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  1. <?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><rss xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:openSearch="http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/" xmlns:blogger="http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008" xmlns:georss="http://www.georss.org/georss" xmlns:gd="http://schemas.google.com/g/2005" xmlns:thr="http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0" version="2.0"><channel><atom:id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280</atom:id><lastBuildDate>Wed, 06 Mar 2024 07:28:34 +0000</lastBuildDate><category>San Diego DUI Attorney Challenges Marijuana DUI Laws</category><category>10 Most Hilarious Ways to Get a DUI</category><category>10 Scary Myths About the Law - Get the Facts</category><category>2010: The Year of the Ignition Interlock Device</category><category>6 DUI Myths — The Truth About DUI</category><category>6 Secrets Prosecutors Wish to Keep from DUI Offenders</category><category>Alcohol on Golf Courses - Woman Charged with DUI</category><category>Are Parents Liable for Underage Childrens DUI</category><category>Auto Insurance Premium Skyrocket after a DUI/DWI</category><category>Avoiding a DUI Charge</category><category>BAC CALCULATOR</category><category>Bad Drunk Driving Laws</category><category>Bad Drunk Driving Laws False Evidence and a Fading Constitution</category><category>Beer Distributors Say NO to Prop 19</category><category>Boating Under the Influence | BUI</category><category>CA: Pot Clubs Popping Up Like Weeds</category><category>Choosing a DUI Lawyer</category><category>Coming Soon: A Breathalyzer in Every Car?</category><category>Confession of a DUI Driver</category><category>Confession of a DUI Driver - I was Forced to Drink</category><category>Criminal Law - 6 Types of Drink Driving Offences</category><category>Cycle Law: Should Bikes Be Treated Like Cars?</category><category>DUI Attorneys - SR22 Insurance - DUI Laws</category><category>DUI BLOG: Nystagmus: “The Eye Test”</category><category>DUI Charges  Welcome Page DUI Charges goes on line</category><category>DUI Charges: Misdemeanor or Felony for Drunk Driving</category><category>DUI Charges: Underage Drinking at Halloween Parties</category><category>DUI Charges: Watch Out What You Put on Facebook</category><category>DUI Charges: When Homicide by DUI Doesn&#39;t Add Up</category><category>DUI Charges: Which States Have DUI Vehicle Forfeiture Law</category><category>DUI Expungement - How to Clear Your Record</category><category>DUI Facts: Tighten Moped Laws</category><category>DUI Lawyer</category><category>DUI Trial by Machine — But How Good Are the Machines</category><category>DUI has NO Right to Jury Trial?</category><category>DUI is a SCAM</category><category>DUI on a Horse  The Law Unbridled</category><category>DUII</category><category>DWAI</category><category>DWI</category><category>DWT should be as socially unacceptable as DUI | Stop Driving While Texting</category><category>Defining Highway - Defining “Highway” for Purposes of a DUI</category><category>Differences between DUI</category><category>Dixie Elixirs and Medibles — the patient’s choice for alternative MMJ treatment</category><category>Do Zero Tolerance DUI Laws for Minors Work</category><category>Doctor to open pot clinic in Kalamazoo MI to help patients</category><category>Don&#39;t Let Boating &#39;Under the Influence&#39; 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style=&quot;float: none;&quot;&gt;  &lt;div class=&quot;gel-content&quot;&gt;   &lt;div class=&quot;gel-pane gpagediv&quot;&gt;    The penalities for first-offense drunken driving vary by state. Here’s a rundown of the laws in all 50 states (BAC refers to blood alcohol content):&lt;br /&gt;
  2. &lt;b&gt;Alabama:&lt;/b&gt; Deferral programs for those who plead guilty. If program is successful, charges are dropped. In cases of conviction, probation and drug/alcohol monitoring are ordered. &lt;br /&gt;
  3. &lt;b&gt;Alaska:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory 72 hours in jail. &lt;br /&gt;
  4. &lt;b&gt;Arizona:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory 24 hours for first-time offense under 0.15% BAC (additional jail time for higher offenses). &lt;br /&gt;
  5. &lt;b&gt;Arkansas:&lt;/b&gt; One day jail time by statute, often served at time of arrest or community service is counted. &lt;br /&gt;
  6. &lt;b&gt;California:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time on first offense. Community service ordered for BAC above 0.15%. &lt;br /&gt;
