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Don’t consent to search of your car or person
Police need to have a good reason to search your car or your person. If the police have a valid search warrant then they are allowed to search the areas that are specified in the warrant. However, in most searches of cars and people, police don’t have a warrant because they don’t have time to get a warrant.
If the police search a person or car without a warrant, they need a legally recognized reason to search. If the police don’t have a legitimate reason to search, then the court may end up suppressing the evidence that was found.
The most important thing that a suspected person can do is not to consent to any search. A lot of people will consent to a search of their person or car because they believe they have no other choice. What is even more astounding is that many people will consent to the search knowing that there are illegal materials in the car or on their person.
Once a person gives consent, it helps the police greatly. When a person consents to being searched, the police no longer need a legitimate reason to search. The police are allowed to search because the person has consented. The police do not need to warn the suspect that he has the right to refuse to be searched. The lesson is never consent to a search. If the police find evidence so be it. Don’t take away your own rights by consenting to the search and taking away your opportunity to force the police to justify their warrantless search.
For More Information Please visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
Search of cell phone text messages without a warrant
A person has a constitutional right against unreasonable search and seizures. Essentially every person has a right to privacy under the US constitution. Now the right to privacy is reduced when a person is arrested or under other circumstances.
Under these rules, police can’t randomly search people to look for drugs or evidence linking them to crimes. Police need a legitimate reason to search a person or a warrant. When a person is arrested, police are allowed to do an inventory of the person’s belongings. This inventory search may lead to the discovery of illegal materials such as weapons or drugs.
With the new world of technology, courts across the United States are trying to determine the use of warrantless search on technology. In California, a court ruled that the police don’t need to obtain a warrant to search the text messages of a suspected drug dealer.
In the 2007 case, the Defendant was arrested by the police on suspicion of drug dealing. When the Defendant was arrested the police officer took the suspect’s phone out of his pocket and read the text messages without a warrant. The court ruled that the police didn’t violate the Defendant’s constitutional right.
States differ on this subject. The Ohio Supreme Court ruled that arrested suspects phones can’t be searched without a warrant. This issue is long from being resolved and may end up being reviewed and ruled on by the US Supreme Court. Until then, it will be interesting to see how the states rule on this subject and other constitutional issues surrounding technology.
For more information: visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
Defaults lead to bail
The holidays are time for family. The last thing you want to do is to spend your holiday in jail. One of the most important factors in determining if the judge will set a bail on you is how often you default. The purpose of bail is to encourage a person to show up in court. Therefore, if you have a lot of defaults or fail to show up to court when you are supposed to, it is more likely that you will be held on bail.
Just because you have a warrant on a case doesn’t mean that the judge will automatically set bail. As not all warrants are created equal or viewed in the same way. There are two types of warrants on cases. First, there are default warrants. A default is entered when a person fails to show up to court when they have notice of court date. When a person defaults the court will send out a default warrant.
The second type of warrant is known as a straight warrant. In the situation of a straight warrant, the defendant has not gotten notice of the court date. This usually happens because the court was unable to reach the defendant with a letter regarding his or her court date.
Most if not all judges view straight warrants in a more favorable way than default warrants. It really makes sense if you think about the differences. The court assumes that you didn’t know your court date when it issues a straight warrant and assumes you did get notice when it issues a default warrant.
Essentially, the court views that it is your fault for defaulting on a case and that will increase the likelihood of bail being set. Verses in the situation where you have a straight warrant, the court assumes you didn’t know therefore it isn’t your fault for not showing up. In the situation of a straight warrant, the court is less likely to place a bail on you just because you have a warrant.
For more information: visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
Tis’ the season for break-ins
The holidays are upon us and it is just a wonderful time of year. Many people will travel to see friends for the holidays and it is important to protect yourself against unwanted intruders. A break in during the holidays can really damper your spirits. So be careful and be vigilant at all times.
So you are holiday shopping and jumping from store to store. Well you want to make sure that your gifts aren’t visible to people walking by your car. Keep gifts out of sight in the trunk as things in the backseat may entice unwanted guests. It may seem like common sense, but when you are in rush with a car full of kids it may be easy to forget.
House breaks are also very common this time of year. Going away on vacation makes your house an easy target. An alarm system is a good investment and usually reduces your homeowners insurance. It is also smart to have a neighbor pick up your newspaper or mail. If you don’t get along with your neighbors then go to the post office and they will gladly hold it there for you.
You may want to have a friend house sit a couple nights during the week. This will make it more difficult for burglars to case your house. Another advantage is the friend could look out for other issues that may come up in your house such as flooding.
It is important to stay vigilant to keep out unwanted intruders. The truth is no matter what you do, it make not prevent a break in. As a result, it may be smart to keep your really precious items at a bank or insure them. Finally, if you are trying to get a dog and your significant other needs some convincing well you can use this blog post as an excuse.
For more information: visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
Don’t ruin your life with a threatening text, email or Facebook message
Technological advances have brought about a lot of good for people, but it has also lead to its share of issues. It is so easy to interact with people we like and don’t like. For the most part, we are one click away from getting ourselves in trouble.
In the past, when young people sent harsh comments, emails and messages to one another it was rarely faced with tough punishments. Now with the school systems and police departments more aware of the detrimental effects that hazing and bullying can have, these messages are now treated as serious threats. Some may think that this is an overreaction to the recent deaths connected to bullying, while others believe more needs to be done. Either way, the situation is that quicker action is being taken against any acts of bullying, hazing or threats.
