11
Sep

Responsibility for Storage Fees When Your Vehicle is Forfeited

At a recent conciliation court hearing on behalf of a client asserting that she was an innocent owner of a forfeited vehicle, the State vehemently objected to my request that the State bear responsibility for the storage fees of the vehicle. This is…
Read More
3
Sep

Requesting an Additional Test When Arrested for DWI

When you are arrested for a DWI, you will be asked by the Officer to submit to a breath test, or either provide a urine sample or have blood drawn in order to determine your blood alcohol concentration (“BAC”) level. What the Officer likely will…
Read More
1
Sep

Probation Violations - Disqualify a Judge?

In a probation violations setting, the deck is already stacked against the defendant in the sense that the State’s burden of proof is lower and the rules of evidence don’t apply. And that does not even include the possibility that the jud…
Read More
21
Aug

Prescription Drugs DWI in Minnesota - The Unjust Result

UPDATE – This post is no longer an accurate summary of the law. Minnesota law changed in July 2017 to fix this unjust result. Please read this for historical context purposes only. Contact our office with any questions about this complicated, y…
Read More
20
Aug

Loss of License From Traffic Violations

If you’ve been cited for a traffic offense, you should reconsider paying the fine right away and instead try to negotiate a more positive resolution. You may be able to even obtain a resolution that ultimately gets the citation dismissed. Such an o…
Read More
19
Aug

DWI - The Testing Procedure Must Be Done Properly

Much of the focus on a DWI defense pertains to the basis for the stop and whether probable cause existed to arrest the defendant. Once that occurs, the officer takes the defendant back to the station and administers an official test – usually a…
Read More
11
Aug

Impact on Insurance from Traffic Tickets

Everyone understands that there is some impact on your insurance premiums if you are convicted of or pay a fine for a traffic ticket. But, not many understand the actual impact and how bad it really is. I recently sat down with an insurance agent –…
Read More
6
Aug

Stop Based Upon Reasonable Mistake of Law is Permissible

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) just issued a ruling that further weakens our Fourth Amendment protections. It held that a reasonable mistake of law by police when stopping a vehicle does not violate a persons Fourth Amendment right t…
Read More
27
Jul

Limited License in Minnesota

A limited license – also known as a work permit – allows a driver whose driving privileges have been revoked due to a DUI conviction or implied consent violation to drive pursuant to certain limitations. A limited license is only available to a s…
Read More
20
Jul

DWI Aggravating Factor - Children in Car at time of DWI

A DWI can be enhanced to a gross misdemeanor or felony based upon the presence of any combination of aggravating factors. Minn. Stat. 169A.03, subd. 3 defines aggravating factors to include: (1) having a qualified prior within the past 10 years; (2)…
Read More