Port St. Lucie DUI and Criminal Blog

Defenses related to the admissibility of the prosecution’s breath testing evidence. If you did submit to a State administered breath test, the prosecution must prove that at the time of your test the electronic equipment was in proper working order, that it had been properly maintained, and that the breath test was conducted in a…

I read with great interest my friend, defense attorney Brian Tannebaum’s blog post yesterday about not commenting on the Casey Anthony case. Brian has chosen not to share his views publicly on the most compelling criminal trial going on in America today. Instead, he urged lawyers, let the case be decided on its own merits,…

No Longer ‘Flirtin’ with Disaster in Port St. Lucie DUI charges have been dismissed against Molly Hatchet lead guitarist David Hlubek. The Office of the State Attorney has abandoned its accusation of drunk driving after the trial judge agreed with defense counsel that the deputy broke the law when he stopped Mr. Hlubek’s car without…

Prosecutor concedes DUI arrest was illegal Vero Beach prosecutors last week dismissed DUI charges against a former police Detective. Police arrested the detective after unlawfully stopping the car in which she was a passenger. This traffic stop and the DUI arrest that followed were unlawful. Florida law allows a police officer to make an arrest…

To be allowed to tell the jury your breath tests results, the prosecution must first “lay a foundation” to support the introduction of the “numbers” that are to be considered by the jury. The prosecutor must establish that the machine was in good working order and that it had been used in the manner approved…

The term “discovery” refers to rules of procedure in a criminal case that lawyers use before trial to gather information about the nature and quality of the evidence possessed by the opposing side. Examples might include written demands for the inspection and production of documents, pre-trial depositions of potential witnesses, undertaking an examination of the…

For a variety or reasons, police and crime lab workers sometimes cheat. Often, it is to save time or money. Other times, neglect or sloppiness is the problem. Sometimes, police officers embellish, exaggerate, or just plain lie. This criminal misconduct overshadows and taints the State’s “forensic” test results that are offered against you. Your skilled…

Defenses related to the credibility of the prosecution’s blood testing evidence. Before a blood test result may be admitted into evidence against you by a trial judge, the prosecutor must be able to cross several “hurdles” that your defense lawyer may raise. At each point in the prosecutor’s offer of proof that the blood test…

Defenses related to the admissibility of the prosecution’s blood testing evidence. For a blood test to be admissible as evidence, the prosecutor has to demonstrate the reliability of the test. This might require putting forth various witnesses. For the results of the State’s test to be admissible, the State must show that it was performed…

Challenges to the officer’s ability and experience in determining an impaired driver from an unimpaired driver. Certainly, a law enforcement officer with years of experience conducting DUI-DWI investigations, and with advanced extensive training in DUI- DWI evaluations, is much more likely to be able to distinguish an impaired driver from a driver who is unimpaired…