop, using a breathalyzer. If the results of the breathalyzer show that your BAC is above 0.08%, you will be cited for an OUI. If the results are lower than 0.08%, you still might get an OUI if it's determined that your driving was in any way impaired. But what if you blow over a 0.08%? Way over a 0.08%? If the…

SB 5052 (Medical Marijuana Law Update)

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SB 5052 passed the house and, after one more committee, will be on the way to the Governor for a signature enacting this latest bill into law. What will the “new laws” be? If passed, they are sweeping. Up until now, we have not been able to provide much, as anything we may say would have been pure… The post SB 5052 (Medical Marijuana Law Update) appeared first on Seattle Criminal Defense Lawyer | Pelley Law.

Tough (and record-long) sentences for cheating Atlanta school administrators


Massage Envy Client in Los Angeles Claims Sexual Assault

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Recently, a 25-year-old woman who visited a Massage Envy location in Los Angeles claimed that she was sexually assaulted by the 67-year-old massage therapist giving her a massage. According to a news article at CBS, the massage therapist, Gary Sperling, was arrested on single counts of lewd act on a dependent adult, and sodomy of an incompetent person. Sperling has worked at several Massage Envy locations over a nine-year time period, according to detectives. The company claims there has never in the past been a complaint filed against Sterling. Sterling was held on $100,000 bail in Ventura according to the news report. Massage Envy said that each franchisee is required to perform reference and criminal background checks. In addition, the franchise said that training is required prior to employment as a licensed massage therapist, and that the training specifically covers Massage Envy’s Zero Tolerance Policy regarding inappropriate conduct. Neighbors were surprised at…

BGer 5A_240/2014: Kognition des Grundbuchverwalters

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Das Bundesgericht hatte im Urteil 5A_240/2014 vom 18. Dezember 2014 zu prüfen ob ein Grundbuchverwalter eine Eintragung über eine Handänderung an Miteigentumsanteilen verweigern darf, wenn nicht nachgewiesen ist, dass der andere Ehegatte zugestimmt hat. Herr X – in einem Scheidungsverfahren mit seiner Frau Y – liess seiner Tochter Z, obschon ihm im Rahmen einer vorsorglichen Massnahme verboten wurde, über seinen Miteigentumsanteil (Art. 646 Abs. 3 ZGB) zu verfügen, diesen als Erbvorbezug zukommen. Das zuständige Grundbuchamt verweigerte die Eintragung. Dieser Entscheid wurde von der Tochter Z auf allen kantonalen Ebenen angefochten und schlussendlich mittels Beschwerde in Zivilsachen beim Bundesgericht anhängig gemacht. Das Bundesgericht rief vorab die allgemeinen Grundsätze für den Eigentumserwerb in Erinnerung: die Eintragung im Grundbuch ist grundsätzlich konstitutives Erfordernis für den Eigentumserwerb im…

Second Circuit Denies Rehearing of Insider Trading Case Reversal

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Earlier this month, the Second Circuit, as expected (at least by me), denied Southern District of New York U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara's request for reargument and reconsideration of its December 2014 ruling in United States v Newman which narrowed, at...

Know what to do if you’re getting pulled over!

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Okay, so you just got pulled over for weaving, speeding or its 10:30 p.m. and you are just driving around downtown. The cop asks you for your license and insurance and then says, “sir, where are you coming from tonight, “or “Ma’am have you been drinking tonight.” What do you do? What do you say? People always seem to believe that if they just tell the officer the truth they will be let go or the officer will help them somehow after being charged. WELL, these assumptions are WRONG. Everything you say to a police officer could and will hurt you, because he is evaluating your speech, your eyes, and he is smelling in your car to see if he can detect anything. Now, the officer asks you to step outside the vehicle. Be careful because he is watching your every move, every step. The officer pulls you aside and says he believes you have been drinking and just wants to perform a few tests before letting you head home. DO YOU TAKE THESE…

News Scan

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Feds Releasing Hundreds Of Violent Illegal Immigrants:  Arrests and deportations of criminal aliens dropped 30% in the first six months of fiscal year 2015, despite President Obama's professed intention for agents to "focus on felons not families."  Stephen Diana of the Washington Times reports that 30,558 criminal aliens were "knowingly released back into the community" by ICE in 2014.  Together these aliens accumulated almost 80,000 convictions including violent crimes.  ICE Director Sarah Saldana defends the actions of the agency, stating that the laws passed under Congress require her to grant due process to everyone and make judgments about whom to keep detained. Alien Children Allowed To Sue For Legal Representation:  A US District Court Judge in Washington state rejected a motion to dismiss a lawsuit that would grant legal representation to undocumented children facing deportation, ruling that their request for counsel…

Are DUI arrests down in Washington?

