By H. Michael Steinberg - Colorado Criminal Defense Lawyer The Colorado Bail Bond System - Unfair, Unjust, Shameful - Punish First Then The Right To Trial - A Tool To Fight Back - Colorado's Bail Bond System is broken. The purpose of bail is solely to insure the appearance of the Defendant in court. The reality is the wealthy "get out" and the not so fortunate - paycheck to paycheck families - often lose everything. The meaning of a "presumption of innocence" is ironic to these individuals and their families. The system was never intended to keep in custody those who do not have the ability to post bond. In it's simplest terms - the definition of bail is the total amount of money required to be released from jail while awaiting trial. If you have the amount of bail set by the judge, or have the ability to retain the services of a bailbondsperson - you gain your freedom while fighting the charges. If you don't "post" bail - you…
The Colorado Bail Bond System - Unfair, Unjust, Shameful - Punish First Then The Right To Trial - A Tool To Fight Back
↧
↧
Editorials From both the Journal and New Mexican About Obergefell
Here is the Albuquerque Journal's take on the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges.http://www.abqjournal.com/605243/opinion/supreme-court-majority-steps-into-the-future.htmlAnd the Santa Fe New Mexican's take on the case:http://www.santafenewmexican.com/opinion/editorials/our-view-court-correctly-votes-to-extend-marriage-rights/article_90cdba6f-9b6c-52c5-8c7a-d7d10c97a08a.html
↧
What Are Grounds for Divorce in Maine?
Divorce laws are handled at the state legislative level in the United States, and Maine allows divorcing couples the option of filing for a "no-fault" or "fault" divorce. Regardless of whether your divorce is amicable or contested, you must declare the reason why you are divorcing. That reason is considered the "grounds" for the dissolution of your marriage, and you must determine and declare it on your divorce paperwork. Difference Between No-Fault and Fault It's best to understand the difference between no-fault and fault to understand the grounds for filing your divorce. A no-fault divorce is commonly known as dissolution of marriage due to "irreconcilable differences." A fault divorce is, as its name suggests, a request to dissolve the marriage due to the fault of the other spouse. Whether the divorce is filed as no-fault or fault is important to the overall final agreement, not to mention custody disputes if children are…
↧
Sunday Open Thread
Last week the Rolling Stones got a stellar review in Pittsburgh. Last night, in Kansas City, more of the same. Check out the accolades in the review in the Wichita Eagle. Their two-hour performance was about as close to perfect as a stadium rock... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
↧
Semi cash involving Bees
The Idaho State Police is currently on scene and investigating a blocking semi-truck crash Eastbound I90 near Sherman Avenue in Coeur d'Alene. The semi was hauling bees. The bees are swarming and the public is encouraged to avoid the area if at all possible. Thank you for your assistance.
↧
↧
Semi crash involving Bees
The Idaho State Police is currently on scene and investigating a blocking semi-truck crash Eastbound I90 near Sherman Avenue in Coeur d'Alene. The semi was hauling bees. The bees are swarming and the public is encouraged to avoid the area if at all possible. Thank you for your assistance.
