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Recent Blog Posts
Set transportation plans for New Year's Eve now
With New Year's Eve less than a week away, right now is the time to make plans for transportation if you are heading out to enjoy some drinks to ring in 2019. Wisconsin is in the middle of the holiday Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign. This campaign includes 25 task forces that encompass more than 100 law enforcement agencies in this state. Around 300 drug recognition experts are part of the program, and approximately 3,800 officers have been trained on Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement.
One thing to remember is that if you are heading into Milwaukee for the festivities, you can count on free rides on Milwaukee County Transit buses. Miller Brewing is continuing the 31-year tradition of providing these to help people make it home safely. Some local taverns also have options for free transportation to get partygoers home safe. These are done through the Tavern League of Wisconsin's Safe Ride.
Your drug charge case can be a turning point in your life
Drug possession charges are difficult for some defendants to face because they force them to look at what they've been doing with their lives. At this point, some may realize that their addiction must be addressed. Unfortunately, this doesn't mean that the court is going to just drop the charges.
There is a chance that you might be able to get help for your addiction even though you are facing criminal charges. Drug court is one option that enables you to get help for your addiction while still remaining accountable to the court. If you find that you need inpatient treatment, be sure that you work with the court so that you don't end up missing hearings due to being in a treatment facility.
The type of drug to which you are addicted can have an impact on what type of treatment you need. You might not need intensive care if you are addicted to a drug that isn't associated with severe withdrawal symptoms. We know that it might be a tough road ahead, but this is why most treatment paths include taking things day by day.
Find alternatives to drunk driving in Waukesha
With the Waukesha Metro Transit and availability of taxis and ride shares, people in our area have plenty of options for getting home safely after a night of drinking. There really isn't any reason why a person should have to drive drunk but things might happen that lead to this. If you are facing drunk driving charges, make sure that you start working on a defense plan right away.
There are immediate impacts to this charge that aren't present in other charges. For one, you are facing the loss of your driver's license. This can greatly impact your life since you will have to rely on others for rides. If you have to drive for your job, there is a chance that you will have to find other employment. This might be difficult with an open criminal case against you. It may be even harder if you have a conviction on your record.
We realize that most adults don't leave home with the intention of driving drunk. When one thing leads to another and you do face a drunk driving charge, you should go into damage control mode right away. When you are pulled over, remember that you do have constitutional rights. You can remain silent and have your attorney with you when you are questioned. This might be beneficial to you since anything you say to the officers can be used in court.
Credit card fraud should not be part of your holiday plans
Trying to find a way to pay for Christmas gifts is a challenge for people this time of year. The one thing that you shouldn't ever do is to give in to the temptation of turning to illegal means to pay for gifts for loved ones. It is pretty safe to say that they'd like to have you around for the holidays more than what they'd appreciate you being in jail for theft.
One area that you have to be concerned with is credit card theft. There are a few ways that this can happen, but not all of them have to do with you using another person's card. It is possible to face credit card fraud charges if you don't use another person's card.
If you use your own credit card to make a purchase and you know that there isn't enough on the account to pay for the transaction or you know that the card isn't valid, you can face credit card fraud charges. This isn't very common these days since most companies will charge the card immediately when you make the purchase.
Another form of credit card fraud has to do with the merchant who is accepting the card for payment. If there is a reason to think that it was obtained illegally or is being used without the owner's permission, criminal charges are possible. Of course, using someone's credit or debit card to pay for transactions without their consent would also mean you can face legal troubles.
Sheboygan man hit with fifth intoxicated driving charge
A man from Sheboygan was recently accused of intoxicated driving on his birthday. According to police, they pulled him over after he left a bar on a recent Wednesday. Sadly, it was the man's birthday and -- even worse -- it's the fifth time he's been charged with OWI in Wisconsin.
Police allege that they tracked down the man after a bartender at the bar where he was celebrating tipped them off. The bartender told authorities that a woman had asked for help, and then she left the bar with the intoxicated man in his vehicle. After police pulled them over, they performed a sobriety test on the man and decided he was too drunk to operate his vehicle.
They arrested him and charged him with OWI, in addition to four misdemeanor counts of battery. They also charged him with operating a vehicle with a revoked license and disorderly conduct. The man turned 53 years of age on the day of the incident.
