Police in Minnesota arrested three people for DUI in one incident. Police received a call that a car went off the road and crashed into a shed. When they arrived, they found the driver and passenger in the car. The driver was a 12-year-old girl, and she was ultimately charged…
Law enforcement in Central Ohio is participating in a state-wide crackdown on drunk driving, as reported by NBC4i. They are trying to send the message: “if you drive drunk, you will be caught and arrested”. The state-wide campaign, “Over The Limit, Under Arrest” began on August 20, 2010 and continues…
When we think of O.V.I. (D.U.I.) cases, we tend to think of cases involving a person driving under the influence of alcohol. However, Ohio O.V.I. law also prohibits operating a vehicle under the influence of a drug of abuse, and many prescription medications are “drugs of abuse”. In a recent…
In a previous post, I discussed the Intoxilyzer 8000. The Ohio Department of Health made a controversial purchase of 7000 of these breath-testing machines, and a few are being used in central Ohio D.U.I./O.V.I. cases. In the previous post, I said I would give developments from my first 8000 case.…
Discovery is the process by which the prosecution and defense exchange evidence. In Ohio, the discovery process for criminal cases (including O.V.I./D.U.I. cases) is governed by Rule 16 of the Ohio Rules Of Criminal Procedure. Rule 16 was recently revised, and the revised rule became effective on July 1, 2010.…
Some people think that boating and beer go hand-in-hand, like baseball and hotdogs or hockey and fighting. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources, however, is taking part in a nation-wide crackdown on boating under the influence (B.U.I.): “Operation Dry Water“. Operation Dry Water is a national campaign to enforce laws…
Was that car going 47 mph or 45 mph in the 45 zone? Can you tell? Can a trained police officer tell? A recent Ohio Supreme Court case suggests they can. In Barberton v. Jenney, the Ohio Supreme Court held that a police officer’s unaided visual estimation of a vehicle’s…
Breath-testing machines have been used for O.V.I. (D.U.I.) in Ohio for decades. Until recently, the breath-testing instruments approved by the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) were the BAC Datamaster and the Intoxilyzer 5000. In 2009, the Ohio Department of Health approved the use of the Intoxilyzer 8000. In addition, the…
A police officer must have some justification for making a traffic stop. In some traffic stops that lead to O.V.I. (D.U.I.) arrests, the justification for the stop is a “Marked Lanes” violation. But what is a Marked Lanes violation, and when does it justify a traffic stop? The Ohio statute…
A police officer is only authorized to administer breath tests in O.V.I. (D.U.I.) cases if the officer has a valid operator’s permit issued by the Ohio Department of Health. To obtain an operator permit, an officer must complete a basic operator training course. Operator permits expire one year after the…