Powerpoint-300x168There has not been a live DUI defense seminar in Ohio for over a year.  The Premier Ohio DUI Defense Seminar, hosted by the Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (OACDL) is typically held in March.  This year, with the hope of having participants present in-person, the seminar was postponed until June.  The postponement paid-off, and the 20th annual seminar was not only live (with reduced capacity), but was also live-streamed to lawyers across the state.  It wasn’t held at the usual time, but it had the usual high quality.

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Ohio-VA-Guide-Cover-front-from-paperback-188x300Being charged with Vehicular Homicide or Vehicular Assault is stressful.  Individuals in that situation often experience feelings of guilt and fear.  For those individuals, it would be helpful to have a solid understanding of the offense they are charged with, the penalties they are facing, and the court process ahead of them.  It would also be beneficial for them to learn about the evidence used in court and possible defense strategies.  Two new books contain this useful information:  the Ohio Vehicular Homicide Guide and the Ohio Vehicular Assault Guide.

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3-300x271When a defendant appeals a DUI conviction (called ‘OVI’ in Ohio), the defendant often claims the judge made an erroneous ruling regarding a motion to suppress. The appellate court then reviews the suppression issue decided by the judge to determine whether the judge’s decision was erroneous. When the issue involves a ‘finding of fact’ by the judge, the appellate court evaluates whether the finding was supported by competent, credible evidence. Two recent Ohio cases illustrate this appellate evaluation with opposite outcomes. Continue Reading

Officer-on-steps-of-DC-building-1-275x300Qualified Immunity, a defense used by police officers in civil rights lawsuits, is a topic not typically discussed in this blog.  However, as a criminal defense lawyer, I have been asked about Qualified Immunity due to recent events in the United States.  In addition, an individual who files a lawsuit based on a false OVI arrest may encounter this defense.  Accordingly, I have asked attorney Eric Hollway to provide a guest article on Qualified Immunity.  Mr. Holloway, a civil rights lawyer who represents clients in false arrest claims, prepared the remainder of this article.

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Accident-Investigation-300x200A few days before the Kansas City Chiefs were to play in the Super Bowl, assistant coach Britt Reid (son of head coach Andy Reid) was involved in a three-car accident which left a five-year-old in critical condition.  Earlier this month, Britt Reid was charged with the felony offense of ‘DWI-Serious Physical Injury’.  While this incident occurred in Missouri, the investigation which led to the charge is essentially the same as a Vehicular Assault investigation in Ohio.

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Ohio-DUI-OVI-Guide-COVER-FRONT-228x300Many people charged with DUI (called ‘OVI’ in Ohio), especially those charged with a first offense, feel like they are in the dark. They do not understand the elements and consequences of OVI, and they do not know what to expect in the court process. They also are uncertain about whether to hire a lawyer and how to find a good defense attorney. I recently published a new book, the Ohio DUI/OVI Guide, which answers most of the questions people ask in this situation. My hope is that those who read the guide will no longer be in the dark.

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Urine-sample-250x300When people think of a DUI charge (called ‘OVI’ in Ohio), most think of drunk driving. This is where the bulk of the money and effort have been concentrated to raise awareness:  think of the “Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving” or “Over the Limit, Under Arrest” advertising campaigns. However, with more states legalizing marijuana for medical and recreational use, more people are finding themselves charged with OVI stemming from alleged marijuana impairment. This is a trend we have been following for some time. For people charged with a Marijuana OVI, a frequent question is: How long is THC detectable in your system?

 

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Datamaster-and-evidence-ticket-300x228A police officer discarded evidence that a DUI suspect blew under the ‘legal limit’. According to WCNC, the suspect was involved in a one-car accident and pulled her vehicle into a gas station parking lot. An officer went to the gas station and had the suspect perform field sobriety tests. The officer took the suspect into custody and administered multiple breath tests. The officer obtained two evidence tickets with results from the breath tests. The officer threw-out the evidence ticket with a result ‘under the limit’, kept the evidence ticket with a result ‘over the limit’, and charged the suspect with DUI (called ‘OVI’ in Ohio).

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The reporting of Bruce Springsteen’s DUI arrest shows that, even if a person is presumed innocent in court, they can still be convicted in the press.  In addition, Jeep’s publicized decision to pull The Boss’s Super Bowl commercial was an over-reaction.  The media coverage and cancel culture are not the only problems.  The evidence made public so far brings into question the propriety of Springsteen’s prosecution.

 

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Hospital-Patient-300x200Over the past couple of years, this blog has followed and discussed the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Mitchell v. Wisconsion. While Supreme Court decisions can seem like seismic shifts in the law when they are issued, the reality is it often takes time for their effects to be felt on a practical level. Such is the case with Mitchell. While it was decided over a year-and-a-half ago, it is just now being discussed by Ohio Appellate Courts.

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