Arizona Criminal Defense Attorney Blog

In a tragic turn of events, Phoenix police reported that a 14-year-old boy, driving a mid-size sedan, allegedly under the influence, sped through a red light signal and crashed into an SUV. The SUV was carrying three people, a man, his girlfriend and his girlfriend’s three-year-old daughter. The toddler was thrown from the SUV and…

Under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Arizona Constitution, you have a right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. This means that in most cases, a warrant is required to search your home, with few exceptions. The exceptions include situations where “exigent circumstances” exist. This allows police to make a…

Police cannot prolong stop’s duration beyond its initial purpose, without reasonable suspicion. The United States Supreme Court recently decided an important case that tilted in favor of 4th Amendment protections against unlawful detention, search and seizures. The case arose when a K-9 police officer pulled over the defendant for moving traffic violation. The driver was…

Arizona Court of Appeals Marijuana Trafficking Case Study: Part II of II – Decision to Detain for K-9 Drug Unit Not Unreasonable. Your rights at a police stop; Stop; 10 Com7mon Drug Defenses; Mitigating Sentencing; Drug Trafficking Laws; Penalties, Criminal Defense for Felony Drug Charges.

In a case decided earlier this month, an Arizona Appeals Court ruled that an officer had enough “reasonable suspicion” to detain a suspect 40 minutes while awaiting the drug K-9 unit. The court considered the “Totality of Circumstances” or “the whole picture”, to conclude that the detention was not unreasonable. Case Facts The suspect was…

The Arizona Appeal Court noted that that in order for an offense that occurred out of state to be counted as a “prior” the laws of the two states must be identical. Or alternatively, the offense must be such that if it had been committed in Arizona, instead of California in this case, it would have been in violation of Arizona’s impaired driving laws.

A Tragic Video Confession You might remember the viral video of an Arizona man, 22 year old Matthew Cordle, who caused a fatal drunk driving accident. He provided a confession in a four-minute online video that went viral with 2.3 million views last September. Cordle began his chilling confession with “My name is Matthew Cordle…

“The best way to deal with a DUI checkpoint is to be prepared for it. Lack of preparation or knowledge of your rights can lead to a false arrest, and violations of your rights.” A Case of False Arrest at a DUI Checkpoint One spring evening, 61 year old, Michael Wilhelm found himself in a…

Determining who will prosecute; Differences between Arizona, Federal laws and penalties. A Phoenix AZ man was recently sentenced to 25 years in prison for charges of methamphetamine possession with intent to distribute; and prohibited possession of a firearm. The suspected was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of a prior felony conviction on his record.…

“DUI arrests for “probable cause” doesn’t mandate that the police officer show a driver was actually under the influence, only that it is probable that he was”.A police officer need only have a reasonable suspicion that you have violated a traffic law (like the speed limit) or engaged in criminal activity to stop you. “Reasonable…