  7. &lt;b&gt;Colorado:&lt;/b&gt; Five days of jail time, suspended in lieu of treatment and community service in cases where BAC is below 0.20%. &lt;br /&gt;
  8. &lt;b&gt;Connecticut:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time or fines unless the driver injures or kills someone. Conviction expunged after one year if driver completes alcohol education program. &lt;br /&gt;
  9. &lt;b&gt;Delaware:&lt;/b&gt; Drivers with BAC under 0.15% enroll in first-time offenders program. Upon completion, the conviction is erased. &lt;br /&gt;
  10. &lt;b&gt;Florida:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time in case of guilty pleas. Up to 50 hours of community service in lieu of incarceration. &lt;br /&gt;
  11. &lt;b&gt;Georgia:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory one day in jail. &lt;br /&gt;
  12. &lt;b&gt;Hawaii:&lt;/b&gt; No minimum jail time. Up to five days in jail, but community service in lieu of jail time is the norm.  &lt;br /&gt;
  13. &lt;b&gt;Idaho:&lt;/b&gt; Five days of jail time, converted to one day served for arrest and four days of community service. &lt;br /&gt;
  14. &lt;b&gt;Illinois:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time. Community service ordered in cases of high BAC or driving with child in the car. &lt;br /&gt;
  15. &lt;b&gt;Indiana:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time. Fines and fees.  &lt;br /&gt;
  16. &lt;b&gt;Iowa:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory 48 hours in jail or DUI weekend program. &lt;br /&gt;
  17. &lt;b&gt;Kansas:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory 48 hours in jail, sometimes substituted with 100 hours of community service. &lt;br /&gt;
  18. &lt;b&gt;Kentucky:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time unless the BAC is greater than 0.15%, which results in four-day jail sentence. Mandatory alcohol education program. &lt;br /&gt;
  19. &lt;b&gt;Louisiana:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory two days of jail time, but community service allowed in lieu of incarceration. &lt;br /&gt;
  20. &lt;b&gt;Maine:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time, but 48 hours of community service for BAC higher than 0.15% or if driver was exceeding the speed limit by more than 30 miles per hour. &lt;br /&gt;
  21. &lt;b&gt;Massachusetts:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time, but alcohol education program is mandatory. &lt;br /&gt;
  22. &lt;b&gt;Maryland:&lt;/b&gt; No minimum jail time; maximum time is one year. Mandatory community service in lieu of incarceration.  &lt;br /&gt;
  23. &lt;b&gt;Michigan&lt;/b&gt;: Up to 93 days in jail. Typical sentence is one day, with court-ordered probation and community service.  &lt;br /&gt;
  24. &lt;b&gt;Minnesota:&lt;/b&gt; Up to 60 days jail time, usually substituted with community service, fines and fees.  &lt;br /&gt;
  25. &lt;b&gt;Mississippi:&lt;/b&gt; No minimum, but no more than two days in jail on first offense. Mandatory alcohol assessment. &lt;br /&gt;
  26. &lt;b&gt;Missouri:&lt;/b&gt; No minimum, up to six months in jail. Usually probation and community service in lieu of incarceration. &lt;br /&gt;
  27. &lt;b&gt;Montana:&lt;/b&gt; Six months of jail time, suspended after 24 hours in jail on first-time offense.  &lt;br /&gt;
  28. &lt;b&gt;Nebraska:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time. Alcohol assessment program for those under BAC of 0.15%. BAC over 0.15% results in two days of jail time or 120 hours community service. &lt;br /&gt;
  29. &lt;b&gt;Nevada:&lt;/b&gt; Two days in jail or 96 hours of community service. &lt;br /&gt;
  30. &lt;b&gt;New Hampshire:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time, but mandatory 20-hour Driver Intervention Program. &lt;br /&gt;
  31. &lt;b&gt;New Jersey:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory 12 hours in jail, usually credited as time served following arrest. &lt;br /&gt;
  32. &lt;b&gt;New Mexico:&lt;/b&gt; One year probation and 24 hours community service. &lt;br /&gt;
  33. &lt;b&gt;New York:&lt;/b&gt; No minimum jail time. It is a four-year felony if driving drunk with a child in the car, even for first-time offenders.  &lt;br /&gt;
  34. &lt;b&gt;North Carolina:&lt;/b&gt; One day in jail, usually substituted with community service.  &lt;br /&gt;
  35. &lt;b&gt;North Dakota:&lt;/b&gt; Fines and mandatory alcohol evaluation. &lt;br /&gt;
