War Stories - Mississippi DUI Second Offense Charges Reduced
May 24, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Last week we represented a client from out-of-state who was arrested and charged with DUI second offense in Tunica County and possession of Marijuana in a motor vehicle. This client retained our law firm less than 16 hours before his trial date. Although we normally do not accept DUI cases under such time constraints we chose to to take his case.
He had been pulled over by the Tunica County Sheriff’’s office and had failed the breathalyzer test after being pulled over for weaving. The charge for DUI second offense in Mississippi comes with an automatic 5 day jail term and would have cost this client his job.
We where able to have the possession charges dismissed because of lack of evidence and the DUI charge reduced to 1st offense DUI because of lack of authority evidence showing proof of the intitial DUI. Our client was very excited to be able to drive back home that same day without serving any jail time and without losing his job.
If you’ve been arrested for a DUI and need the help of an experienced DUI lawyer make sure to give us a call at 901-754-1340. We serve Olive Branch, Southaven, Horn Lake, Starkville, Oxford, Tunica, Holly Springs and all of North Mississippi.
Possession of Marijuana with Intent to Distribute In Mississippi - The Fines and Jail Time
May 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment
In my last two posts I’ve discussed the Mississippi laws in regards to misdemeanor possession of marijuana and misdemeanor possession in a motor vehicle. Today I’m going to look at the penalties for possession with itent to sell.
The first thing to look at is defining what possession with intent means. It’s really quite simple, it just means that you have possession of marijuana with the intent to sell it. Although the definition is simple proving that you had the intent to sell it can be quite difficult unless they catch you in the act, and even then it can still be difficult to prove. Often times the police try to convict using circumstantial evidence such as the possession of several different wrapped baggies, but an experienced mississippi and southaven criminal lawyer can usually bring up points that makes it difficult for the prosecutor to prove intent.
Now that we have looked at what intent to distribute means let’s review the fines and jail time that you can receive for a conviction.
A conviction in Mississippi for possession of less than 30 grams with intent to distribute comes with a fine of up to $3,000 and up to 3 years in prison.
If you are unluckly enough to found with over 30 grams then the fine jumps to $30,000 and jail time of up to 30 years.
The Fines and Penalties for Being Arrested for Possession of Less than 30 grams of Marijuana in a Motor Vehicle!
May 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment
If you were to go to any Mississippi criminal lawyer every one of them would tell you that you don’t want to be convicted of Misdemeanor Possession of Less than 30 grams of Marijuana in a Motor Vehicle because you will almost always serve some type of jail time.
What are the fines and jail time for being convicted you’re probably wondering? Well, the fine for the first offense can be up to $1,000 and up to 90 days in jail!
If you happen to have more than 30 grams and less than 250 grams then the fine can go up to $3,000. But that’s not the worst part. You could face up to 3 years in the penitentiary. After 250 grams the fines really go up and so does the jail time. The Mississippi Code section 41-29-139 lists all of the penalties for possession, the highest of which is a $1,000,000 fine and up to 30 years in the penitentiary.
By now you should be realizing that a simple conviction in Mississippi for any type of Misdemeanor possession of marijuana is nothing to be taken lightly. As soon as you are arrested you should hire a capable mississippi criminal defense lawyer to defend your rights. Our lawyers serve Olive Branch, Southaven, Horn Lake, Tunica, Hernando, Marshall County, Desoto County, Oxford, Starkville and Memphis. If you are arrested give us a call at 901-754-1340 for a free consultation.
What Are The Penalties If You Have Been Arrested for Possession of Marijuana in Mississippi?
May 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment
What are the penalties if you have been arrested in Olive Branch for misdemeanor possession of Marijuana?
Possession of less than 30 grams of marijuana is classified as a misdemeanor crime in Mississippi. However, just because this is a misdemeanor offense doesn’t mean that you should take your court appearance lightly. Although the first offense for plain possession usually just results in a fine of no more than $250 this offense still goes on your record. Your second offense would result in a fine of $250 and up to 60 days in jail for your second offense. For a third or subsequent conviction the penalty increases to up to $500 in fines and 6 (six) months in jail. And remember on top of all fines there are also court costs and other fees associated with the fine.
The penalties stated above are just for plain old possession. This means it is just if you were found with it in your home or walking down the street. However, in most cases this isn’t the case. Usually you the person is found with the drug in their car. This ups the penalties because a person found with weed in thir car would be charged with Possession of Marijuna less than 30 grams in a Motor Vehicle. In Mississippi these charges carry higher fees and more jail time.
In my next post I’ll discuss what the penalties are for these charges.
The one thing to remember though is that an experienced olive branch or southaven criminal lawyer can often times have these charges reduced or dismissed. It’s important that you make the decision to hire an attorney to give you the best defense.
Two-tiered level of DUI
December 14, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Mississippi lawyers might be looking at new classifications of dui’s in the future if what is going on in the West Virginia legislature is any indication.
West Virginia has a bill up that will change the ways that dui’s are prosecuted. The new legislation would make it so that two different tiers of dui’s are created.
Tier 1 would be for all dui’s in which the person blew a .08 to a .14 into the breathalyzer. For these dui’s the person would no longer need to serve 24 hours in jail and would instead be released after a few hours with just time served.
Tier 2 would be for what will be called “aggravated dui’s” in which a breathalyzer reading of .15 or higher was reached. These individuals would then be required to stay in jail for at least 48 hours.
The reasoning behind he law is that West Virginia is trying to lower the number of people required to stay in jail in order to help a crowded jail population. Currently all offenders are required to stay at least 24 hours in jail.
