Understanding DUI Administrative Suspensions
To a person charged with driving under the influence (DUI) in Colorado, the system he or she faces may appear confusing. Besides the criminal case, the defendant faces a separate, administrative process before the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). The criminal justice process determines guilt or innocence for the DUI offense. The administrative process determines […]
What Happens When the DUI Testing Process is Flawed?
When a driving under the influence (DUI) suspect is placed under arrest, he or she will be provided a choice of submitting a blood or breath sample for analysis under Colorado’s Express Consent statute. Both state law and government agency regulations spell out detailed rules and guidelines under which either the blood or breath samples […]
Equitable Division in Family Law – What Does it Mean?
A major issue of confrontation in family law cases is the division of marital property. Each side in a divorce wants to know how much of the marital estate he or she will keep after the marriage ends. Colorado generally defines marital property as “all property acquired by either spouse subsequent to the marriage and […]
A Review of Serious Bodily Injury
A common issue that people charged with assault in Colorado face is a legal concept called “serious bodily injury” or “SBI” as it is frequently known. When serious bodily injury is attached to a charge, the stakes for defendants are greatly raised. Defendants will face serious felony accusations and the possibility of longer incarceration time. […]
Reinstatement of Driving Privileges After Refusing a Blood or Breath Test
As previous entries of this blog have noted, refusing to take a blood or breath test when requested by a police officer in Colorado has a severe impact upon a person’s ability to drive. A driver’s first refusal to take a test under Express Consent leads to a one year suspension, a second refusal is […]
Domestic Violence and CRE 404(b)
One of the most controversial areas of criminal law is whether the prosecution is allowed to use a defendant’s past bad acts against him or her to prove that the accused committed an offense. There is a general legal principle that evidence of other crimes or bad acts are not admissible as evidence to show […]
Domestic Violence and Third Degree Assault – A Review
Colorado’s laws pertaining to domestic violence are not very clear and understandable to the average person. Under state law, “domestic violence” is not a standalone crime. Instead, it is easiest to understand the phrase as a label. If a person commits a violent crime against another person, and the relationship between the offender and the […]
Can a Person Be Convicted of DUI or DWAI If the Vehicle Cannot Move?
The average person can come up with a myriad of scenarios where he or she would reasonably believe there is no way for an individual to be criminally charged with driving under the influence (DUI) or driving while ability impaired (DWAI). What if an individual is passed out in the backseat of a shut-off car […]
An Important Word in Personal Injury Law: Negligence
The average person can do a fairly decent job of describing what a personal injury case involves. Someone committed an act (or, alternatively, failed to act) and another person was harmed. Far less people will be able to define a key word that is central to many personal injury cases: negligence. Any Colorado personal injury […]
Statements Made Without Miranda – Admissible or Not?
Society generally knows about Miranda¹ warnings. Within Miranda is the right not to make statements against one’s self-interest. Under the United States Constitution’s Fifth Amendment, a person generally has the right to not make statements to police: “…nor shall [any person] be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself…” The Colorado Constitution […]