  36. &lt;b&gt;Oklahoma:&lt;/b&gt; Five days in jail, often suspended to community service as part of a plea bargain. &lt;br /&gt;
  37. &lt;b&gt;Ohio:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time, but three-day mandatory treatment program. &lt;br /&gt;
  38. &lt;b&gt;Oregon:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time. Typical sentence is a diversion program that, if completed, results in the charge being dropped. &lt;br /&gt;
  39. &lt;b&gt;Pennsylvania:&lt;/b&gt; Probation for first-time offender, without verdict, which avoids conviction and jail time. &lt;br /&gt;
  40. &lt;b&gt;Rhode Island:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time. Ten to 60 hours of community service for BAC of 0.08% to 0.10%. Additional community service for higher levels.  &lt;br /&gt;
  41. &lt;b&gt;South Carolina:&lt;/b&gt; 48 hours of community service for BAC under 0.10%, 72 hours for BAC from 0.10% to 0.16%, and 30 days of community service for 0.16% and above. &lt;br /&gt;
  42. &lt;b&gt;South Dakota:&lt;/b&gt; No mandatory jail time. &lt;br /&gt;
  43. &lt;b&gt;Texas:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory 72 hours of jail time, suspended for time served in exchange for one year probation and 24 to 40 hours of community service. &lt;br /&gt;
  44. &lt;b&gt;Tennessee:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory two days in jail.  &lt;br /&gt;
  45. &lt;b&gt;Utah:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory 48 hours in jail, which can be substituted with community service or electronic tether at home. &lt;br /&gt;
  46. &lt;b&gt;Vermont:&lt;/b&gt; No minimum jail time. Community service in lieu of incarceration.  &lt;br /&gt;
  47. &lt;b&gt;Virginia:&lt;/b&gt; No minimum jail time. Five days in jail if BAC is greater than 0.15% or a child is in the car. &lt;br /&gt;
  48. &lt;b&gt;Washington:&lt;/b&gt; Mandatory one day in jail or 15 days at home on electronic tether.  &lt;br /&gt;
  49. &lt;b&gt;Washington, D.C.:&lt;/b&gt; Five days in jail if BAC is higher than 0.15%. &lt;br /&gt;
  50. &lt;b&gt;West Virginia:&lt;/b&gt; Two day in jail if BAC is higher than 0.15% or a child is in the car. &lt;br /&gt;
  51. &lt;b&gt;Wisconsin:&lt;/b&gt; No jail time since it is a civil matter on first arrest. Second offense is a mandatory five days in jail, but electronic tether is allowed. &lt;br /&gt;
  52. &lt;b&gt;Wyoming:&lt;/b&gt; No minimum but up to six months in jail. Fines in lieu of jail time. &lt;br /&gt;
  53. &lt;i&gt;Staff research by L.L. Brasier&lt;/i&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
  54. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;resource:&amp;nbsp; Detroit Free Press | freep.com</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2011/07/drunken-driving-laws-by-state-detroit.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>1</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-4876658891581040690</guid><pubDate>Wed, 09 Mar 2011 18:53:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2011-03-09T14:07:10.902-05:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">States Set Out to Define How High is Too High to Drive</category><title>States Set Out to Define How High is Too High to Drive</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1MTkVHgMmGNwYbxew_YDzYdlbzXZ3leQOc4XeSpbVnywfazfoCx5y4VqXcNeq9QDyG23HH0kYDUgAhG3o8nyzgBfLd3ntJf21Zxhlwam8SN6OLWBhh5KtcVpLp-Quu6wtuY9RY2UUE5g/s1600/potincar.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;244&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1MTkVHgMmGNwYbxew_YDzYdlbzXZ3leQOc4XeSpbVnywfazfoCx5y4VqXcNeq9QDyG23HH0kYDUgAhG3o8nyzgBfLd3ntJf21Zxhlwam8SN6OLWBhh5KtcVpLp-Quu6wtuY9RY2UUE5g/s320/potincar.JPG&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;In a dozen medi-pot states, there is a zero-tolerance policy for driving under the influence of any illegal drug, despite medical marijuana being legal in those states, thus the dichotomy that will not likely be resolved with any swift solutions. Many states utilize “per se” laws that have trended towards drivers facing criminal prosecution when &lt;i&gt;any &lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;amount of an illegal drug – or even a metabolite – is detected (metabolites are molecules that serve other functions and often don’t even intoxicate).&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  55. &lt;div&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;Not surprisingly, medi-pot friendly Colorado is seeking to actually define a legal amount of THC in the bloodstream of a driver; Colorado House Bill 11-1261 would set the technical limit of detection at five nanograms per milliliter of blood (one nanogram is equal to one billionth of a gram). In Ohio and Nevada, only two nanograms of THC are permitted in drivers.&amp;nbsp;In Washington State, House Bill 1648 (HB 1648) would allow a driver to have up to eight nanograms of THC per milliliter.&lt;br /&gt;
