I want to bring a scientific challenge to a DWI case of mine, how do I do it? This is a question we have received a lot lately from other defense attorneys. Unfortunately, the only answer to that question is to learn the material. We have posted numerous times explaining the games the BCA will play on the stand and how the State will attempt to hide the uncertainty of measurement and bias. In order to make an effective challenge, the lawyer needs to know the scientific material as well as, if not better than, the BCA. This means that when the BCA's forensic scientists say or do something that does not fit the scientific community's standards, you need to be able to reference the authorities in the field and discredit the BCA's claim or procedure. (As one of my law school professors would say, "wack em over the head with it.") The good news is that the National College For DUI Defense is putting on an entire seminar…
Metrology 3.0: Science as Your Best Defense
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New “Blue Lives Matter” Law Taken For A Spin in Louisiana
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “Should I talk to the police?” There’s been a recent push by legislatures in some states to pass what are known as “Blue Lives Matter” laws. This broad category refers to measures intended to stiffen penalties faced by offenders who perpetrate crimes against police officers. Supporters say the laws are necessary to send the message that police officers are worthy of respect and deserve special protection. Critics argue these laws are unnecessary, as violence against police officers is already punished and, in many cases, serves as an aggravating factor when weighing punishment for various crimes. Continue reading →
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Marijuana Makes for Slackers? Now There's Evidence
Susan Pinker has this article in the WSJ with the above title, reviewing the research.In the previous post, I noted my rare agreement with Jerry Brown that a marijuana industry with legitimacy and mass marketing would produce an increase in consumption that will diminish us as a nation. This is why. We are already suffering from a decline in the ambition and work ethic that made us a great nation in the first place. The last thing we need is a chemically induced steepening of our decline.
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TX House County Affairs Committee to take up racial profiling, bail reform
In the wake of the Austin Statesman's revelations regarding DPS racial profiling data (see Grits' earlier discussion, the House County Affairs Committee will hold a hearing next week on "racial disparities during traffic stops within Texas Department of Public Safety, the constitutionality of equal protection claims and concerns that arise from DPS racial disparities, de-escalation tactics, and diversion before booking." (The Statesman has a preview story.)The same committee will take up topics related to bail and pretrial detention as part of its interim work. The following day, the committee will review "pretrial service and bonding practices throughout the state. Examine factors considered in bail and pre-trial confinement decisions, including the use of risk assessments; assess the effectiveness and efficiency of different systems in terms of cost to local governments and taxpayers, community safety, pretrial absconding rates and rights of…
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Considering Filing for Divorce? Take These Steps First
Divorce1 has a way of bringing out the worst in people. Even you and your spouse both realize that the marriage is not working and agree to end your marriage, the process of separating your lives and finances can create significant conflict. As a result, even the most seemingly amicable split can end up in a long protracted dispute that ultimately needs to be resolved by a court.2 As people go through the process of ending their marriage, they can often engage in behavior that is simply meant to frustrate the other person or make their life more difficult. In addition, they may try and use anything they can as evidence to get the result they want regarding issues like property division, child custody, and maintenance (alimony). As a result, it is very important for anyone who is considering filing for divorce to take steps to protect their rights, such as the following: Collect Important Documents It is very likely that you will no longer cohabitate with your spouse as you…
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Florida Inmate Who Left Job While on Work Release Convicted of Escape
In Florida, a person who gets sentenced to jail might be able to take advantage of a work release program for inmates if the jail offers such a program. For instance, in Jacksonville, the Duval County jail allows certain inmates to leave the facility to go to an approved job during normal work hours. The inmate must have the job and the company pre-approved by the people running the work release program. Once approved, the inmate is allowed to leave the jail in the morning, work all day and return to the jail in the evening after work. It is a great way for an inmate to keep his/her job while incarcerated and also to spend a good portion of his/her jail sentence outside of the jail. There are risks to entering such a program. An inmate who does not follow the rules of the work release program can be charged with escape, which is a serious felony crime in Florida. Hopefully, if the inmate is late to work or late getting back to the jail every now and then due to traffic,…
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Contempt of Court, Appropriately in Behalf of Criminals
The Wall Street Journal explains that Gov. Terry McAuliffe of Virginia has thumbed his nose at an order of the highest court in the state in the name of giving an en masse benefit to felons:President Obama has charted new levels of executive defiance, but even he hasn't refused to obey a Supreme Court ruling. Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe has sought to follow Mr. Obama's executive hubris, and now he's gone further and is acting in contempt of the court that has rebuked him.In July the Virginia Supreme Court struck down his executive order restoring voting rights to 206,000 felons. Under Virginia law the Governor can grant clemency on an individual basis. But the justices wrote that "Governor McAuliffe's assertion of 'absolute' power to issue his executive order" runs "afoul of the separation-of-powers principle" in the Virginia constitution. The individual clemency power, the court admonished, "does not mean he can…
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Interesting (and already dated) census of problem-solving courts from BJS
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"Can 2016 marijuana ballot initiatives ignite a fire under millennial voters?"
