The driver of the wrong-way car has been identified as Anthony Doss, who, according to the police report, had been driving under the influence The driver of the minivan, a woman who did not wish to be identified, was released from the hospital without apparent injury.

The report, found here, states that “[t]his isn’t Doss’s first traffic accident,” noting that Doss was charged with manslaughter in relation to another car accident in which he struck a motorcyclist, who died of his injuries. The article also states that the police “suspected” that Doss had been driving under the influence at the time.

The report concludes by stating that the Mobile police department had yet explained why Doss was not arrested.

Along with the decision made by the police not to arrest Doss, however, there are several questions that remain unanswered. The clear implication is that Doss should not even have been permitted to drive, given his history; that he was not arrested after the accident only adds to the article’s perceptible note of indignation.

If the article is indignant, it is also lazy. It points to a prior incident in which Doss was involved, casting suspicion on Doss without bothering to reveal the outcome of that case; he was, we are told, charged with manslaughter, and he was suspected of DUI. Manslaughter alone is punishable by several years’ imprisonment. DUI would only compound the severity of the sentence—assuming, of course, that Doss was actually convicted.

Indeed, it seems not unreasonable to speculate that if those prior charges had any merit, Doss would currently be in prison. But speculation would be unnecessary had the article supplied such basic factual information as whether or not Doss’s guilt or innocence had ever been established.

The stigma associated with DUI is a commonplace, and its social and cultural origins are easily comprehended. The problem here, in this article as in so many similar reports on similar incidents across the country, is the close association between accusation and perception, the automatic progression from an initial allegation to a presumption of guilt. In the long term, few tendencies—present, in one way or another, in almost every major form of popular culture—pose as grave a threat to the rights of ordinary people.

Attorney General Luther Strange described the bill as “a fitting tribute to the victims who suffered and struggled through the devastating tornadoes that struck Alabama one year ago.” His office worked in conjunction with legislators and law enforcement personnel to develop the bill.

Prior to the bill’s passage, Alabama had no law specifically targeted at looting. Under the new law, however, looting will be prosecuted as a class C felony—meaning that those convicted of looting face up to 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $15,000.

The bill also permits individuals charged with looting to be charged additionally for other offenses related to the same act.

The full report can be found here.

It will be interesting to see how this bill is invoked in real-life situations; all too frequently, natural disasters such as the tornadoes that struck Alabama last year ruin lives and property—but they also cause a tremendous amount of confusion, and create an urgent need to find shelter. Moreover, it may be difficult for the state to prove its case given the conditions present during such emergencies.

There is no better way to capture students’ interests than by the use of technology.  Then,by adding in physical activity, it is a win-win situation.  ALL provides youth ages 9-14 and their parents with information about the dangers of underage drinking.  Visitors to the ALL online site, can play online educational games and download activities to learn more about the importance of making healthy choices.  Students can learn from superstars, such as short track speed skater Apolo Anton Ohno and paralympic champion Mallory Weggemann, how and why they make smart decisions.  Also, in a partnership with NASPE, DC SCORES,  and other organizations, the Century Council distributes underage drinking materials to schools.

The Century Council is a national non-profit organization dedicated to fighting drunk driving and underage drinking.  The council was founded in 1991 and is based in Arlington, Virginia.  An independent National Advisory Board, which is compromised of leaders in education, medicine, government, and business, assists the council in developing programs and policies.  To learn more about the history of this council, go to its website.

Through programs such as ALL, we can educate our young people about the dangers of underage drinking, the consequences of driving under the influence, and assist in installing responsible decision making in regards to beverage alcohol. 

Knowing all your options and seeking legal counsel from an experienced attorney when charged with a DUI is extremely important. 

The full list of charges includes cocaine possession with intent to sell, marijuana possession with intent to sell, delivery of marijuana, and possession of a firearm during commission of a felony.

Tucker was released on $19,500 bail Wednesday. Records do not indicate that he is being represented by an attorney.

The former NFL player spent two years in the league, starting 24 games with the Cowboys from 2003 to 2005. He played most recently for the Sacramento Mountain Lions in the United Football League.

According to a report by the Associated Press (available here via SI.com), police records provided few details about the incident, and local law enforcement has declined to discuss the case with the media as of Tuesday morning.

Internet gossip site TMZ quotes a tweet Sanders posted soon after the incident, imploring readers to “[p]ray for me and my kids now! They just witnessed their mother and a friend jump me in my room. She’s going to jail n I’m pressing charges!” Sanders goes on to claim that he had previously warned the local police department that Pilar may represent a threat to himself and their children.

The relationship between Deion and Pilar Sanders had grown increasingly acrimonious; Pilar has recently filed a lawsuit against Deion and daughter Deiondra accusing both of defamation after Deiondra took to Twitter to call Pilar a “gold digging (expletive).”

