Felony 5th OWI Knocked Down To OWI First

Our client was charged with a fifth offense OWI. A 5th OWI is a felony under Wisconsin laws. We attacked the four prior drunk driving convictions - the 5th was reduced to a first. An OWI 1st offense in Wisconsin is not a crime.

United States -vs- Defendant - Dismissed

In a case involving possession of crack (423 grams) and possession of a firearm (found in the defendant's trunk), the US District Court (Madison Wisconsin) dismissed the charges just one week prior to trial. Attorney Corey Chirafisi defending.

Find Me Guilty, Please!

While it may sound a bit backwards for a client to WANT a court to find him guilty, there is a good reason for it in some situations. Today, a judge found my client not guilty of drunk driving, but we had asked him to the him guilty. It was a municipal court, and if we lost, we could appeal and start the whole prosecution process over in front of a jury. But because the court found that the Village did not meet their burden of proof, the court acquitted (found my client not guilty), and now the Village can appeal. If the Village appeals, it will make defending the case more difficult.

Other Acts Evidence In The Last Act

Recently, I had a client who went to trial on Attempted Sexual Assault, Kidnapping and Felony Battery charges. On the Thursday before the trial was set to begin, the government (state prosecutor) attempted to introduce "other acts evidence" against my client. It is an area that is very problematic for people accused of crimes. Prosecutors get to attempt to introduce evidence regarding other bad acts that a defendant has allegedly done under the legal theory that it goes to intent or motive. The reality is that it shows a jury that he did something before, so he must have done it again.

Lawyer For A Lawyer

I've been hired as a consultant in an OWI case in Rock County. The client had heard good things, and his lawyer was open to the idea of me consulting on the case. I believe we may have found a good issue regarding the PBT (Preliminary Breath Test) which could lead to the suppression of evidence.

A Right To A Preliminary Hearing?

Today, the State of Wisconsin objected to my client waiving a preliminary hearing on the grounds that the state felt that they had a right to the hearing. Total joke.

License Plates Suspended

I ran in the Whistlestop Marathon over the weekend and thank God that is over! My legs are so very sore.

I saw that the Court of Appeals found that reasonable suspicion to pull a vehicle over exists if the police know the owner of the vehicle's license is suspended, even though they do not know who is driving the car. I hope it goes up to the Supreme Court, small municipal police are going to have a field day with that one.