  56. &lt;div&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;But are even eight nanograms still too low to be held as the legal standard defining drugged driving under the influence of marijuana? Perhaps, as an international study on driving on marijuana issued in 2005 posited, drivers do not pose a crash risk until there are between 10 to 20 nanograms of THC in the bloodstream.&amp;nbsp;18 to 20 nanograms were determined to be the marijuana intoxication equivalent of the blood-alcohol content of .08, which is the legal limit for driving while drinking in the majority of U.S states.&lt;br /&gt;
  57. &lt;div&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;But is driving under the influence of 20 nanograms of THC – or even more – dangerous? Consider that in our 2009 coverage we looked at a report entitled “&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/misc/driving/driving.htm&quot;&gt;Marijuana and Actual Driving Performance&lt;/a&gt;,” released by the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in November 1993. The report flat out states marijuana is involved “much less often” than alcohol in vehicular accidents. And in the majority of cases where marijuana was involved in a crash, it’s no surprise to find the driver had been consuming alcohol as well. Included among the eye-opening conclusions of the study: “There is no evidence that marijuana, in current consumption patters, contributes substantially to the rate of vehicular accidents in America.”&lt;br /&gt;
  58. &lt;div&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;A study released in May 1998 by Adelaide University (in Southern Australia) found drivers who drank alcohol overestimated their performance quality, whereas those who smoked marijuana underestimated it. The evidence suggested alcohol encourages risky driving whereas pot actually promotes &lt;i&gt;cautious&lt;/i&gt; and &lt;i&gt;contemplative &lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;driving. Interestingly, the South Australian government made it difficult to obtain copies of the report in the months that followed, due to the controversy generated by the study’s pro-pot implications.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  59. &lt;div&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;Defense attorney George Bianchi told the &lt;i&gt;Seattle Weekly&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt; that while it’s hard for prosecutors to prove someone was actually stoned while driving based on THC blood levels, police still arrest many people on suspicion of driving while high on pot. Bianchi supports HB 1648 and thinks eight nanograms are “reasonable” and more importantly, it would prevent prosecutors from introducing carboxy-THC levels in court, a non-psychoactive metabolite in cannabis. In 2010 the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that the cannabis metabolite 11-carboxy-THC is not a Schedule 1 substance in a case involving a driver who killed a legally intoxicated pedestrian.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  60. &lt;div&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;Conversely, DUI defense attorney Diego Vargas said he opposes HB 1648’s attempting to define the THC nanogram limit of detection due to the wide range of variables that influence driving under the influence of marijuana and the obstacles in attempting to determine just how stoned – or stone-cold sober – a given driver was at the time of arrest.&lt;br /&gt;
  61. resource; HIGHTIMES.COM</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2011/03/hightimescom-states-set-out-to-define.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1MTkVHgMmGNwYbxew_YDzYdlbzXZ3leQOc4XeSpbVnywfazfoCx5y4VqXcNeq9QDyG23HH0kYDUgAhG3o8nyzgBfLd3ntJf21Zxhlwam8SN6OLWBhh5KtcVpLp-Quu6wtuY9RY2UUE5g/s72-c/potincar.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>2</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-5712494000015905175</guid><pubDate>Tue, 07 Dec 2010 18:39:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-12-07T13:40:51.163-05:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">How high is too high for driving Driving while stoned</category><title>How high is too high for driving? Driving while stoned</title><description>Even for those who believe marijuana has useful medical applications, we hope there is no debate about &lt;b&gt;driving while stoned.&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  62. &lt;br /&gt;
