Category: Criminal Defense

US Supreme Court to Decide in McNeely if DWI Blood Draws Require a Warrant

Every state in the union has laws prohibiting drunk driving. In association with driving while impaired statutes, states generally have implied consent laws in place which mandate that drivers who fail a DWI test, or refuse a test, automatically lose their driver’s license before they have even been convicted, subject to the right to appeal the DL Revocation by filing an Implied Consent Petition.

West St. Paul Police Accuse Woman of DWI and Cocaine Possession

A routine traffic stop for alleged speeding and lane violations has led to a gross misdemeanor drunk driving charge and a tacked-on felony count of cocaine possession for an Eagan, Minnesota, woman. A West Saint Paul Police officer claims that an alleged speeding infraction on Robert Street started the investigation September 6.

Court: DWI vehicle forfeiture not subject to Minnesota exempt property law

A man was stopped in Minneapolis in April 2011 and ultimately charged with first-degree driving while impaired, a felony level offense in Minnesota. He reportedly pled guilty to the felony DWI in the criminal case. But as this blog has reported, a DWI case in Minnesota may also be accompanied by other legal action in civil court, if a defendant timely challenges the implied consent license revocation, or files a court challenge to an administrative vehicle forfeiture that can follow specified DWI arrests.

Minneapolis woman arrested for suspected Apple Valley theft

A 24-year-old woman from Minneapolis has been arrested and charged with felony theft after she supposedly stole items from the Apple Valley Home Depot in December. What Dakota County prosecutors will have to prove, however, is that the woman knew that her friends were stealing from the Home Depot when she drove them away from the store.

Cokato Man Charged With CVH and Injury After Friday Highway 12 crash

Authorities are seeking criminal vehicular homicide and injury charges against a 21-year-old Cokato, Minnesota, man after a Friday night traffic accident near Willmar. The felony DWI charges were formally filed Monday in Kandiyohi County. The man is scheduled to appear Tuesday morning on three counts of felony CVH, one count of criminal vehicular injury, and a misdemeanor charge for open bottle in a motor vehicle.

Minneapolis Veterans Treatment Court needed in outstate Minnesota

Since Hennepin County launched its Veterans Treatment Court only two years ago, more than 100 veterans have appeared before the court to get the help they need instead of a lengthy prison sentence. The Minneapolis court has become a model and now advocates say the same type of court is needed in greater Minnesota as well. The point of the special court is to address the underlying issues veterans facing criminal charges struggle with and what ultimately brings them into the criminal justice system in the first place.

Police use Facebook, videos to link teens to crime

If a Minneapolis resident heard that police had used videos to link a teenager to a crime, he or she would likely think that there was some kind of surveillance video that clearly depicted a child committing a crime. What is far more tenuous to accept, however, is that police would use video shot by suspects as evidence that they were involved in a crime. Since when did it become a crime to tape something going on?

Southern Minnesota man sentenced in DWI case after alleged burrito assault

Not long ago, this blog discussed the issue of probation in Minnesota DWI cases. That entry focused on the trend in Minnesota of jailing people on probation for failing to pay probation fines or fees. However, in many cases, the judges impose terms and conditions at the time of sentencing that can make future violations of the law an issue for people on DWI probation.

George Zimmerman interview may prove bad for defense

Everyone in Minneapolis can agree that if you are charged with murder, you should probably avoid things that are bad for your defense. Any kind of violent crime will automatically come with considerable media attention, whether that is just in Minneapolis, across the state or across the country. The more public the case, however, the more difficult it may be to successfully defend against the criminal charges.

Man accused of criminal vehicular homicide reports medical condition

Many people in Minnesota are closely following the accident that happened outside of Harding High School in St. Paul. Earlier in the month, a 50-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of criminal vehicular homicide after police say he lost control of his SUV and drove down an embankment and into a 16-year-old. He was taken into custody at the scene of the accident and was held on $100,000 bail.