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After the Fourth of July weekend, numerous news articles from various media outlets around the country reported on the number of people that were arrested over the holiday for driving under the influence. Many police departments step up enforcement over the Fourth, and for good reason. The Fourth...

There are many stories in the news and on this blog that show the terrible consequences that can occur when a person chooses to get behind the wheel while under the influence. A particularly horrific incident was reported by multiple media outlets this past week. This gruesome and gory car accide...

This post is a continuation of a previous blog post. To read that post, click here. The Supreme Court decided in Birchfield v. North Dakota that it was going to categorize warrantless breath tests as a search incident to arrest. The court finds this permissible under the Fourth Amendment as "[t]...

In April I wrote about a case, Birchfield v. North Dakota, that was before the United State Supreme Court. The case dealt with whether or not a state could impose criminal penalties for refusing to take a chemical test without a warrant. Birchfield was consolidated with two other cases, Bernard v...

Ambien is a popular sleep aid that helps people suffering from insomnia get to rest. Like any medication, there are an array of possible side effects. One such side effect that has gotten a considerable amount of media attention is when Ambien users perform tasks while still asleep. Those who exp...

The Georgia Supreme Court recently decided the case of Zilke v. State. The case dealt with the power of campus police outside of their authorized jurisdictions. In addition, the court also discussed the jurisdictional limits of other law enforcement officers. In May of 2013, Kennesaw State Unive...

Memorial Day is celebrated at the end of May every year to honor those who lost their lives serving in the military. The day is a federal holiday and a three day weekend for many people. Unfortunately, like most holidays, the celebrations can lead to drinking and driving and impaired drivers who ...

The Washington Supreme Court recently addressed an interesting constitutional issue in the case of State v. Mecham. The court ruled on the issue of whether or not it was permissible for the prosecution to use Mark Tracy Mecham's refusal to submit to field sobriety tests (FST) as evidence against ...

A number of states have legalized marijuana for recreational purposes in recent years and more states may follow in the coming year. Law enforcement is now faced with a new dilemma, how to tell when drivers are "over the limit." If a suspect has had too much to drink, an officer can use a breath ...

People share just about everything on social media these days, from wedding announcements to what they had for lunch to how traumatized they were by the latest episode of Game of Thrones. (Hodor!) One such social media platform that is quite popular is the live-streaming app, Periscope. Periscope...

An Arizona appeals court recently overturned the DUI conviction of one Kyle Stoll, finding that officers did not have a justified reason for pulling him over. Stoll and a friend were stopped after two sheriff's deputies observed that the SUV Stoll was driving had a "white light from the lamp ill...

The U.S. has had troops in Japan since the end of the second world war. In fact it has more troops in Japan than any other country. The U.S. has 85 military bases and over 50,000 troops stationed there. The majority of those bases are located on Okinawa. The U.S. military presence on the island i...

Early in the morning in Grand Junction, Colorado Ellie Phipps was driving to the gym when her car was struck from behind by John Wesley Plotner. He hit her at 45 miles per hour, shattering her spine. She survived the accident but now wears a back brace. Plotner was subsequently convicted of his s...

Bad weather and rural roads are leading factors of DUI occurrences according to a new study by CarInsuranceComparison.com, a website that allows drivers to compare auto insurance rates. The study used statistics from a variety of sources that measured these factors in each state: Percent of f...

Car crashes are the leading cause of death for teenagers in the United States, and about 1 in 5 teen drivers involved in a fatal crash have alcohol in their system. While there are a variety of strategies used to curb underage drinking, a recent study has found that changes in state policy and la...

Tacoma was recently the site of an unfortunate alleged drunk driving incident. In the late hours, a family was asleep in their own home, when suddenly the home was struck by not one, but two cars. A 21-year-old driver failed to stop at a nearby stop sign and collided with a car passing through th...

Only one country in the world will present issues in gaining if a person is charged with a DUI. Unfortunately, for Washingtonians, it is our neighbors to the north: Canada. A DUI conviction can make a person “criminally inadmissible”, and prevent the person from entering Canada because they were...

The number of accidents caused by distracted drivers using cell phones is frighteningly high. Whether a driver is making a call or texting a friend, cell phones are dangerous tools of distraction in the car. Recent studies show that cell phone use makes drivers 4 times more likely to get into an ...

Ever wonder which Washington bars produce the drunk drivers? The state Liquor and Cannabis board keeps a running tally. State troopers who stop possibly drunk drivers ask the drivers to name the last place they had a drink. The police report the bar's name to a running database along with the da...

A new study shows motorists are being convicted of driving under the influence of marijuana based on arbitrary state standards that have no connection to whether the driver was actually impaired, according to a recent newspaper article. The information was released by the AAA Foundation for Traf...

Seattle DUI Attorney Aaron Wolff explains the Community Work Program (CWP) - also known as work crew- offered through King County and can be done as an alternative to jail.

The United States Supreme Court recently heard oral argument in Birchfield v. North Dakota and related cases. These cases looked at if a state could make it a crime to refuse to take a warrantless chemical test, such as a breath test or blood test, in order to determine a person's blood alcohol l...

In Missouri v. McNeely, the United States Supreme Court discussed when a blood draw without a warrant was permissible. In the case, Tyler McNeely was stopped by a Missouri police officer after he was seen speeding and crossing over the centerline of the road. When he was stopped, McNeely was slu...

The Supreme Court heard oral argument last week in the case of Birchfield v. North Dakota. This case was consolidated and argued with two other cases, Bernard v. Minnesota and Beylund v. Levi. The cases asked the court to address whether or not a state can impose criminal penalties on a person if...

New Mexico is launching a controversial new program this June that will use Twitter to publicize the cases of repeat DWI offenders in the state and will identify the judges overseeing the cases. New Mexico has partnered with the Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), giving the nonprofit organizat...