Posted on November 21,2022 in Criminal Defense

 Along with the ever-increasing incidents of school shootings in this country, there is also the alarming increase in the number of swatting incidents that occur. Swatting is the term used to describe incidents where someone makes a false report to emergency services in an effort to send a large number of law enforcement to a certain location.

Almost every week since the beginning of the school year, law enforcement has rushed to at least one school somewhere in the U.S. because of false reports of an armed person on school grounds or other threats of violence. Federal law enforcement is actively working to determine if these incidents are being coordinated by the same party or parties or all separate incidents.

Swatting in Connecticut

According to the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO), there have been dozens of swatting incidents in more than 30 states since the school year began. Several of these incidents have taken place right here in Connecticut. On Friday, October 21, there were false reports sent to authorities for multiple school locations.

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 Posted on November 14,2022 in Driving Under the Influence

November’s arrival means that the winter holidays are just around the corner. Holidays usually mean get-togethers with family and friends, holiday parties, and socializing. It also means that police departments across the state will be out in full force, cracking down on drunk drivers.

One tool available to law enforcement is the sobriety checkpoint. This is where police put up a barricade in the road so that drivers will have to stop and engage with officers for a few minutes. If an officer suspects a driver has been drinking, he or she can request the driver submit to a breathalyzer test, field sobriety tests, or other testing to determine if their blood alcohol concentration is over 0.08 percent, the legal limit in Connecticut.

Are Sobriety Checkpoints Legal?

Some drivers question whether or not police have the legal right to conduct sobriety checkpoints. This question was answered in 1990 by the U.S. Supreme Court in Michigan v. Sitz where the court ruled that sobriety checkpoints did not violate the Fourth Amendment against illegal search and seizures. In 1996, the Connecticut Appellate Court ruled these checkpoints are permissible under the law.

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 Posted on November 07,2022 in Traffic Violations

While most people associate a suspended or revoked driver’s license with a drunk driving conviction, there are many reasons why the state of Connecticut could take away your driving privileges. While a DUI is the most common reason for loss of license, you can also have your license suspended or revoked for not paying court fines or not paying child support. You can also lose your license if you accumulate too many points on your driving record. Any moving violation that you are convicted of will add points to your driving record. This is why you should always contact a Stamford traffic attorney when you receive a traffic citation.

Connecticut Points System

Connecticut has put in place a points system that applies to all drivers. There are a certain number of points assigned to different driving violations. Typically, the more serious the violation, the higher the number of points the violation carries. 

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 Posted on October 28,2022 in Driving Under the Influence

Anyone who has ever been stopped by law enforcement on suspicion of driving under the influence can likely attest to how intimidating it is, even if you have not had anything to drink. Knowing what your rights are in the event this ever happens to you can go a long way in the actual outcome of your case if you are charged with drunk driving.

Field Sobriety Tests

Under Connecticut’s implied consent law, when a person accepts a driver’s license issued by the state, they are essentially agreeing to submit to a chemical test to determine what their blood alcohol concentration is if they are stopped by police. If you refuse that test, then your driver’s license will be suspended by the state, regardless of what the final outcome of any criminal DUI charges is. If it is your first offense, your license will be suspended for one year. A second offense results in a two-year suspension, and a third or subsequent offense means a loss of license for three years.

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 Posted on October 24,2022 in Real Estate Law

One of the most exciting times in a person’s life is when they purchase their first home. But for many, the process of applying for their first mortgage can be stressful, including making sure they have enough for a down payment, gathering all the documentation, and a sufficient credit score that the financial institution they are dealing with requires. If you are applying for your first mortgage, the following is a brief overview of what to expect.

Pre-Approval Process

The first step in the mortgage process is submitting a pre-approval application with the bank or mortgage company. This pre-approval process allows the lender to examine your financial situation to determine if you can afford the mortgage loan you are seeking. There are multiple documents the lender will request to make that determination, including:

• Most recent pay stubs (typically the last two months’ worth) that also show year-to-date earnings

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 Posted on October 07,2022 in Criminal Defense

It is no secret the real estate market has been booming for the past couple of years. But along with those millions of real estate transactions comes a higher rate of mortgage fraud. According to national statistics, in the second quarter of 2022, about 1 in 131 mortgage applications contained fraud. The risk of income fraud rose 27.3 percent and property fraud climbed 22.6 percent. Anyone charged with mortgage fraud could be facing either federal or state charges, with the penalties harsh for both.