The question in the title of this post is the headline of this MarketWatch article that highlights why I think marijuana ballot initiatives (especially in swing states like Florida and Nevada and Arizona) are an important sleeper story this big election year. Here is how the article starts: Millennial and...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MarijuanaLaw/~4/Bd9b9KVRvWw" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>
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We Abolished Parole for a Reason
I was happy to have the opportunity a couple of days ago to speak at the Washington Post's Criminal Justice Summit. The Post's editorial policies are worse than dubious, but its crime reporting is among the best in the country, led by the brilliant Tom Jackman, the moderator of my panel.Today the Post carries a story about child cruelty and murder so horrible I feel as if I must warn readers that you need a strong stomach to get to the end. For now, I will just say two things First, the story shows why never permitting a jury to consider the death penalty is not merely foolish but morally grotesque. Second, it shows why early release -- which used to go by name parole, before being abolished (in federal law) in the Eighties -- should seldom if ever be given.It's not that there are no instances in which it is warranted. It's that the system cannot reliably distinguish the warranted from the unwarranted, and the…
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Thomas on Corporations as Persons under the Criminal Law
W. Robert Thomas (Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP) has posted When and How Corporations Became Persons under the Criminal Law, and Why It Matters Now on SSRN. Here is the abstract: The Supreme Court concluded in 1909 that a...
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The Age of Consent Keeps Getting Lower
As I noted in my last entry, the Washington Post has superb crime reporting, and this story is no exception. Its title is, "Ex-mayor charged in 4 year-old's rape said girl was a willing participant, records say."A former Ohio mayor indicted on rape charges reportedly confessed that he had sex with a child -- a young girl, who, the man claimed, was a willing participant.Court records filed Monday describe conversations in which Richard Keenan -- who briefly served as the mayor of Hubbard -- talked to several people, including his wife and a pastor, about alleged assaults that occurred over the course of two years, beginning in 2013, when the girl was 4.The 65-year-old Keenan, who once described himself as a man of faith, was indicted last month on eight counts of gross sexual imposition, eight counts of rape and four counts of attempted rape.Remember this when someone claiming to be "a man of faith" starts holding forth on,…
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Man Sentenced To 16 Years In Prison For Mortgage Scam
A man convicted of conspiring to defraud more than 30,000 Americans out of about $31 million was sentenced on Thursday to 16 years in prison. The California man was also ordered to pay $11.9 million in forfeiture and restitution. The man was convicted of running a mortgage scheme from November 2011 through May 2014, causing more than 60 homeowners to lose their homes. The man apparently oversaw about 65 telemarketers and managers in his role as general manager of sales at the company. Prosecutors claim that the Irvine-based company persuaded homeowners in dire financial shape to modify the terms of their mortgages to make them more affordable. Four other people convicted in the scheme are awaiting sentencing. With the housing market where it is currently, prosecutors are going after anyone accused of mortgage fraud to the fullest extent of the law. Rest assured that they will stop at nothing to achieve a conviction for this white collar crime. Their ultimate goal is…
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How Police Can See Your Internet History
One of the biggest ways that law enforcement can get around your Fourth Amendment rights is by gathering evidence without conducting a “search.” If it's not objectively reasonable for you to assume that something will be kept private, then the police can get it and use it as evidence without having to get a search warrant or prove that the search fell within a warrant exception. Importantly, if you voluntarily give information or something else that can be used as evidence to a third party, then it's deemed that you can no longer assume that it will be kept private. Therefore, police can get the material from the third party without implicating your Fourth Amendment rights, because they aren't conducting a “search.” This is called the third party doctrine, and impacts many of the things you do every day, like taking out your trash, or making a phone call. What You Do On the Internet Likely Falls Within the Third Party Doctrine Whenever…
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A Day In The Political Life Of The Deplorable Donald Trump
The day began with great anticipation. Donald J. Trump, whose political career was essentially launched five years ago when he began wallowing in a racist conspiracy aimed at delegitimizing the first African American president, was going to deliver a major statement on what has come to be known as the "birther" issue. The New York Times, which has been loathe to call Trump out for either his lies or his racism, actually noted that Trump has continued to "promote" this "lie" and suggested it was borne out of "racism": Much has been made of Mr. Trump’s casual elasticity with the truth; he has exhausted an army of fact-checkers with his mischaracterizations, exaggerations and fabrications. But this lie was different from the start, an insidious, calculated calumny that sought to undo the embrace of an African-American president by the 69 million voters who elected him in 2008.Whether…
