It's Official- No Refusal for Austin Mardi Gras 2012
I KNEW it!! Here they come again with their shiny needles, the better to stick you with! Well, I can't say it's any surprise. I mean, APD does so many no refusal weekends (or blood warrants, as others say) that it's like keeping up with your relatives' birthdays. Let's see, New Year's, Super Bowl weekend, so now Mardi Gras. Interesting that Valentine's Day is still sacred, I suppose they don't expect a lot of people driving around drunk. So drink up, lonely people, you own Valentine's!
2012 Great Texas Warrant Roundup is coming to your town!
Well just as regular as the rodeo in this state, and on February 25, 2012, it's time again for the coordinated Texas Warrant Roundup! For those of you who take care of all your business, good for you- the rest of you should really look up the info on your traffic tickets. And clear up that old bond forfeiture and check for county warrants too. Get squared up with your child support payments, or your driver license surcharges. Because the roundup is coming for you. I foresee a lot of scurrying, and a lot of laying low. Just remember that those guys sometimes come EARLY in the morning before last night has fully worn off! And whatever you do, don't be drawing any any attention to yourself out in public!
Vermont inmates pull an ingenious prank
Please give yourself a moment to read something short simply for pleasure. It's fluff, and I only include it becuse it happened in the county where I used to practice in Vermont. Who knows, I could have even represented the mystery prankster once. Here's to the Northwest State Correctional Facility in Franklin County, Vermont, nestled in the northeast corner of Lake Champlain. Way to represent! Good to see prison doesn't completely destroy your sense of humor.
Feds go Commando on White Collar Internet Criminals Overseas
I don't really have a distinct angle on this story, I just find it fascinating. It has ties to white collar crime, the internet, New Zealand, copyright, the Department of Justice and FBI, the film and music industries, Hong Kong, Kim Kardashian, Bob Bennett, Kanye West, and on and on... but that's what makes it so good. What also makes it compelling is the darkness of it, a perfect study in what it's like when the Feds decide you are worth pursuing and put their weight behind getting you.
No police GPS tracking without a warrant, Supreme Court says
Aaaaaah, you should get up in the morning and take a deep breath of that FREEDOM that the Supremes just dished out today!! It's hard to recall the last time that this Court (the same one that says corporations are "people") ruled unanimously in favor of civil liberty instead of some institution, in this case, law enforcement. That's right, all NINE of them. Of course they didn't all agree for the same reason, but they dovetailed into unison where it counted. My married readers will understand.
More reason not to give a DWI breath sample in Texas
This is actually old news, but I've started seeing some of these lately so it's relevant. Back in September the legislature passed a new law affecting DWI's, for enhancement purposes. As things were, all regular DWI first offenses were class B misdemeanors, which carried a maximum punishment of 180 days in jail and up to a $2000 fine. In their wisdom, the legislature decided that if a DWI breath test is done (or blood) and the result is .15 or over, the charge will now be a class A misdemeanor, which doubles the max penalties from a class B. So your new exposure is a year in jail and $4000 fine.
Can Police Really Put a GPS Tracker on my Car?
And from the outset here, I want to clarify that I'm talking about without a warrant- no probable cause at all, just wanna see what you're up to. So if you've got nothing to hide then why would you care? Seriously, it's not even on the inside, you'll never even know it was there...
Physically forced blood draw DWI finally makes its appearance
Fortunately it DIDN'T happen in Austin, at least not yet. This only slightly stale news story comes to us from Wyoming, a shade more conservative than Austin by most accounts. I apologize in advance for not disclosing in the title that this incident did not actually occur in Texas, but it's a hot enough issue so it's bound to come up.
Different Standards for Austin DWI Suspects?
I'm sad that the Statesman beat me to the punch, but glad to see I wasn't the only one annoyed by the Austin Police Chief's involvement in the dismissal of radio host Jeff Ward's DWI. According to a Statesman article last night, it looks like now the Austin Police Union is a bit irritated as well. Let's review: high profile radio host is stopped for DWI, but he knows Chief Acevedo, who is a frequent guest on his show. Host has his fiancee call the Chief on cell phone from the scene of the stop, and then the Chief accepts a call from him at the jail. Chief reviews Ward's case with police brass, then personally calls the County Attorney's office to point out problems with the case. Ward was arrested Thursday night, and County Attorney declines to prosecute the case by Monday morning. Case closed.
Austin Radio Host has unique DWI arrest
Recently in Austin, a local radio personality was stopped for speeding and subsequently arrested for DWI. Jeff Ward was pulled over Thursday evening after emceeing an event at the downtown Austin Hilton. He admitted to having one beer at the event, and was asked to perform a Field Sobriety Test to determine if he was driving while intoxicated. After performing the tests, he was asked to take a DWI breath test, which he refused (these Austin criminal defense lawyers advise you to do the same). Based on the officer's observations and judgment, the Austin Police Officer arrested Mr. Ward for DWI and took him to jail. Again, this is Thursday evening.