  63. But where do you draw the line?&lt;br /&gt;
  64. &lt;br /&gt;
  65. Colorado lawmakers next month should take up a plan to set safe limits of marijuana use for drivers.&lt;br /&gt;
  66. Certainly drivers can&#39;t be under the influence, but is it OK to have some pot in your system, just as the law allows drivers to have some alcohol in their system so long as it doesn&#39;t surpass certain levels?&lt;br /&gt;
  67. We think some sort of demarcation is smart and necessary in a state that allows tens of thousands of its residents to legally use marijuana as therapy. Right now, current state law amounts to a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to pot&#39;s psychoactive component in the bloodstream.&lt;br /&gt;
  68. &lt;br /&gt;
  69. The General Assembly&#39;s criminal and juvenile justice commission is recommending that Colorado law allow for traces of THC — the psychoactive component of marijuana — in the blood. As with alcohol, the law would delineate when too much of the substance is present to allow for safe driving.&lt;br /&gt;
  70. &lt;br /&gt;
  71. &lt;blockquote&gt;&quot;It will bring some clarity to the issue of whether you are or are not impaired under the influence of marijuana,&quot; state Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, told The Denver Post&#39;s John Ingold.&lt;/blockquote&gt;The commission&#39;s recommendation would allow a driver to have up to 5 nanograms per milliliter of blood, but even some members of the commission question that limit. Frequent smokers — like the medical marijuana users the law is poised to protect — have higher tolerances to the drug, making the 5 nanogram-limit potentially too restrictive.&lt;br /&gt;
  72. &lt;br /&gt;
  73. We admit that we aren&#39;t pot scientists, so we don&#39;t know what to make of the proposal. But Ingold cites accident figures that underscore our concern that some limit be set.&lt;br /&gt;
  74. &lt;br /&gt;
  75. In 2009, THC or other forms of marijuana were found in drivers killed in one in five accidents that involved drugs nationally, according to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration. In Colorado, THC or other forms of marijuana showed up in the bloodstreams of 26 of 312 drivers killed that year.&lt;br /&gt;
  76. &lt;br /&gt;
  77. As has often been the case since the advent of Colorado&#39;s medical marijuana laws, lawmakers must break relatively new ground. Beyond states with zero-tolerance policies, only a few, including Pennsylvania, use the 5 nanogram limit.&lt;br /&gt;
  78. &lt;br /&gt;
  79. Sean McAllister, an attorney involved in the commission&#39;s work, questions the 5 nanogram limit. But he also recommends that medical marijuana users not use the drug for four hours prior to driving.&lt;br /&gt;
  80. As with some prescription medications, medical marijuana is just too potent for safe driving.&lt;br /&gt;
  81. &lt;blockquote&gt;&quot;No responsible advocate of legalization believes that people should be driving high,&quot; McAllister said.&lt;/blockquote&gt;We hope the commission&#39;s recommendations find their way into a smart piece of legislation next session that not only addresses the rights of medical marijuana patients but the overall safety of motorists.&lt;br /&gt;
  82. resource: The Denver Post</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/12/editorial-how-high-is-too-high-for.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-5238251595081877962</guid><pubDate>Fri, 22 Oct 2010 22:59:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-10-22T19:05:56.328-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Dixie Elixirs and Medibles — the patient’s choice for alternative MMJ treatment</category><title>Dixie Elixirs &amp; Medibles — the patient’s choice for alternative MMJ treatment.</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;format_text&quot;&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgomDcqypYKKNm9vdhBheyPiUCbULgPMIgZ4Im9wCIiGv2xm4bl7uDJDc08DU9kxQSx0hhTCw_1DleCJsNE7WycmXJOlea5D4W0Tbt9pKRKy99cls4MtO625RJOcQVPy3_J_fJA1JCmyCE/s1600/dixireelixirs.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;400&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgomDcqypYKKNm9vdhBheyPiUCbULgPMIgZ4Im9wCIiGv2xm4bl7uDJDc08DU9kxQSx0hhTCw_1DleCJsNE7WycmXJOlea5D4W0Tbt9pKRKy99cls4MtO625RJOcQVPy3_J_fJA1JCmyCE/s400/dixireelixirs.JPG&quot; width=&quot;271&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;h2&gt;&amp;nbsp;IS THIS FOR REAL?&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;h2&gt;Dixie Elixirs – the patient’s choice for alternative MMJ treatment.&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;b&gt;Convenient, discreet and potent&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  83. Home grown in Colorado, Dixie Elixirs refreshing carbonated beverage provides an&lt;br /&gt;