Seeing that there is so much attention on this area, it is important that young people refrain from stating anything that resembles a threat. With these messages being sent through the computer or phone, it also makes it much easier for the police to gather evidence. In the end, if you think it may be perceived as a threat, it is unwise to write the statement.
Aside from facing potential punishment from schools, the suspected offender who wrote the threat may face criminal consequences. A criminal record for a young person may be detrimental for the person being accepted to college, getting a job and his or her life. So think twice before writing a threatening message to anyone.
For more information: visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
Don’t turn yourself in
You get a letter in the mail; it states that you won free Red Sox tickets. The letter gives you a place, date and time to redeem your tickets. You show up and you are arrested because of an outstanding warrant. You learn a very important lesson, don’t turn yourself in. If you have an active warrant, a lucky day of winning tickets can get you into handcuffs.
Law enforcement has gotten better at tracking down people with warrants over the years. If a person has an active warrant, the police are allowed to arrest the person when the see them. During raids, car stops and searches police will look to see if a person has an active warrant that would require the person to be arrested.
In recent years, many police stations have decided to make their lives easier by getting people with warrants to turn themselves in. The police departments will usually come up with a fake contest telling the person with the warrant to redeem their prize at a certain location. When the person with the warrant shows up to redeem their prize, they are taking into custody.
It is amazing the amount of people the police end up taking into custody through these fake contests. If you have an active warrant and get a letter in the mail about winning a contest it is important not to try to redeem the prize. If you do follow the instructions of the contests, the only prize you’ll get is a night in a jail cell.
For more information: visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
Caffeine defense in a murder case
Americans love their caffeine. With Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks scattered all across the US, people can get their fill of caffeine at anytime. Additionally, products such as energy drinks and 5 hour energy are flying off the shelves.
Recently, lawyers have begun to use the caffeine as a legal defense in criminal cases. Lawyers have begun to argue that caffeine has affected the intent of the criminal, their knowledge and their confessions. It is a novel defense and young defense and it will be interesting to see how the situation works out.
The most recent use of this defense is by Woody Sill Smith who is accused of killing his wife by strangulation. The defense plans to argue that the large amount of caffeine ingested by the defendant resulted in an altered state of mind. As a result of this temporary altered state of mind, the defendant should be found not guilty of the crime.
The strategy of this case will be closely examined by both prosecutors and defense attorneys. Seeing that the defense is so new, it will be interesting to see its development over time. In the mean time, it may look as though a person should limit their caffeine consumption.
For more information
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100920/ap_on_re_us/us_caffeine_defense
http://www.semissourian.com/story/1666443.html
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/MindMoodNews/man-caffeinated-psychosis-defense-hit-run/story?id=9306666
http://news.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474978533466
For more information: visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
Jury Duty, from thrills to snores
Life has changed a lot over the last few centuries, but the basis of the judicial system has stayed the same. The jury trial has not had a significant make over the last centuries. What was an exciting affair to be apart of years ago is now something that most citizens absolutely try to avoid.
So what happened? Technology, life and many more things have changed over the years. Before, in the 18 century it was difficult to get the news and find out what happened in our community. Back in those days a jury trial was straight entertainment. It was one of the few times in which people had a chance to hear stories and see what was going on in their community. Now, the news is readily available, we see it on television, hear in it in the car and even read it on our phones.
In this high pace society we now have, people are constantly on the move. More and new fascinating things to thrill are minds are being invented on a daily basis. New technologies are coming out ever day finding new and exciting ways to entertain our minds.
Then there is the court system. Very little has changed. The system is slow and deliberate with the goal of ensuring rights and not providing entertainment. The court has tried to incorporate things to captivate attention such as photos, use of models, power points, and videos. However, at the end of the day, the jury trial is still a story telling process. Unfortunately, technology has made an average person’s attention span towards hearing a story very short. Just remember, the next time that you have jury duty, though it may not captivate you as it would have centuries ago, you are still apart of a very important process.
For more information: visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
Jurors please wait to tweet or be prepared to pay
Jury duty is something that most people don’t look forward to attending. However, there are certain cases that may receive a lot of press and jurors actually are interested to be apart of the process. If you are ever chosen to be on a jury, make sure that you follow the rules of the court.
One of the most important rules the judge will require is for jurors to not talk about the case until it is over. If a case takes more than one day, most juries are allowed to go home for the night. In limited situations, juries are kept away from the public and housed in a hotel until the case is over. Regardless of where the jurors stay, the rule remains the same. Don’t talk about the case until the case is over. This includes not talking to fellow members of the jury until it is time for deliberations.
With technology, it is much easier to make contact with others than ever before. Most people own cell phones, and smart phones allow people to post messages on the web through Facebook and Twitter to thousands of people at a time. With these conveniences, it takes more of an effort on a juror’s part to not be tempted to talk about the case he or she is currently apart.
In Detroit, a juror posted a Facebook message talking about the trial. When the court discovered this, the juror was fined $250 and was required to write an essay on the constitutional rights to a fair trial. A fair trial, this is what the rule is trying to protect. If the fine is not enough to deter you from talking to about the case, then imagine it was you on trial and how it would feel to not receive a fair trial. It is okay to talk to others while the case is pending, just make sure the trial doesn’t enter the conversation.
For more information: visit http://www.attorneychan.com or contact me at 508-808-8902
For more information:
http://wwj.cbslocal.com/2010/09/02/juror-who-made-facebook-post-due-in-court/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/24/jurors-using-twitter-jeop_n_332648.html
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