Archive for October, 2009
October 25th, 2009 | 
Author: Choosing A Divorce Attorney
Make sure your lawyer has extensive experience in family law.
The first step to move forward with your divorce action is to obtain an attorney. For many, divorce represents the first time they have used the services of an attorney. For others who have a family attorney, the initial reaction is to call on an attorney you have used in the past. Regardless of your background, special attention must be paid to your choice of a divorce attorney.
Also, you must be prepared to answer the inquiries of your attorney. For both you and your spouse the attorney will want to know name, address, phone numbers, social security number, employer and work history, income, investments, retirement plans, health insurance, physical description, date and place of birth, parents’ names, date and place of marriage, details of previous marriages, among other information. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in 
Stephanie Pratt, one of the stars of “The Hills,” was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence early Sunday morning in Hollywood.
Police said Pratt, 23, was arrested at around 3:45 a.m. outside a nightclub in Los Angeles and taken into custody, with bail set at $5,000, according to Sergeant Mark Cohan of the Los Angeles Police Department. Before her arrest, Pratt was reportedly out with some fellow “Hills” stars at Empire, celebrating Holly Montag’s 26th birthday.
Pratt was released with a ticket later Sunday morning and was not required to post bail but will return for a court hearing, according to a spokesperson at the Van Nuys Division, where Pratt was held. Read the rest of this entry »
The Kansas Supreme Court is being asked by the Douglas County District Attorney’s office to consider a driving under the influence case, saying that the matter could have statewide consequences.
The issue is whether an Intoxilyzer reading of .08 within two hours of driving is sufficient evidence to get a DUI conviction.
The case stems from the Aug. 19, 2007 arrest of Paul Finch. A sheriff’s deputy stopped Finch for weaving in and out of his lane, according to court records.
He was taken to the county jail where he submitted to a breath test. The Intoxilyzer 5000 measured his breath to have .080 grams of alcohol content. Read the rest of this entry »
Criminal Punishment
What happens after conviction.
After your trial, the court will impose its sentence on you for the crime you committed. The Eight Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits the court from subjecting you to “cruel and unusual punishment.” Among other things, this means that the punishment must fit the crime. But deciding what punishment is permissible in light of the Eighth
While it’s fairly obvious that imposing the death penalty on someone convicted of a first time burglary is almost certainly cruel and unusual punishment, the courts have allowed persons with multiple convictions for non-violent crimes such as writing bad checks to be sentenced to life in prison without parole as habitual offenders. In other cases, persons sentenced to lengthy prison terms for the possession of small amounts of marijuana have also been upheld when challenged on Eighth Amendment grounds. On the other hand, physical abuse, such as beatings and torture, have consistently been held to constitute the kind of cruel and unusual punishment prohibited by the Eighth Amendment. Read the rest of this entry »
Know your rights.
As we’ve already seen, in the United States we have two systems of courts. Similarly, we have two systems of criminal justice as well. At the federal level, you may be charged with a crime when you do something prohibited by a federal statute, and your trial on federal charges will be conducted in a federal district court. If you are found guilty and sentenced to serve a prison sentence, that sentence will be served in a federal prison.
If you commit a crime prohibited by state law, your trial will be conducted in a state criminal court, and any prison sentence imposed will be served in a state institution. In either case, however, your rights when accused of a crime are guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. And if you are charged with a crime under state law and the state’s constitution grants criminal defendants greater rights than those contained in the federal Constitution, those safeguards will apply as well.
The most essential protections granted to individuals suspected of or accused of a crime are those contained in the Bill of Rights. And of these, the most important are those guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment.
As it has been interpreted by the U.S Supreme Court, the Fifth Amendment requires the government to take certain steps in order to ensure that you are not deprived of “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” If you are arrested, the police must inform you of your right to remain silent and to have the assistance of a lawyer, as well as the right to a court-appointed lawyer if you cannot afford to hire one on your own. In addition, you must be warned that anything you say may be used against you in court. This is the famous Miranda warning, named for the man whose appeal led to the Supreme Court’s decision that the failure of the police to provide notice of these rights was unconstitutional.
It’s not enough to tell you what your rights are, however. The police must give you the opportunity to exercise those rights, by letting you call a family member, friend, or an attorney. Holding an arrested suspect in isolation and refusing to let a lawyer or family member’s visit is also a violation of the suspect’s constitutional rights. And once you indicate that you want to speak to a lawyer, the police must halt all questioning unless a lawyer is present. However, if you change your mind and initiate further conversations with the police, any statements you make may be used by the government in prosecuting you.
You have a right to know the nature of the crime you have been charged with, and to appear before a judge within a reasonable period of time in order to enter your plea to the charges. If you are not released from jail on your own recognizance (your written promise to appear for trial) you have the right to have reasonable bail set.