  84. organic alternative for patients seeking a refreshing but equally potent alternative to&lt;br /&gt;
  85. smoke and tinctures, or carb and calorie loaded edibles.&lt;br /&gt;
  86. &lt;b&gt;Introduce your patients to an elevated MMJ experience&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  87. Formulated from a carefully cultivated blend of the finest Sativa-dominant buds,&lt;br /&gt;
  88. Dixie Elixirs delivers the potency that patients want in a soothing, sparkling beverage.&lt;br /&gt;
  89. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Colorado-grown to complement the Rocky Mountain lifestyle&lt;/li&gt;
  90. &lt;li&gt;Easy to enjoy with discretion&lt;/li&gt;
  91. &lt;li&gt;Consistently delicious, reliably potent&lt;/li&gt;
  92. &lt;li&gt;Relieves a wide range of symptoms&lt;/li&gt;
  93. &lt;li&gt;Use alone or to increase and enhance other MMJ medication&lt;/li&gt;
  94. &lt;li&gt;Carbonation delivers relief faster&lt;/li&gt;
  95. &lt;li&gt;12-ounce recyclable bottles in seven refreshing flavors: lemonade, sweet tea, pink lemonade, strawberry, orange, grape and root beer&lt;/li&gt;
  96. &lt;li&gt;Also available in extra-strength 1-ounce watermelon and spearmint “dew drop” bottles&lt;/li&gt;
  97. &lt;/ul&gt;&lt;h2&gt;TO ORDER: 1-866-928-1623 or &lt;a href=&quot;mailto:5280dixie@gmail.com&quot;&gt;Email Us&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipvyK4s9ywF980YMaqtqGTPQwqPCmkphIXJLhohrVZ4HOEXOv8-AH6nyA4MFhTr9j9l_tKt839tqjEc_QE7rhaoRJswyDenZ3F07n23LahoioHstfT8k2lFEYYK2EKmhOjHLmmoqYD4uY/s1600/dixireelixirs2.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;175&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipvyK4s9ywF980YMaqtqGTPQwqPCmkphIXJLhohrVZ4HOEXOv8-AH6nyA4MFhTr9j9l_tKt839tqjEc_QE7rhaoRJswyDenZ3F07n23LahoioHstfT8k2lFEYYK2EKmhOjHLmmoqYD4uY/s400/dixireelixirs2.JPG&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;h2&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://dixieelixirs.com/&quot;&gt;http://dixieelixirs.com/&lt;/a&gt;</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/10/dixie-elixirs-medibles-patients-choice.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgomDcqypYKKNm9vdhBheyPiUCbULgPMIgZ4Im9wCIiGv2xm4bl7uDJDc08DU9kxQSx0hhTCw_1DleCJsNE7WycmXJOlea5D4W0Tbt9pKRKy99cls4MtO625RJOcQVPy3_J_fJA1JCmyCE/s72-c/dixireelixirs.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-6381079683449630266</guid><pubDate>Tue, 19 Oct 2010 15:10:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-10-19T11:10:08.184-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Are Parents Liable for Underage Childrens DUI</category><title>Are Parents Liable for Underage Childrens DUI?</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4M2eJQzDgTZeZqkVmoMEoLCwLFY2eldNkQNKalp_5XHmki6pL1MPx-JMna5mAcMTg6mHn4nIssa6EBp5lagQUN6yeMTvBgQ0AFlgsKgg9oS0Rogh5nqMS6fcesT6A24RinmUQP-8KZgc/s1600/underage+drinking.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;154&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4M2eJQzDgTZeZqkVmoMEoLCwLFY2eldNkQNKalp_5XHmki6pL1MPx-JMna5mAcMTg6mHn4nIssa6EBp5lagQUN6yeMTvBgQ0AFlgsKgg9oS0Rogh5nqMS6fcesT6A24RinmUQP-8KZgc/s200/underage+drinking.JPG&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  98. Driving under the influence (DUI) has become a national problem that various states have tried to address. Many states particularly go after drunken drivers who are under-aged and have enacted zero tolerance laws to combat the problem. In zero tolerance states, the legal BAC for under 21 drivers may be as low as .00. Parents of under-aged DUI drivers may also face penalties under certain circumstances.&lt;br /&gt;
  99. &lt;br /&gt;
  100. &lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Drinking and Driving Under 21&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  101. The legal age for drinking in most states is 21. These same states legally permit drivers to be as young as 16. Intoxication and youth can often be a deadly combination when it comes to operating motor vehicles. Although under-aged drivers represent approximately six percent of licensed drivers in the U.S., these same drivers cause a disproportionate of car accidents and fatalities which are often fueled by alcohol consumption.&lt;br /&gt;