Wisconsin man accused of meth crimes in Sawyer County
A 38-year-old man from Minneapolis has been arrested and accused of selling methamphetamine throughout Sawyer County. The arrest came as a part of a joint investigation by the Sawyer County Sheriff's Department and other law enforcement agencies.
The arrest of the man happened on a recent Friday evening in Radisson after authorities carried out a traffic stop. The sheriff's department alleges that they found the man to be in possession of 86.8 grams of meth, $500 in cash and a digital scale. Authorities say that they found all of these items in the man's vehicle. Authorities also arrested a 28-year-old woman who was riding in the vehicle with the man at the time of the traffic stop.
This recent arrest and investigation came in the wake of a previous arrest of the same man in September. According to police, they allegedly found the man in possession of drug paraphernalia in the previous incident and decided to conduct a deeper investigation. Later, police learned that the man was going to return to Sawyer County with methamphetamine, so they prepared to intercept the suspect, which led to the arrest.
Mental illness sometimes contributes to violent crimes
Many people automatically think that people who have violent tendencies are just acting out. What many people don't realize is that there are sometimes mental health conditions that cause the person to act in this manner. It is easy to think that someone who just stabbed or shot someone should be locked away in prison for life, but this doesn't address the underlying problem.
Many different mental health disorders can lead someone to do violent things. The issue here is that the person isn't going to overcome the problem by being put in prison. Instead, they need to receive mental health care that will help them. This is especially important if there is a chance that they will be released from prison at some point.
Unfortunately, the criminal justice system doesn't really focus on getting mentally ill people help. Instead, it just punishes for the actions that run afoul of the law. Some people think that these mentally ill individuals should just be kept away from weapons. While this sounds easy in theory, the reality is much worse.
What types of actions constitute vandalism?
Pranks and practical jokes are funny – until someone has to go to jail. Unfortunately, this is the reality for some individuals who do things that deface someone else's property. It is important to avoid any activities that might lead to vandalism charges.
There are many aspects of these charges that must be considered when you are trying to figure out if something is going to run afoul of the law. All of these can have an impact on whether you will face criminal charges.
Does vandalism always destroy property?
It isn't necessary for the property to be destroyed for you to face a vandalism charge. Instead, it only needs to be altered from its normal state. Throwing toilet paper in trees or egging a home or vehicle can lead to criminal charges. Another form of vandalism is graffiti. While this is often called a work of art, it is a criminal act unless the owner of the property has given you permission to paint. Even knocking street signs over falls under this crime. Scratching or keying property, kicking or punching something or breaking the windows are also covered here.
Citizens are pushing back against anti-marijuana laws
The question of marijuana is one of the hot topics across the country, and Wisconsin isn't an exception. In fact, Eau Claire recently set a $1 fine for marijuana possession in the city. The city council members there hope to send a message to lawmakers that marijuana isn't worth the priority status it has been given.
Prior to passing the law, the fines for possession ranged from $100 to $500. The new $1 fine is only applicable to first-time offenders who have 25 grams or less. They will still have to pay court fees, so the total will be $138 for a person who is arrested there for their first time facing this crime.
Despite the push from some cities and counties, marijuana for recreational use remains illegal in this state. Possession of marijuana is punished as a misdemeanor for a first offense. It carries a fine of up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail. Offenses after the first one are charged as felonies.
Common-sense approaches to DUI defense
Defending yourself against a crime often involves a mix of simple, common-sense approaches combined with rock-solid criminal defense experience on the part of your defense attorney. For now, let's focus on the common-sense aspect of the drunk driving defense process by looking at the most important thing everyone knows about criminal defense in the United States: An accused person will remain innocent of the alleged crimes until -- and only if -- the prosecution proves that he or she is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
On a very "common sense" level, the notion of 'innocent until proven guilty' puts the burden of proof on the prosecution during your litigation process. If the prosecutions can't definitively and clearly prove that you were driving drunk, there's a good chance you'll receive a verdict of not guilty. And what does the prosecution need to prove you committed the crime? Irrefutable facts and evidence. This is why it's essential for those who have been wrongly accused of drunk driving to target the evidence in their defense process.
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