Robinson faces two counts of first-degree robbery. He has not yet been taken into custody; the Jefferson County sheriff’s department has not been able to locate him. Bond has been set at $120,000.

The full report from The Birmingham News can be found here.

It is not uncommon for police to rely extensively on security camera video to identify a suspect—and in this case, it appears that police relied almost exclusively on such footage. However, the quality of the images often varies wildly, and despite what television programs like CSI may suggest, there is no magic enhancement technique that can transform a blurred, grainy surveillance image into an unambiguous portrait of the suspect. In Robinson’s case, depending on the state of the footage, the prosecution may have quite a difficult time proving his identity conclusively based on the video alone.

For those accused of criminal offenses like property theft, a good defense attorney can expose such flaws in the prosecution’s case. If that case is sufficiently weakened, the charges may be reduced or even dropped altogether. The burden of proof should always lie on the shoulders of the state; no matter the situation, no matter the evidence, that will not change.

You read that heading correctly. Recently, I represented a woman charged with and convicted of her fourth DUI, but the negotiated plea resulted in no jail time.  I know how that sounds at first, but there is an explanation.

Under our current DUI laws there are certain exceptions to mandatory jail time.  Take my client, for example.  All three of her prior DUI convictions occurred more than five years ago, which means that it was not mandatory for the judge to use the priors to enhance my client’s punishment.  Initially, the judge did not care about how old the priors were and he was aching to put my client in jail anyway, which he had the ability to do.

It took enormous effort, but we were able to show the judge how my client’s prior DUI convictions and the current charge correlated with major emotional times in her life.  We also showed the judge that she served jail time on all three prior convictions, but it didn’t seem to “scare her straight.”

When we dug deeper it was clear that my client had a problem coping with life altering changes.  Like many people, she coped with alcohol.  My client volunteered to enter an in-patient rehabilitation program, which specializes in developing coping mechanisms without the use of alcohol.  Because of my client’s willingness to seek help and the judge’s compassion, we were able to keep our client out of jail and actually get the care she’s needed for years.  The hope is that with this help she well never drink and drive again.

That explains why my client served no jail time for a fourth DUI conviction. In future posts, I will be discussing, in more detail, Alabama laws and how alcohol treatment and rehabilitation can come into play in lieu of jail time.  The answer is not always, “lock them in jail and through away the key.”

If you have been charged with a DUI and have priors you need a skilled and compassionate lawyer.  If you have questions, contact Johnny at the Amari Law Firm, 205.655.8484.

The statute only applies if your blood alcohol concentration is .15% or higher.  If your blood alcohol concentration is .15% or higher the statute reads that, “the Director of Public Safety shall revoke the driving privileges or driver’s license of the person convicted for a period of not less than one year.”

Under the old law, a first time DUI conviction only resulted in a 90 day suspension of your driver’s license. This suspension came after an administrative suspension of 90 days (that’s a 180 day suspension, total).  According to the new statute, a one year suspension is “required”, which implies that you would suffer a 455 day suspension of your driver’s license (90 day administrative suspension + 365 post-conviction suspension”.

However, earlier this year, the Attorney General issued an opinion clarifying the new statute and how it applies to your driver’s license. According to the Attorney General, if you receive a 90 day administrative suspension the Department of Public Safety can not suspend your license for the one year “required” by the statute.  If you do not receive an administrative suspension then the Department of Public Safety can suspend your license for one year.

Again, our legislature has found a way to mess up another law and confuse the DUI laws even more.

If you have been charged with a DUI and have questions, contact Johnny at the Amari Law Firm, 205.655.8484.

The study investigated the relationship between party affiliation and the severity of criminal sentencing, finding that the party affiliation of the president who appointed a given judge does not always predict the harshness (or leniency) of that judge’s sentencing practices. In fact, the split is virtually even. For example, in 10 court districts with the highest number of drug cases that went to trial, Republican-appointed judges, on average, gave harsher sentencing in five. In the other five districts, Democratic appointees assigned the stiffer penalties. The same ratio applied to sentencing in cases involving weapons offenses: Republican- and Democrat-appointed judges averaged harsher sentences half of the time.

The AP’s report can be found here.

It seems that sentencing disparities can only make it more difficult to protect the rights of defendants. If nothing else, this additional complication highlights the importance of seeking an experienced attorney for those who stand accused of a criminal offense.

The four admitted their guilt and supplied law enforcement with information related to other Alabama drug dealers, prompting Assistant U.S. Attorney Gloria Bedwell to recommend a lighter sentence. The recommendation was crucial; without it, Senior U.S. District Judge Charles Butler Jr. would not have been able to grant the reduced sentences.

The reduced sentences range from 16 years and eight months for Michael Nelson to five years for Daniel Ray Langley. These may be contrasted with the mandatory-minimum sentences to which the group would have been subject. Those guidelines would have called for prison terms of up to 20 years.

The Press-Register’s report can be found here.