  102. &lt;br /&gt;
  103. &lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;BAC Limits&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  104. In 2000, Congress passed legislation requiring most states to set their BAC limit at 0.8 percent as the presumptive level of intoxication. This basically means that a driver whose BAC limit is .08 percent or above is presumed to be intoxicated, thus violating any state DUI or DWI laws. Most states have since implemented the requested BAC limit for per se enforcement; however, some states penalize DUI no matter the BAC.&lt;br /&gt;
  105. &lt;br /&gt;
  106. Some states impose lower BAC for drivers under 21 years of age. Therefore, teen-aged drivers do not have to reach the 0.8 level to violate state DUI laws.&lt;br /&gt;
  107. &lt;br /&gt;
  108. &lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Zero Tolerance and Implied Consent Laws&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  109. In zero tolerance states, drivers under 21 years of age are prohibited from drinking and driving. Driving in this case means operating any motor vehicle whether it is a car, a motorcycle, a motor boat, or in some cases, a motor operated lawn mower. Whereas the average BAC limit for suspected drunk drivers is .08 percent, some states set the BAC limit as low as .00 or .02. A .00 BAC means that absolutely no trace of alcohol should be in the blood. Even one drink would be a violation.&lt;br /&gt;
  110. &lt;br /&gt;
  111. Some zero tolerance states also have implied consent laws. Implied consent basically means that by operating a motor vehicle such as a car, a driver gives implied consent to any required blood alcohol testing to determine intoxication levels. In this case, an under-aged driver is legally required to submit to a breathalyzer or blood test.&lt;br /&gt;
  112. &lt;br /&gt;
  113. Zero tolerance laws may carry enhanced penalties that include administrative penalties such as license suspension or revocation; and criminal penalties such as actual jail time, accompanying fines and/or community service. If the violation occurs on school property, the violator may also be subject to school suspension. Repeat violations can result in a permanent revocation of the violator&#39;s license.&lt;br /&gt;
  114. &lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  115. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Parental Liability&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  116. In some zero tolerance states, &lt;b&gt;parents may be held liable if their under-aged child gets a DUI&lt;/b&gt; and the parents provided the alcohol or intoxicating substance (in cases such as hosting an under-aged party). Parental liability may arise simply for allowing the under-aged driver use of the family car. Under the theory of &quot;negligent entrustment&quot; parents may be liable for an under-aged DUI driver if the parents allowed the use of the car when they knew or had reason to know their child had a history of alcohol or drug problems or prior DUIs.&lt;br /&gt;
  117. &lt;br /&gt;
  118. Where states allow parental liability for their child&#39;s DUI, the parents may be subject to civil lawsuits or criminal penalties if they provided the alcohol.&lt;br /&gt;
  119. &lt;br /&gt;
  120. &lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Talk with an Attorney&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  121. If your child has been charged with a DUI, you may also be liable if you supplied the alcohol or entrusted your car when you had reason to suspect your child of drinking. Talk with an attorney to protect against possible penalties.&lt;br /&gt;
  122. resource:&amp;nbsp; http://www.drunkdrivinglawyers.com/resources/dui-dwi/dui-laws-penalties/can-i-be-liable-if-my-&lt;br /&gt;