↧
Driver's License Restoration Appeals in Michigan - The big Picture
I have written rather extensively about the need to be eligible to file for and then win a Michigan driver's license restoration or clearance appeal. In this article, I want to begin with an example of how a little-known facet of the license reinstatement process demonstrates a much larger, very important point: There are loads of little things that you will never understand by just learning the rules governing license appeal cases. Of course, your mandatory revocation period must pass before you can begin the license appeal process. Beyond that, the primary rule governing license appeals speaks of either 6 or 12 months abstinence as a pre-condition to win back your license, but that is only half the story. I recently wrote an article explaining that you must be off of probation to win a restoration appeal. The Michigan Secretary of State's Administrative Hearing Section (known as the AHS, and until recently the DAAD, and not that long ago, the DLAD) holds that…
↧
1st Offense DUI in Macomb, Oakland or Wayne County, Michigan
For most people facing a 1st offense DUI in Michigan, the case marks their first adult contact with the criminal justice system. The sense of apprehension about what will follow can fill the coming days with a sense of fear and doom. In this article, I want to alleviate those misplaced concerns, not with the balm of patronizing reassurance, but rather with a simple overview of how things really work, and why that means, even in the most clear-cut of cases, that things aren't anywhere near as bad as they seem. We'll see that most of the things that people worry about don't happen, and that with some intelligent and proactive effort, we can avoid or minimize many of the other, less talked about consequences of a drunk driving charge. A DUI can, in theory, have up to 6 steps: Arrest, arraignment, pretrial, trial, screening and sentencing. In the real world (meaning in over 99% of cases), there is almost never a trial, and the arraignment stage can usually be…
↧
Former Public School Principal Pleads Guilty To Theft
The shamed Baltimore City public school teacher charged with eleven theft crimes almost a year ago has now pled guilty to one count of felony theft scheme. This past week in the Circuit Court in downtown Baltimore a special statewide prosecutor announced the state would only pursue one of the counts in exchange for the guilty plea. The ex-principal will now avoid what would have been a lopsided trial, as the prosecutor had ample evidence connecting the defendant to almost $50,000 of missing school activity funds. The defendant, who is currently out on bail, was not sentenced at the plea hearing. Rather, sentencing has been set for early October on the one felony count that carries a maximum jail sentence of fifteen years. There is also the possibility of hefty fines and mandatory restitution for the charge, which is classified as theft scheme with a value of $10,000 to $100,000. This offense does not carry a minimum mandatory jail sentence, unlike the embezzlement count…
↧
↧
This blog will be inactive for a short time while we transition to new blog software
To Underdog Blog's readers: For as many as a few weeks, I will be away from posting blog entries while we transition to new WordPress blog software that is more user friendly. My current, now-outdated blog software has bugs that cause appearance quirks in prior blog entries each time I post a new blog entry. This transition to new blog software will take some time, because it includes finalizing a new design with my webmaster and migrating well over one thousand prior blog entries to the new software. Missing blogging for more than a few days will not be easy for me. I look forward to posting my next blog entry on our new WordPress software.
↧
Should Police Need a Warrant to Fly a Drone Over Your House?
Generally, the 4th Amendment requires police to get a warrant to avoid an illegal search. However, the 4th Amendment as it applies to drones is a new and unsettled area of the law. Currently, police do not need a warrant to fly a drone over your property for investigative purposes, but a new bill in California is proposing that law enforcement need obtain a warrant before conducting drone surveillance of your property. Reasonable Expectation of Privacy and Drones The legality of drone usage and the 4th Amendment warrant requirements hinges on whether drones violate your reasonable expectation of privacy. Over the last 25 years or so, courts have struggled with how new advancements in technology should be reconciled with 4th Amendment protections. With the widespread use of smartphones, GPS and other technologies, our privacy expectations have arguably been lowered. Legal Precedent In one case, the Supreme Court ruled that flying a helicopter 400 feet over one’s house was…
↧
Report: South Florida Communities May Lower Marijuana Possession Penalties
A number of cities are weighing local proposals to reduce the penalties for low-level possession of marijuana. The measures would effectively decriminalize possessing the drug in small amounts for personal possession. So far, council members in Miami Beach and commissioners in Miami-Dade County have offered preliminary support for an action that would reduce possession of cannabis from a misdemeanor to a civil offense. Hallandale Beach commissioners are also weighing a similar proposal. Instead of offenders facing jail time and a criminal record, they would instead be cited for a civil infraction and fined $100.