Residential Housing

One type of mortgage fraud involves residential mortgage applications and home loan borrowers. This type of fraud usually involves an individual or couple, with the goal of obtaining financing for a home. This type of fraud can occur in a number of ways:

• The applicant doctors W-2s or paystubs to show a fraudulent income

• The applicant doctors bank account statements to show a fraudulent level of assets

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 Posted on September 30,2022 in Driving Under the Influence

More than one million people are arrested each year for drunk driving. The majority of DUI arrests occur because the driver submits to, and fails, a breathalyzer test. But statistics show that the machines used to administer these tests are often unreliable. False positives occur frequently and thousands of breathalyzer test results are thrown out each year by judges across the country.

There are a variety of reasons why false positives occur, including faulty equipment and operator error. There is also another cause for false positives that many people are unaware of that has to do with the type of diet the person taking the test eats. In fact, one popular diet – the keto diet – can actually create false positives on breathalyzer tests.

Keto Diet Issues

When a person eats according to a keto diet, their body goes into a state in which the body becomes more efficient at burning fat for energy. This process is referred to as “ketosis,” and occurs when someone eats only low-carbohydrate foods that include berries, nuts, fatty fish, lean meats, and fresh greens. If the individual is following a keto diet, their body produces an elevated level of ketones.

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 Posted on September 22,2022 in Real Estate Law

When you are purchasing a home, there are so many details to address that it can sometimes feel overwhelming. Not only are you dealing with meeting all the requirements regarding financial information that your financial institution needs for your mortgage, but there are also other things that your bank or mortgage company will require. One of these required is title insurance. At this point, some buyers make the mistake of forgoing having their own real estate attorney and instead allow the title review company to handle everything. This can have serious financial ramifications later on.

What Is Title Insurance?

Every time a property is purchased, sold, or financed, there is a record of that transaction filed in the public archives of the municipality where the property is located. There is also a record of any other liens or other events that may be filed against the property.

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 Posted on September 17,2022 in Driving Under the Influence

Most people agree that it can be dangerous to drink and drive. It is also illegal. If you are caught driving your vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, you face stiff penalties if you are convicted.

But not every person who police arrest for DUI is actually guilty of the crime. In fact, in many cases, the person has a medical condition that mimics being intoxicated, and this can – and does – lead to false drunk driving arrests.

Diabetes

It is not uncommon for a person who has diabetes to have periods where they are dealing with confusion, loss of coordination, and other similar symptoms of intoxication. However, it is not intoxication that is causing these issues but low blood sugar levels.

If the diabetes has progressed to where the person needs insulin, even just the delay of a meal can cause a bad reaction, leaving the person with impaired coordination, slurred speech, confusion, and even loss of consciousness – all the same things police look for when they have stopped a driver for suspicion of drunk driving.

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 Posted on September 06,2022 in Criminal Defense

The American criminal justice system is based on the principle that every defendant is innocent until proven guilty. This means that the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the person who has been charged with the crime is guilty of that crime. If the prosecutor cannot prove the required elements, then the jury must find the accused not guilty.

However, there are some cases where the person arrested for the crime is still acquitted even if the prosecutor was successful in proving their case. In these situations, a criminal defense attorney raises what is legally referred to as an “affirmative defense.”

What Is an Affirmative Defense?

An affirmative defense is one where the accused produces evidence with the goal of negating any criminal liability for the crime for which they have been arrested even if they actually committed the act. Instead of the burden of proof being on the prosecutor to prove that the defendant committed the crime, it is the defendant who must prove that they were justified or had some other excuse for committing the act and therefore should not be punished for it. The prosecutor is not required to disprove this type of defense.

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