Bail reform has been a hotly discussed subject for some time. But what is bail and why does it need reforming? In Maine, bail is defined as “the obtaining of the release of the defendant upon an undertaking that the defendant shall appear at the time and place required and that the defendant shal...
Maine drug charges typically come in three varieties: possession, furnishing and trafficking. Separate issues are the type of drug and the quantity, but for this post I just want to focus on the difference between possession, furnishing and trafficking. Under Maine law, possession can either be a...
I'm covering this topic after a recent phone call to the office. A very nice individual called about a potential legal issue. After speaking with him, I am confident that I could have handled his legal situation quite easily for him. Unfortunately, he was calling me about two weeks after he we...
Criminal law can be fairly confusing. One of the subjects that people occasionally get mixed up is whether something is a crime or not. In law, there are civil violations and crimes. Violations are things like speeding tickets or littering. Violations are not punishable by jail time. The worst th...
So you've been charged with crime. It stinks. There is nothing good about it. But here is the thing. It is probably pretty fixable. I'm not saying it isn't a big deal. But I am saying it can be fixed. I've seen thousands of people have the same problem and come out on the other side. But many peo...
Felonies are the most serious crimes in the criminal system. But what does that mean? Offenses are broken down into three groups: infractions, misdemeanors and felonies. Infractions are not classified as crimes at all. This is important to understand because with a civil infraction you do not hav...
So you've been arrested and charged with Operating Under the Influence. One of the most common questions that I see is “am I looking at jail time?” The answer isn't so simple, although it sort of it is. Operating Under the Influence is a crime in Maine, and pretty much everywhere else. All crimes...
This recent story of a Wiscasset suspect allegedly trying to avoid an OUI arrest illustrates the problem. The story reports that the suspect had already suffered a Maine OUI charge within the same week, for which he was out on bail. When an officer noticed the erratic path of the suspect's vehic...
Most states, including Maine, take allegations of domestic violence very seriously. In fact, many local police departments are required to make an arrest on any call in which they suspect domestic violence may have occurred. While strict domestic violence laws are intended to provide victims with...
In Maine, you need to have your fish and game license active at all times while you're participating in these types of activities. In fact, according to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife, mere “Possession of fishing tackle in the fields or forests or on the waters or ice of this...
When you face charges for an OUI as a person of color, you may suspect that your traffic stop and subsequent charges resulted from racial bias. Your arresting officer may have pulled you over simply because of your race – which is a violation of your rights. Maine law makes it clear that stops ba...
Has Domestic Violence Increased Because Of Covid-related Quarantines? In 2020, the way that we work, rest and play has dramatically changed. Instead of spending large portions of time outside of our homes, many of us have decided to stay indoors. This has influenced the way that COVID-19 has spre...
If you're facing charges for an OUI, you might wonder what penalties are in your future. Ahead of you lay two different processes: A criminal procedure, and an administrative procedure. For the purposes of this post, I am going to focus on the criminal procedure. The severity of the charges agai...
Will Your Keto Diet Interfere With A Bac Test? If you're trying to watch your weight or manage other health symptoms, you might be familiar with the Keto diet. Based primarily on the idea that a low-carb, high-protein, high-fat diet can help you lose weight quickly, the Keto diet is popular—and p...
If you've made it safely to the other side of an OUI experience, you may feel relieved. It's over; it's in the past; you can move on with your life. Before you can truly move on, however, you may need to disclose information about your arrest. You also may not. It's time to figure out who you sho...
So, you just received a phone call from the police, what should you do next? I see this situation come up fairly often and it usually results in one of three outcomes: outcome 1 is that you talk to the police and it is something minor and nothing comes of it; outcome 2 is that you talk to the pol...
Many people charged with crimes wonder whether their case will automatically be dismissed because the police officer did not read them their Miranda rights. While Miranda warnings are extremely important, an officer's failure to read them in and of itself does not result in a dismissal of crimina...
One of the most common questions that I get is “but I'm guilty, what can you do?” The phrase “but I'm guilty,” could be the subject of an entire legal textbook but the short answer is that no one is guilty before they've even been to Court. Every individual is presumed innocent of any criminal ch...
Getting charged with an OUI is always a serious situation. But that situation can be even more consequential if you're charged with an OUI while operating a commercial vehicle. In fact, people who operate commercial vehicles are often held to a higher standard than average drivers. Many states ha...
Most people are familiar with field sobriety tests. At the very least, the concept of “walking a straight line” to demonstrate that you are sober is familiar to most. These standardized field sobriety tests are used across the country by law enforcement to identify intoxicated drivers. These same...
A charge for operating under the influence, or OUI, can carry steep penalties. Depending on prior convictions and other circumstances, a conviction can lead to jail or even prison if a felony OUI. Incarceration is not the only penalty prescribed by state law: steep fines and the suspension of you...
In Maine, law enforcement cannot simply pull over your car and detain you on a whim. To stop your vehicle, the officer must have a reasonable articulable suspicion that you are violating law or traffic regulation to pull you over. Any officer that stops your car without reasonable articulable sus...
Understanding the elements of a charge of operating under the influence (OUI) in Maine is fairly straightforward in Maine. In most cases, law enforcement obtains a breath or blood sample from a driver and tests the blood alcohol concentration (BAC). If a driver's BAC is .08 percent or more, the a...
You have choices. When you are pulled over, maybe for a minor traffic violation, and the officer for whatever reason suspects you may be operating the vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs (OUI), you have a choice when asked to participate in field sobriety tests or to submit to a chemi...
In this country, we have what's known as Fourth Amendment rights. Part of the rights is to be free from unlawful search and seizure. The law does not get to unreasonably search and seize either your person or your property without probable cause, meaning if you haven't done anything wrong or, eve...
