November 17, 2008
- Words of Wisdom from Austin DWI Lawyer
Jamie Spencer, and Austin DWI attorney. offers these words of wisdom to anyone thinking about driving while in intoxicated in Travis County, Texas:
In Austin, a traffic violation and the odor of an alcoholic beverage on your breath earns you a trip to Travis County Jail. It’s an arrest everybody and charge them with DWI [...]
November 14, 2008
- Top Secret Field Sobriety Test Database
Robert Guest has uncovered a "top secret" database of field sobriety tests. The National Sobriety Testing Resource Center states that their purpose it "to provide a comprehensive source of information regarding standardized field sobriety testing, training and certification for authorized and active law enforcement practitioners and instructors." But it turns out this data is only [...]
September 18, 2008
- Intoxication Assault and Intoxication Manslaughter Don't Apply to Unborn Child if Committed by Mother
Sec. 49.12. APPLICABILITY TO CERTAIN CONDUCT. Sections 49.07 and 49.08 do not apply to injury to or the death of an unborn child if the conduct charged is conduct committed by the mother of the unborn child.
Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 822, Sec. 2.05, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
September 16, 2008
- Proof of Mental State (Intent) Not Necessary for DWI Conviction in Texas
Sec. 49.11. PROOF OF MENTAL STATE UNNECESSARY.
(a) Notwithstanding Section 6.02(b), proof of a culpable mental state is not required for conviction of an offense under this chapter.
(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to an offense under Section 49.031.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 318, Sec. 22, eff. Sept. 1, 1995. Amended by Acts [...]
September 15, 2008
- Legal Use of Drug or Alcohol No Defense to DWI in Texas
Sec. 49.10. NO DEFENSE.
In a prosecution under Section 49.03, 49.04, 49.045, 49.05, 49.06, 49.065, 49.07, or 49.08, the fact that the defendant is or has been entitled to use the alcohol, controlled substance, drug, dangerous drug, or other substance is not a defense.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept. [...]
September 12, 2008
- Enhanced Offenses and Penalties for a Texas DWI
Sec. 49.09. ENHANCED OFFENSES AND PENALTIES.
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), an offense under Section 49.04, 49.05, 49.06, or 49.065 is a Class A misdemeanor, with a minimum term of confinement of 30 days, if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the person has previously been convicted one time [...]
September 10, 2008
- Intoxication Manslaughter in Texas
Sec. 49.08. INTOXICATION MANSLAUGHTER.
(a) A person commits an offense if the person:
(1) operates a motor vehicle in a public place, operates an aircraft, a watercraft, or an amusement ride, or assembles a mobile amusement ride; and
(2) is intoxicated and by reason of that intoxication causes the death of another by accident or mistake.
(b) Except [...]
August 15, 2008
- Intoxication Assault
Sec. 49.07. INTOXICATION ASSAULT.
(a) A person commits an offense if the person, by accident or mistake:
(1) while operating an aircraft, watercraft, or amusement ride while intoxicated, or while operating a motor vehicle in a public place while intoxicated, by reason of that intoxication causes serious bodily injury to another; or
(2) as a result of [...]
July 3, 2008
- Texas DWI charge dropped against judge
SAN ANTONIO — A special prosecutor said insufficient evidence prompted him to seek dismissal of a drunken driving charge against a state district judge.
Tony Hackebeil wouldn't elaborate on why he asked County Court-at-Law Judge Michael Mery to dismiss the charge stemming from a February traffic stop involving Raymond Angelini, a longtime judge. Hackebeil's motion was [...]
June 8, 2008
- The Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus Test: fraudulent science in the American Courts. By JL Booker
If you have recently been charged with a Collin, Dallas or Denton County DWI and submitted to field sobriety tests then you NEED to read this article by JL Booker from the journal of Science and Justice Journal volume 44 pages 133-139 (18 June 2002) about the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus Test (HGN).
Download file
The HGN test [...]
May 31, 2008
- Men’s Health - America’s Drunkest Cities
Atlanta ranks 12th on this list.A sort of interesting article. They rely on various factors such as liver disease, DUI arrests and some statistics from MADD in determining the ranks.
See article HERE.
Continue . . .
May 27, 2008
- DWI Breath Testing: Republican Congressman set to challenge the reliability or the Intoxilyer 5000 breath machine.
The Intoxilyzer 5000, is the breath machine used by law enforcement officials in the state of Texas, as well as, other states across the nation. Many defense attorneys have challenged this machine for various reasons including, but not limited to, the age of the technology, the lack of scientific validation of the “source code”, [...]
- DWI Field Sobriety Tests: How accurately do the SFSTs predict intoxication?
Law enforcement officers in all 50 states utilize Standardized filed sobriety tests (SFSTs) to determine the impairment of a person’s driving due to alcohol influence. The SFSTs are comprised of a battery of three tests: 1) Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test (HGN), 2) Walk and Turn Test (WAT) and 3) One Leg Stand Test (OLS). [...]
May 26, 2008
- Intoxilyzer Source Code Litigation - What has CMI been hiding?
Thanks to lawyers that have been fighting for the source code that controls the operation of the Intoxilyzer it looks like the tide is turning. Previously, prosecutors all over the country have been objecting to turning it over because it is a “trade secret” and that the State does not have it in their [...]
- FDA finally releases the study that confirms that sleeping pills can cause ’sleep-driving’
“All prescription sleeping pills may sometimes cause sleep-driving,” federal health officials warned Wednesday.
Sleep driving is a variation of sleepwalking. It involves getting in the car in the middle of the night, driving around, and with absolutely no memory of the drive.
The Food and Drug Administration wouldn’t say exactly how many cases of sleep-driving it [...] - DWI - Driving While Intoxicated
There are many different types of driving offenses, all of which hold penalties and consequences for those guilty of committing them. The most serious and expensive driving offences is DWI. Being found guilty of this particular offense can result in serious consequences and have serious implications for the future. The undesirable effects of being charged [...]
May 25, 2008
- Should I hire a DWI Attorney?
A qualified DWI attorney can review your case for defects, compel discovery of calibration and maintenance records for breath machines, can have your blood samples analyzed independently, negotiate for a lesser charge or reduced sentence and obtain expert witnesses for your trial. A skilled lawyer can also debate if the blood technician received adequate training, [...] - Random Boat Stops and the 4th Amendment
§ 31.124 of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Code states, “an enforcement officer may stop and board a vessel . . . and may inspect the boat” to determine whether it is in compliance with the various provisions of the Code.
What this means for the average lake-goer is that an officer has the power to [...]
May 24, 2008
- Bar Urges Dress-Wearing Judge to Reconsider Resignation
Should drunk-driving charges necessitate a judge’s removal from the bench? Suppose he’s wearing a dress when arrested. Should that matter?
Those are the weighty questions being flung around by the Boston bar these days after Robert Somma, a bankruptcy judge who was arrested while wearing a dress and was later charged with drunken driving, resigned from [...] - Teen Idol Sentenced
GLENDALE, Calif. — In October, 2006, Haley Joel Osment pleaded no contest to misdemeanor drunken driving and drug possession charges resulting from a July accident in which he crashed his car into a mailbox.
Superior Court Judge John Doyle sentenced the 18-year-old actor to three years probation and ordered Osment to spend 60 hours in [...]
