Thursday, July 29, 2010

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Texting Law May Allow Phone Email and Text Searches

June 29, 2010

Michigan’s new texting law is about to go into effect so of course it’s been the topic of conversation among defense attorneys. According to attorney Stuart G. Friedman: There are more holes in this law than in the IRS tax code.  We face two separate issues with this law:  (a) can we win our own [...]

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Texting While Driving Causing Death

June 7, 2010

On July 1, 2010, Michigan will have a new law on the books that makes it unlawful to text while driving.  The actual verbiage of this new law follows this article, but the law essentially states that a person “shall not read, manually type, or send a text message while operating a motor vehicle that [...]

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Lindsay Lohan’s SCRAM Prone to False Positives

May 25, 2010

On May 24, 2010, Lindsay Lohan was once again ordered to wear a SCRAM bracelet to monitor her sobriety.  Trouble is, the bracelet is not “stunningly accurate” as has been reported elsewhere. The monitor is worn around the ankle and has sensors that measure the alcohol in the wearer’s body as it travels through the [...]

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Ohio Imposes Driver License Sanctions after Michigan DUI Conviction

May 25, 2010

Many Ohio residents travel to Michigan for business or pleasure.  While in Michigan they are sometimes arrested for DUI.  A frequent question for these Ohio drivers looking at a Michigan DUI conviction is “what will happen to my Ohio driver license?  Like so many other issues involved with a Michigan DUI conviction, this is not [...]

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Texting While Driving Unlawful in Michigan

April 30, 2010

On April 29, 2010 Michigan became the 24th state to make texting while driving illegal when Governor Graholm signed Enrolled House Bill No. 4394.  This law now punishes the following behavior, as it is now illegal to: Read, manually type, or send a text message on a wireless 2-way communication device that is located in the [...]

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Michigan Drunk Driving Arrests Continue Yearly Decline

April 26, 2010

The number of Michigan drunk driving arrests fell almost 30% between 1999 and 2008, the last year for which statics are available. The question many are looking to answer is whether or not the decline is a good thing or bad.  In a recent Detroit News article, Laura Berman suggests: You might think that Michigan’s [...]

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NHL Player Accused of Being a Super Drunk

March 24, 2010

Those arrested in Michigan for DUI can now be charged with extreme drunk driving as a result of the new “super drunk” law, which goes into effect on October 31, 2010. Currently, in order to be charged with drunk driving, the arresting officer and prosecutor must prove you were driving illegally with a BAC (bodily [...]

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A Michigan DUI Conviction Can Cause Job Loss

February 27, 2010

When Michigan drivers are arrested for DUI (drunk driving), the first thing that goes through their mind isn’t “I wonder how much my fines will be for this”? Instead, it’s more along the lines of “What will my spouse and children think of me after this?” and “What will my boss have to say? Do [...]

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Your DUI Lawyer Controls These 18 Rights

February 16, 2010

In our prior article we discussed those things over which the Michigan DUI client has total control.  In this article we discuss those issues over which the DUI lawyer has control, or at least partial control. The DUI lawyer generally has control over those decisions relating to matters of “strategy” or “tactics”.[i] More specifically, the [...]

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Pleading Guilty to Michigan DUI is a Client Decision

February 15, 2010

Many people arrested in Michigan for DUI have never been arrested before and may have never even hired a lawyer.  For people facing a Michigan DUI for the first time it may be helpful to know what a DUI lawyer can do and what a DUI lawyer cannot do when handling their Michigan DUI case. [...]

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Woman Apparently Drives With .708 Blood Alcohol Content

December 30, 2009

A woman from South Dakota was apparently driving with a BAC of .708.  While possible, it’s more likely that the test is wrong.  We may never know the truth of this case because the report that appeared in the December 28, 2009 Rapid City Journal does not indicate if this blood test was whole or [...]

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Oakland County Work Release Improved Not Eliminated

June 5, 2009

There’s a rumor going around that Sheriff Bouchard is shutting down the Oakland County Sheriff’s Work Release program.  I have discussed this rumor with Undersheriff Mike McCabe, and have determined that the rumor is just that – a rumor.  But like many rumors, there is a small kernel of truth.  In fact – there is [...]

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Should You Talk to the Police?

May 18, 2009

In every case, the answer to this question is the same – it is an unqualified unequivocal NO! The way this issue usually comes up in my practice is when a client or potential client calls my office and says that they received a call from police asking them to come to the station to [...]

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DUI Trial Victory

May 17, 2009

“In the jury room, justice isn’t easy” By Laura Berman / The Detroit News Once the doors close, what matters is the case before you, not what you know from ‘Law & Order.’   Defense attorney Patrick Barone has schooled himself in the underpinnings of drunken-driving cases, including the mechanics of breath-and-blood testing. I was [...]

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Restricted License / Revoked License – What’s the Difference?

May 13, 2009

I am often asked to explain the difference in Michigan between a restricted license and a revoked license.  Here is an example of how the question might be asked: Q:        Is there an important distinction between a 1 year suspension and a 1 year revocation? A:        Yes, there is an important distinction. Simply stated, a [...]

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