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Yes. DUI filings (non-felony) in Washington State are down approximately 25% since 2010 according to Washington State Court Statistics. We were at nearly 40,000 annually in 2010 - but are now below 30,000. Not sure whether this is result of...

How the “Rule of Lenity” Approaches Maryland Cases Involving Multiple Charges of Criminal Conduct

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Every stage of a criminal case, from arrest to the final appeal, presents an opportunity to assert one’s rights. The Constitution and local state laws ensure that no citizen may be deprived of these rights unfairly and without due process. Maryland courts are often called upon to interpret various provisions of the state criminal code as it applies to any one particular person alleged to have committed a crime. If you have been arrested or charged with a crime, you may be entitled to assert a solid defense to the charges. The most effective course of action is to contact an experienced Maryland criminal defense attorney as soon as possible after an arrest. In a recent case, Wiredu v. State of Maryland, the appellant successfully appealed part of his sentences. According to the facts, Wiredu was driving home on a four-lane road (two southbound and two northbound lanes) when his truck collided with a motorcycle headed in the oncoming lane. Although Wiredu testified that the…

Chuck Grassley, the New Boogeyman of Sentencing "Reform"

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Sentencing "reform" advocates are relentlessly frustrated that they make so little headway in Congress.  Unwilling to consider the notion that their problem is that going softer on heroin and meth dealers just isn't an idea the majority of lawmakers (or the public) supports, a Boogeyman  --  a single, obdurate roadblock  -- must be found.Today's Boogeyman (and a popular choice for the title) is Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.  Hence this from a leading sentencing "reform" site:[E]even if the vast majority of Senators strongly support significant reforms to federal mandatory minimum sentencing provisions or to federal marijuana provisions, Senator Grassley can ensure-- at least until 2017, and perhaps after that if the GOP retains control of the Senate -- that federal reform bills do not even get a committee hearing, let alone a committee vote.   Indeed, even if…

Does a DWI Conviction Bar a Person from Possessing a Gun?

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The maximum punishment for driving while impaired in violation of G.S. 20-138.1 increased from two to three years in 2011. As a result, defendants convicted of misdemeanor DWI and sentenced at the most serious level—Aggravated Level One—are prohibited from possessing firearms by federal law. That’s because federal law prohibits firearm possession by a person who […]

Evidence in Florida DUI Crashes Causing Bodily Injury or Death

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As a criminal defense attorney, I am always asked about what types of evidence can be put forward by the accused to show he or she was not the driver of a vehicle involved in a DUI crash causing serious bodily injury or death were the prosecution is alleging that alcohol or illegal drugs played a part in the crime. In other words, the accused DUI driver wants to put forth competent and substantial evidence that he or she was not in control of the motor vehicle at the time of the DUI crash that caused serious bodily injury or death. I am always reminded of my science background on these issues and the term DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid immediately comes to mind for consideration of an affirmative defense. In today’s modern age of automobile safety, almost every automobile on the road has an airbag system that if properly working will deploy during impact. When the airbag is deployed during a crash, the driver of the vehicle will be touched and on most occasions violently…

Issacharoff & Wirshba on Third Party Doctrine

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Lucas Issacharoff and Kyle Wirshba have posted Restoring Reason to the Third Party Doctrine (Minnesota Law Review, Vol. 100, 2016, Forthcoming) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This Article takes as its starting point the recent turmoil over the continued...

Will I receive "good credit" credit on EHM time?

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Typically not. I usually recommend that clients ask the Court to convert electronic home monitoring (EHM) to jail time. Obviously, you will need to be in compliance with everything else for the Court to even consider this option. The law...
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