Over the years of defending “criminals” I have encountered many honest citizens who have made a simple mistake and now find themselves facing felony charges, prison time, the loss of career, and the loss of their 2nd Amendment rights, simply by making a mistake in understanding how they should transport…
Michigan drivers arrested under suspicion of intoxicated driving will have their bodily drug and alcohol levels tested by the police. When drugs including marijuana are suspected, a police officer will see if that distinct marijuana smell is present. Many OWI lawyers near me wrongly believe that DUI cases involving blood…
The Barone Defense Firm is pleased to announce that the firm’s founding partner and CEO Patrick Barone was recently appointed to the NCDD mental health task force. The committee was formed in 2021 to provide a confidential resource for any NCDD member feeling overwhelmed with the rigors of running a…
Yes, a DUI Michigan can be expunged (set aside). If your DUI case is not expunged, it will stay on your criminal record for life. This is true of all DUI convictions, and this means your prior criminal history can be seen by potential employers. For many people, this is…
Americans value their privacy. It is considered a right. Americans especially value the right to privacy from government intrusions. The Constitution’s 4th Amendment requires probable cause for a warrant to search or seize a person’s belongings. This is also where we find our right to privacy. Does the Right to…
A Michigan implied consent hearing is an informal hearing where the officer that arrested you for drunk driving provides testimony to prove that you unreasonably refused a breath blood or urine test. Before we move on with a further discussion of the hearing, let’s review the concept of implied consent,…
Police in Michigan continue to use unreliable chemical and field sobriety tests when investigating drivers suspected of using cannabis. This can lead to sober cannabis users being wrongfully convicted of intoxicated driving. This is because the tools used for decades to investigate drunk driving cases simply do not translate well…
To complete an investigation and, ultimately, file charges for child pornography, law enforcement will almost always attempt to seize and search the electronic devices they believe could contain illegal material. The way police gain access to these devices can be an important issue in child pornography cases (called Child Sexually…
Charges for criminal sexual conduct cases, more commonly called sex crimes or sexual assault, are often based only on the memories of the complaining witness. This is especially true for sexual assault that allegedly took place when the adult victim was a child. In these sex crimes cases there is…
The United States Supreme Court has recently ruled that the community caretaker exception to the search warrant requirement does not apply to a person’s home. The name of the case is Caniglia v. Strom, and in a unanimous opinion the Court found that guns seized by the police after entering…