Ithaca DWI Lawyer: What is the DWI Defense of Extrapolation?

From Dreamstime, Last Call for Alcohol

With every DWI case that has a blood or breath test, aka THE chemical test there will be a gap of time between police contact and the test. If there is an accident it takes time for the police to arrive at the scene and assess it. If there is a stop of a car for a traffic violation there is a process and procedure that is followed. All the police questions and the field sobriety testing, and the drive back to the station or trooper's barracks take TIME.

Time can always be your friend or your enemy. This is true in any case involving forensic police testing of a DWI or DWAI drugs body sample of breath or blood or urine. The clock is always ticking. Minutes and hours that drag by can affect your body's processing of toxins. And shots and chugging take so little time. As my daughter loves to tell me of all the new college drinking games like flip cup and circle of fire. So what's this thing called "Extrapolation" and how does it relate to being a DWI defense?

Ithaca DWI Lawyer: Can You Get Jail for a New York Traffic Ticket?

Is this Reckless Driving Legally?

Generally speaking people do not go to jail or get sentenced to jail time for a New York State traffic ticket. But there are instances where your traffic ticket is more than a normal moving violation. Sometimes a ticket is really a criminal level offense that a judge would be compelled to sentence you to a term of jail. On the ticket itself the box marked misd means misdemeanor. Misdemeanors and higher are criminal level offenses. Now legally speaking in New York State a town, village, or city court judge could sentence you up to 15 days in jail for a violation level offense. Offenses like disorderly conduct, DWAI alcohol, or even speeding could receive up to 15 days in the local county jail.

So what situations or traffic violations could bring a short term of jail in New York State?

Ithaca DWI Lawyer: Is New York State's Judicial System a Mess?

New York State's Interesting
Court Architecture

We handle defending people in hundreds of little town and village Courts dotted throughout the farmy (yeah it's my own adjective) landscape of Upstate New York. But New York State's Court process is muddled, confusing, and in many ways antiquated. Traffic tickets don't have a natural flow or much information for those charged with even speeding. The Courts themselves are a communication nightmare. Many Courts, clerks, and judges don't have emails, some you can't leave voice messages, while others you need to call at a specific day and even hour. Navigating such a system is much like sailing a ship over dark and to us familiar waters. But enough with the doom and gloom, New York State is undergoing a reformation of the court process.

I believe a transformation is coming. This is evident because we currently have the first step in the process of healing, awareness of the problem. On a local level in Tompkins and Cortland counties we have a grassroots (not that Grass Roots) campaign to improve the process through communication.  

Ithaca DWI Lawyer: Should Bullying Lead to a Murder Charge?

The "Show Me" State is in
The Spotlight Once Again

You know sometimes you read stuff and you get mad. Well at least I do, I hate what I perceive as an injustice or an unfairness. Unfortunately, there is much of that in the world or as Gerry Spence loves to joke there is NO justice, there is Just Us!

For those of you who don't know the legacy of Mr. Spence, he is a legendary trial lawyer and advocate for people. I feel honored to have been at his college in Wyoming (the Trial Lawyers College), and to have had his mentoring. I think Gerry would hate what is going on today in Missouri.

A boy was bullied, at his school and at his work, the local DQ (Dairy Queen). He committed suicide by shooting himself in the head. The coroner demanded an Inquest, kinda like a Grand Jury but only 6 in Missouri to determine the cause. Apparently this "court" found that the primary cause of the suicide was the manager from Dairy Queen.

Now the District Attorney has charged the DQ manager (all of 21) with the criminal felony of Involuntary Manslaughter, which is like being charged with MURDER for Bullying. Now we don't or no one truly knows how many people have bullied this kid in his lifetime, or what degree each instance of bullying played in his decision to finally take his own life. It is a tragedy but I think to pin it one particular person or event is guessing at best.

I question the logic and reasoning behind bringing a murder charge under these particular circumstances. I question the fairness of all of this, but I'm starting to understand the larger purpose.

Ithaca DWI Lawyer: Can Kombucha Tea Fail Your IID (ignition interlock device)?

 

The more you live, the more you learn. Or as I like to joke, life is a school. DWI clients call and tell us their problems even post DWI. My IID is not working, I'm locked out on my IID, my IID failed me because of the extreme cold or because I used mouthwash or because I drank a lot last night, and I guess it's still in my system. When I heard that Kombucha tea can cause a failure, I'm like what?

Kombucha comes in many flavors, but its base is always the same, made by leaving a fungus of yeast and bacteria to ferment for several weeks in sugary tea. The resulting brew has some alcohol and tastes tart, vinegary and is slightly effervescent. It then often is made palatable by adding juice. 

In order to maintain its probiotic benefits, kombucha is left unpasteurized, or raw, although some companies recently have started selling pasteurized varieties.

                                                                                                       ABC News

So apparently Kombucha has some degree of alcohol in it because of the fermentation. So say that the tea  has .5% alcohol. I guess depending upon how much tea you drink will cause an alcohol reading. Since drinking tea is the new coffee, at least with my millennials it is good to know that the tea has more than just tea. It is now being investigated by the FDA, and the government is looking into taxing it as an alcoholic beverage.

More government craziness with Kombucha tea but does it or can it trigger an IID failure?

Ithaca DWI Lawyer: What's the Future of Driving and DWI?

Cute, Ecological, and Not Very Exciting!

You know I love cars. Cars and I have a long time long affair. They represent more than transportation or utility to me, they represent all that embodies what is great in America. They are symbolic of freedom, adventure, independence, and pursuit of the dream. One of the things that drew me to DWI defense is that involves cars. But the future of cars is uncertain. I recently read in Autoweek that I quote, "the future of driving is NOT driving." Self driving cars are coming. Does that speak the end of DWI charges? Does that mean that the crime of DWI will be a thing of the past?

Ithaca DWI Lawyer: Handling the Felony DWI

New York State is in my opinion very harsh on the second time DWI offender. The reason I say this is because in many other states it takes at least three DWI related convictions to get to the felony level. That said two DWIs within ten years is a class E felony punishable by up to four years in prison in New York. This is serious stuff and handling this type of charge requires great proactivity.

So what's the best way to be proactive with a felony level DWI offense?