What Do You Do When Police Serve You a Search Warrant? Officers are only allowed to enter your house without your consent if they have a search warrant. The Fourth Amendment protects you from unreasonable or unnecessary police searches and seizures. A search warrant allows police officers the right to enter your home and gather […]
Category Archives: Criminal Defense
In a 7-1 opinion in March of this year, the court ruled that the current scheme in Colorado for exonerated defendants is unconstitutional and that it specifically violated 14th Amendment due process. Nelson v. Colorado challenged a Colorado law which stated that if a convicted person was exonerated on appeal (or some other type of post-conviction […]
The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was part of the original Bill of Rights. The amendment is designed to protect persons, houses, papers, and effects from unreasonable searches and seizures. But the Fourth Amendment did not clarify exactly what qualifies as an unreasonable search and seizure. So it has been the courts who have […]
Recently, the Supreme Court agreed to review a case out of the US 6th Circuit Court of Appeals that addresses Fourth Amendment rights and cell phones. The case is Carpenter vs. United States and is significant because it can change the way digital information is accessed by police and if the access would require a warrant. Moreover, […]
Crimes are typically divided into two categories, misdemeanors and felonies. Though what defines these titles can vary from state to state, it is important to recognize the differences between the two. Here are 10 categories where discrepancies between misdemeanors and felonies exists. 1.The Severity of the Crimes Misdemeanors are thought to be less severe in nature […]
The moment you are faced with criminal charges is the moment you should consult a criminal defense lawyer. The prosecution will work against you and they have many years of experience and resources to do this quite successfully if you do not protect yourself. When you are charged with a criminal offense, the first thing […]
All states have taken a strong stance against drunk driving in the past two decades. The enhanced penalties mean that a conviction for driving under the influence (DUI) can create both short and long-term problems. Even a first conviction for DUI can result in automatic jail time and a license suspension, as well as significant […]
Fault Determination Just as a detective will use clues to solve a crime, there are some important clues the courts and insurance companies use to decide who will pay all or most of a car accident liability claim. The industry term is ‘fault determination.’ One of the most straight-forward examples of fault is in the […]
One Crime, Two Cases: Wrongful Death Claims and Manslaughter Charges Manslaughter is a serious crime that can cause a great deal of damage. The crime of “manslaughter” can apply when an individual unintentionally or intentionally caused the death of another person. Voluntary manslaughter is considered an intentional crime and is sometimes described as having an […]
Imagine this: You and your spouse are out running errands and you are finally at your last stop. In the meantime, your preschooler has fallen asleep and there is no way you are going to wake this peaceful child for a 15 minute chore. So you run in, grab what you need and head back […]