DWI / DUI

A DWI conviction is bad enough. If one drives DWI and in the process injures another person, the situation is all the more serious. In Virginia, it is a Class 6 felony (jailable up to five years) to drive DWI in a manner causing permanent...

For defending criminal and DWI prosecutions, the defense early on needs to move to preserve and obtain video, audio and photographic evidence of and related to the incident. At first blush, the criminal defense lawyer might ask whether it is better to try to make...

Rather than waiting for a president Donald Trump to wreak further havoc on immigration law and practice, I am now seeing some of my own DWI clients get their non-immigrant F-1 student and H-1B professional visas yanked BEFORE their cases are adjudicated in court.

Unnecessary sweat and worse can be caused by waiting until the last date to meet a court's filing deadline, whether that be for filing a motion, a reply to an opponent's filing, an appeal notice, an appellate brief, or any other court document.

The Virginia prosecutor has the burden to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant unreasonably refused to submit to a breath or blood alcohol test; the defendant does not need to prove s/he reasonably refused (although having a good reason to refuse can help...

For DWI cases, I want the incident video if it exists. For all other criminal cases, I want the incident video unless I should first explore further with my client whether seeking the video will be the only reason that the prosecutor will himself or...

The next time the Supreme Court reviews a DWI case, it will be important to enlighten the justices on how inaccurate are breathalyzer machines.

Under Birchfield, refusal to submit to a blood test cannot be criminalized, and "consent" to a blood test can be challenged if the police warned the arrestee that blood test refusal risks criminal penalty(ies).

Clearly, VASAP should be abolished, and should be replaced by private drug and alcohol programs. Until such abolition, VASAP should be reformed to more routinely give credit for participation in private state-licensed alcohol and drug education programs.