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Penalties for Endangering Welfare of Children (N.J.S.A. 2C:24-4) in New Jersey
Child pornography crimes in New Jersey are considered incredibly serious, and frequently draw federal as well as state charges. Under Endangering Welfare of Children (N.J.S.A. 2C:24-4), your best hope is to be charged with possession of child pornography, which can still put you in prison for 18 months. Under the statute, prohibited conduct includes causing a child younger than 16 to engage in or simulate a variety of sexual acts for the purpose of filming or reproducing them, photographing or filming a child performing such an act, receiving such images for the purpose of selling or distributing, or simply possessing these, even in electronic form on your computer. You can be sentenced to decades in prison if you’re found guilty of Endangering Welfare of Children. Get help right away. Call Matthew Reisig today at 732-625-9661 for a free consultation with an experienced New Jersey criminal defense lawyer. The post Penalties for Endangering Welfare of Children (N.J.S.A.…
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Washington Township Cop Suspended After Second DWI, Domestic Violence Incident in New Jersey
William McCarthy III, an officer with the Washington Township Police Department, is facing charges after he plowed into several vehicles in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, allegedly while under the influence. McCarthy, a resident of Great Meadows, was arrested for DUI and resisting arrest by Hazleton police when he was stopped at a roadblock. According to police reports of the incident, McCarthy’s SUV had significant front-end damage when it got to the roadblock, after striking several vehicles prior to the stop. The incident occurred a year after McCarthy was found in Blairstown, parked by the side of the road with an open bottle of tequila between his legs. That incident got him a 90-day license suspension, but by the time the Pennsylvania incident occurred, his license was valid again. McCarthy is also being investigated for an apparent domestic violence incident immediately prior to the events in Pennsylvania. McCarthy has been suspended without pay and the future of his…
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Lafayette, NJ Man Pees In Yard, Gets DWI
There are plenty of ways to get popped for DWI in New Jersey, but Sean O’Hara, 30, found what may have been a new method when passing through Sparta. It seems that O’Hara was driving along Houses Corner Road the evening of Sunday, June 12, when he stopped to relieve himself. The homeowner in whose yard O’Hara was urinating wasn’t too pleased to see someone watering his grass, and called the police. Sparta cops determined that O’Hara was likely intoxicated and conducted field sobriety tests, which he failed. A search followed, which revealed drugs in his pocket and resulted in a series of charges, including DWI, careless driving, possession of a controlled dangerous substance in a vehicle, possession of under 50 grams of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Not a great night for O’Hara or the homeowner whose yard was violated, but stories like this speak to how quickly a DWI stop can expand to become a laundry list of charges…
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Penalties for Willful Nonsupport (N.J.S.A. 2C:24-5) in New Jersey
New Jersey takes a strong stance when it comes to supporting one’s children or spouse, as ordered by a court or child support authority. Under the Willful Nonsupport (N.J.S.A. 2C:24-5) statute, you can be charged with a crime of the fourth degree if you willfully fail to provide support which you can provide and which you know you are legally obliged to provide to your spouse, child, or other dependent. If convicted of Willful Nonsupport charges in NJ, you can face up to 18 months in prison, on top of orders for restitution and fines of up to $10,000. Judges have wide discretion in how you serve a sentence, and can order you to community service for all or part of your period of incarceration where that is a just outcome. Willful Nonsupport is a charge that can have a big impact on your standing in the community. Allegations that you’ve abandoned your children or defied a court order can have impacts for you personally and professionally. When you’re facing…
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Penalties for Endangering the Welfare of an Incompetent Person (N.J.S.A. 2C:24-7) in New Jersey
Those whose roles are to care for the mentally or physically disabled are held to high standards when it comes to meeting the responsibility given them. When a person knowingly acts in a manner likely to be injurious to the physical, mental, or moral welfare of a person who is unable to care for himself because of mental disease or defect, they can be charged with a disorderly persons offense in New Jersey under N.J.S.A. 2C:24-7, Endangering the Welfare of an Incompetent Person. A disorderly persons offense is the equivalent of what most states categorize as a misdemeanor, and you can go to jail for up to six months if convicted. You’ll also face fines of up to $1,000, and run the risk of civil action by those you are accused of victimizing. It’s important that you get experienced legal help right away in any criminal matter, but when your career is on the line, don’t hesitate. Call Matthew Reisig today at 732-625-9661 for a free consultation with an…
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