↧
State v. Antonio T.: New Mexico Supreme Court
Once again, the issue of a child's right to remain silent is front and center as an appellate issue.Every appeals court in the nation has recently examined this area of law in one form or another, to include both the New Mexico Court of Appeals and Supreme Court, as well as the United States Supreme Court.Antonio T. deals with the questioning of a child in a school principal's office by the principal while a law enforcement officer stood by. Additionally, the law enforcement officer administered a breath alcohol test to the child. Both the questioning by the principal, as well as the administering of the breath test, were given prior to the Child being informed of his right to remain silent under Miranda.The Child filed a motion to suppress his statements. The trial court denied his motion, and the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court's decision. The New Mexico Supreme Court reverses the Court of Appeals and the trial court, holding that…
↧
↧
Islamic State One Year Later: Lasting and Expanding
The Islamic State is one year old today. Its long term goal remains the creation of a "lasting and expanding" Caliphate. [More...] Its strategy for survival and growth has relied on a number of components: pragmatism regarding the Syrian regime;... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
↧
Police and the DUI Driver and the City
Police officers are constantly on the lookout for drivers whom they can charge with a DUI in Los Angeles. So the last thing that impaired motorists usually want to do is to call attention to themselves and their driving. But in two recent cases, that’s just what happened—once accidentally and once deliberately. Pedro S. Garcia of White Plains, New York, allegedly gained the notice two officers by almost hitting them. They had been directing traffic at the scene of a medical emergency when they saw a driver accelerate towards them, stopping just before he reached them. When the cops investigated, they found that Garcia smelled like alcohol, had watery eyes and was speaking slowly and deliberately. When they gave him a field sobriety test, he flunked. The officers charged Garcia with DUI and hauled him off to jail, but he was soon released on a $220 bond. In Hopkinsville, Kentucky, however, the police didn’t have to go searching for the intoxicated driver; he…
↧
Supreme Court Upholds Execution Drug
In a 5-4 opinion written by Justice Alito, the Supreme Court has upheld Oklahoma's use of midazolam in executions. The reasoning: Alito said the prisoners failed to identify a “known and available alternative method of execution that... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
↧
Supreme Court Strikes Down Warrantless Searches of Hotel Guest Registries
Hotels possess a treasure trove of private information about their guests. Everything from the guest’s name, address, credit card and vehicle information to the number of guests in the party, arrival and departure dates and the amount paid for the stay. Needless to say, that data can be extremely useful to law enforcement. Indeed, many municipalities across the country, including the city of Los Angeles, have ordinances that not only require hotels to record and maintain such information in guest registries, but also require the establishment to make the data available to police for inspection. Moreover, failure to produce guest records for inspection can be a crime. But is a law that requires businesses to provide data about their customers to police absent a search warrant, subpoena or some exigent circumstance, constitutional? It is not, according to the Supreme Court last week. A group of motel operators challenged the constitutionality of Los Angeles’ guest…
↧
↧
National DUI vs. Hawaii DUI
“There’s three types of lies in the world: lies, damned lies, and statistics.” – Origin disputed.  National DUI arrest statistics Congratulations Hawaii! According the the US Department of Justice and the FBI our DUI arrests are way under the National Average. Either what we’re doing to limit DUIs is working, or we’re horribly under-arresting. I assure you it isn’t the latter. Coming in forty seventh, DUI is such a minor problem in Hawaii that we’re in the bottom five of all states for percentage of driving population arrested for DUI. For every 10,000 drivers there are less than ten arrests (conceivably, some people may be arrested twice in a year. Or a day.) Compare this to North Dakota, where the figure comes closer to 100 arrests per 10,000 drivers. And what happens once you’re arrested in Hawaii? The most recent news story concluded at least one in four cases get dismissed.  Honolulu DUI dismissal…
↧
Police Will Remember This Crazy DUI Arrest
When people are arrested for DUI in Los Angeles, they may harbor the hope that the arresting officer will go easy on them. But it probably won’t help their case if some unpleasant incident—like getting sick all over the back of the police cruiser–occurs during the arrest. Police in Seminole County, Florida, for example, will probably remember (and not in a good way) 29-year-old Metilia Petties, picked up for DUI in mid-June. Petties had apparently been involved in a fight earlier in the evening, and then she allegedly used nine (nine!) vodka-and Sprite mixed drinks to take the edge off her anger. She eventually left the bar and drove off in her Toyota sedan, but officers spotted her swerving into traffic going the opposite direction on Goldsboro Boulevard. Petties then hit a sedan that was attempting to make a turn, which sent the driver of that car to the hospital because of neck and body injuries. Petties allegedly fled the scene, but cops eventually caught…
↧
THE INTOXICATION DEFENSE IN ILLINOIS
Under limited circumstances, being drunk or drugged can be a defense to a crime in Illinois. Intoxication is only a defense when 1) it was involuntarily produced and 2) it deprived you of the substantial capacity to either appreciate the criminality of your conduct or conform your conduct to the law. Intoxication may be involuntary where it is produced by fraud, artifice or deceit. If someone slipped drugs into your punch, you might not be responsible for what happens next. Intoxication also includes the unexpected or unwarned side effects of prescribed medication. For example, a doctor prescribes an antidepressant without warning you that it can cause sleep walking. In one Illinois case, the court held a defendant was entitled to have his intoxication defense reviewed by the jury where he had killed his wife and her lover after having taken Zoloft. People v Hari. But even when involuntary, your intoxication must deprive you of all reason. You can’t use…
↧
More Pages to Explore .....