If this new law goes into effect it should give anyone arrested in West Virginia even more reason to hire a dui lawyer. Why you might ask? Because breathalyzer’s are not infallible. In fact they are very often wrong and an experienced dui lawyer should be able to point that out to the court. Here the difference between .14 and .15 could mean an extra few days spent in jail, and thousands of extra dollars in insurance and other costs, not to mention to possible loss of a job for being convicted of “aggravated dui”.
To get a copy of the free report “The Unauthorized Guide to Mississippi DUI Defense” written by DUI Lawyer James Ferrell, just email us at info@lawferrell.com or call our 24/7 automated line at 1-800-546-2713 today.
Olive Branch, Mississippi Receives Grant for New DUI Officer
December 7, 2007 | Leave a Comment
According to the latest issue of the Desoto Times the city of Olive Branch will be adding a new DUI officer to the city payrolls courtesy of a $42,000 grant received through the state.
This is good news for everyone in Olive Branch. Adding a well-trained DUI officer should end some of the unneccesary arrests that occur each year when a poorly trained officer arrests someone for DUI who clearly is not intoxicated. The truth is that a well-trained DUI officer really helps the community in two ways. The first is that he gets people off the streets who shouldn’t be driving and the second way is that he actually cuts down on the number of arrests where people weren’t actually drunk.
Statistically speaking, DUI field sobriety tests are only accurate roughly 60% of the time. That means that a large number of people who are arrested each year because of failed sobriety tests were actually not intoxicated. That’s a pretty scary statistic. Just think about it. Up to 40% of the people arrested for merely failing a field sobriety test could possibly be not guilty. That’s why we need experienced law officers and that’s why you need a good dui lawyer.
To get a copy of the free report “The Unauthorized Guide to Mississippi DUI Defense” written by DUI Lawyer James Ferrell, just email us at info@lawferrell.com or call our 24/7 automated line at 1-800-546-2713 today.
Famous DUI’s!
December 5, 2007 | 1 Comment
If you’re like most people when they receive a DUI here in DeSoto County, Tunica County or anywhere else in North Mississippi the first thing you think is that you’re life is over. And although a DUI does hamper many aspects of your life a conviction is not going to ruin your life forever (it just makes it more difficult).
A DUI conviction in Kennebunkport, Maine didn’t seem to stop a young George W. Bush from going on to become the future President. And two convictions of Dick Cheney didn’t stop him from later becoming a Vice-President.
Here in Tennessee State Senator Jerry Cooper recently received a DUI. As did Al Gore’s son Al Gore, Jr. when visiting California.
Several mayors around the country have been convicted. The list includes the mayor of Boise, Idaho; Carson City, Nevada; Gore, Oklahoma, Norton, Ohio and more.
Even prosecutors get in on the act sometimes. As is the case in Miami where the city prosecutor hit two people riding a scooter while he was driving under the influence.
Remember, it’s best not to drink and drive. But if you have been convicted it doesn’t mean your life is over. Just make sure that you know your rights.
To get a copy of the free report “The Unauthorized Guide to Mississippi DUI Defense” just email us at info@lawferrell.com or call our 24/7 automated line at 1-800-546-2713 today.
Should I blow into the Breathalzyer?
November 27, 2007 | Leave a Comment
As DUI Lawyers in Mississippi we hear this question all the time. In fact, it’s probably the most asked question that we hear. Unfortunately there isn’t a cut and dry answer. What I can say is that every year we represent people who tell us that they had only drank one or two beers before they were pulled over by the police, and even though they had only had one or two drinks they still insisted on not blowing. When we ask them why the usual answer we get is because they “had a friend tell them to blow” or “I heard a lawyer say not to blow one time”. What almost always occurs next is that these people end up losing there drivers license for at least three months and many times up to a year. If the person would have simply taken the breath test they probably would have blown below .08% and would have never have received a ticket for DUI or for refusing to blow.
Those charged with refusing to submit to a DUI breath test in Mississippi almost always lose their driving privileges. Count on it if you refuse to blow.
If your blood alcohol reading is over the legal limit of .08%, Tennessee law says that you are guilty of DUI “per se”. This means that if you operate a vehicle and exceed the legal limit of .08%, you are guilty of DUI. In other words, there does not need to be a finding of impairment in order for a judge or jury to find you guilty. Take the test, fail it, and so long as the stop and test are found to be valid, the law does not require that any further evidence be provided as to your intoxication, Mississippi DUI laws are similar.
Our DUI lawyers in Mississippi and Memphis have found that people who take the breath test and register close to the legal limit often have their case reduced to Reckless Driving. However, If you take the test and register in the higher percentage ranges, odds are that you aren’t going to have your case reduced and you will be found guilty of DUI.
Your blood alcohol level is dependant on several factors, such as how much you have had to drink, how much you have had to eat, your own metabolism, how much you weigh and how long it has been since your last drink. For the average person, 3 beers is enough to exceed the legal limit. Two five-ounce glasses of wine is enough for a 100-pound woman to exceed the limit. The breathalyzer doesn’t use any of your specific information though to determine whether or not you are intoxicated. Instead the computer uses a compilation of “averages” to make this determination. The problem is that most Americans aren’t average and because of this it is likely that the breathalyzer could indicate you are intoxicated when you actually are not.
And when the breathalyzer comes back with a result that shows you are intoxicated this is a difficult hurdle to clear (although we do have many ways to fight this) in defending you. If you believe that there is a high probability that you are intoxicated it is generally in your best interest not to blow. By not blowing we are often times able to prepare a better defense to your DUI. But you should be aware that by not blowing you are almost guaranteeing yourself that you will lose your driving privileges for some length of time.
So here’s the final answer. You should blow if you are not intoxicated, and you should not blow if you are. A better question if you are considering this should be, “Should I drive?” Even a small amount of alcohol combined with driving opens yourself up to possible bad situations. Don’t take a chance with your life or someone else’s, take a cab.
