What a year it has been! For better or worse, 2016 was a year of significant changes in so many aspects of our lives, especially here in Arizona. 2017 will bring a new sheriff, Paul Penzone, to Maricopa County and a higher minimum wage. We’ll be waiting to see what, if any, impact this will…
Season’s greetings to everyone who will be driving on the I-10 near downtown Phoenix or between Phoenix and Tucson: welcome to the “zero tolerance” zone. Going two miles over the speed limit with your family of carolers fa-la-la-la-la-ing in the back seat while you head to your brother’s house? Ticket. Your grandma uses the carpool…
In Arizona, the State has a right under our implied consent statute to obtain a blood/breath sample if you’re arrested on suspicion of DUI. However, there have been concerns about the language an officer uses to inform an arrestee of this law and what a suspect faces if he or she refuses to consent to a…
On March 17, 2016, Senate Bill 1228 passed with 43 AYES, 13 NAYS and on Thursday, March 24, 2016, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey signed the bill into law. The full text of the bill can be read at: http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/52leg/2r/laws/0057.pdf. The passage of this bill is a definite YAY for the criminal defense world and those…
There are dozens of studies and decades of research indicating how alcohol affects the human body and at what blood alcohol concentrations a person can no longer safely operate a vehicle. However, there has been a proliferation of drug-related DUIs in the past decade, and with many states legalizing or creating a controlled pharmaceutical system…
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and happy holidays to everyone! As we gather together with our friends and family to celebrate the holidays, there will undoubtedly be plenty of food and drink involved. Whether you’re having lamb, prime rib, or goose (please send your expert recipes our way), topped off with a taste of every dessert,…
Veterans Day is tomorrow, November 11, and marks the day we recognize and honor the brave men and women of our Armed Forces who have served our country. These individuals devoted themselves to protecting the United States in addition to fighting for others who could not fight for themselves. One of the ways that we…
After our recent blog posts about forensic labs across the country, maybe you thought, well, it is a problem, but these are all crime labs in smaller jurisdictions. They’re not necessarily going to be able to hire the best chemists and forensic scientists in the country. They have budget restraints. So yeah, we definitely need…
Imagine that your friend “George” has cancer and got a medical marijuana card, and he utilizes the card as intended by his treating physician. He’s extremely cautious about when and how he ingests marijuana because he knows that it can affect his ability to drive and perform certain tasks. If he smoked marijuana, he always…
Back on December 5th, we discussed the Hinton crime lab scandal in Boston featuring Annie Dookhan and the greater implications that this could have on labs across the nation and the practice of forensic science in crime labs in general. Part of the concern is that even though a lab may be accredited and “approved”…