  123. underage-child-gets-a-dui</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/10/are-parents-liable-for-underage.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4M2eJQzDgTZeZqkVmoMEoLCwLFY2eldNkQNKalp_5XHmki6pL1MPx-JMna5mAcMTg6mHn4nIssa6EBp5lagQUN6yeMTvBgQ0AFlgsKgg9oS0Rogh5nqMS6fcesT6A24RinmUQP-8KZgc/s72-c/underage+drinking.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-8330570303096732404</guid><pubDate>Tue, 19 Oct 2010 01:58:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-10-18T21:58:55.917-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Marijuana DUI Charges: What to Expect</category><title>Marijuana DUI Charges: What to Expect</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDAQb57vtOCHynCLiSbL550-WQ4NdDlm_owadxizVPjO-i5iDmogR_QaGJDvDgL99OoECUEFm8lpqCtH-OB2x72N7f3nch9Xvi30EvTWJqOezQ20t8687Z5AcCHLL5bfSL6SwSpWQjtr8/s1600/mjdui.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;209&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDAQb57vtOCHynCLiSbL550-WQ4NdDlm_owadxizVPjO-i5iDmogR_QaGJDvDgL99OoECUEFm8lpqCtH-OB2x72N7f3nch9Xvi30EvTWJqOezQ20t8687Z5AcCHLL5bfSL6SwSpWQjtr8/s320/mjdui.JPG&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;Despite the fact that there is no accurate chemical test to prove that you were &lt;b&gt;under the influence of marijuana while driving&lt;/b&gt;, you can still be accused of a marijuana DUI. When this occurs, the penalties are similar to those of a DUI involving alcohol. They vary from state to state, but in most cases, it is a misdemeanor charge with several possible penalties.&lt;br /&gt;
  124. &lt;br /&gt;
  125. What To Expect When You Are Pulled Over&lt;br /&gt;
  126. &lt;br /&gt;
  127. In most cases, you will be initially targeted by police purely by your driving pattern, just like with a DUI that involves alcohol. Another factor that will enter into the decision to charge you with marijuana DUI is your appearance, such as whether you have bloodshot eyes, dilated pupils, an abnormally relaxed attitude, and the smell of marijuana.&lt;br /&gt;
  128. &lt;br /&gt;
  129. You will likely be given a field sobriety test, and will also need to submit to a chemical test using either urine or blood. However, such tests can only reveal whether you have used marijuana in the recent past since it stays in your system for days. Therefore, all of these factors must be used together in order to accuse you of marijuana DUI since a chemical test alone does not usually mean much in a court of law.&lt;br /&gt;
  130. &lt;br /&gt;
  131. Penalties for Marijuana DUI&lt;br /&gt;
  132. &lt;br /&gt;
  133. The consequences of receiving a marijuana DUI may sound familiar, as they are nearly the same as if you had received a DUI involving alcohol. You will likely lose your driver&#39;s license right away, typically for a period of six months to a year for a first time offense. This time period varies by state, however. Jail time is also a very real consequence, as is probation.&lt;br /&gt;
  134. &lt;br /&gt;
  135. Of course, you will be charged with fines, which also tend to vary by state. Not only will you need to spend a lot of money when you get a marijuana DUI, but you can expect to use up your free time, as well. You may be requested to complete some hours of community service and attend classes that deal with drug abuse issues. &lt;br /&gt;
  136. Contact a Lawyer To Fight Marijuana DUI Charges&lt;br /&gt;
  137. &lt;br /&gt;
  138. If you have received a marijuana DUI, it is important to contact a lawyer right away. In many cases, the lack of accurate chemical testing for this drug may be beneficial to you, especially if it is the main evidence that the police officers have against you. Finding a good lawyer to defend you can mean the difference between acquiring marijuana DUI charges and keeping your record clean.&lt;br /&gt;
  139. resource:&amp;nbsp; http://www.drunkdrivinglawyers.com/resources/dui-dwi/dui-laws-penalties/facing-marijuana-dui-charges-&lt;br /&gt;
  140. what-expect</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/10/marijuana-dui-charges-what-to-expect.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDAQb57vtOCHynCLiSbL550-WQ4NdDlm_owadxizVPjO-i5iDmogR_QaGJDvDgL99OoECUEFm8lpqCtH-OB2x72N7f3nch9Xvi30EvTWJqOezQ20t8687Z5AcCHLL5bfSL6SwSpWQjtr8/s72-c/mjdui.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-372680054206548138</guid><pubDate>Sun, 17 Oct 2010 14:55:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-10-17T10:55:51.088-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Under the Influence of Prescription Drugs Hard to Prove</category><title>Under the Influence of Prescription Drugs Hard to Prove</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7pRbh7eiWqvxm9tDMnpAQLaVefzoIVULtmjQm01mjXVu3-ZnHEbF2pfMp-EBPm_YIqg-gbvwFVk3BP4noyWospb8Wv-OAM8tOzXekLFmr3-QP3zQkyNrDtOEepGhYAytBA9HOgsl6-qs/s1600/prescription+drugs.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7pRbh7eiWqvxm9tDMnpAQLaVefzoIVULtmjQm01mjXVu3-ZnHEbF2pfMp-EBPm_YIqg-gbvwFVk3BP4noyWospb8Wv-OAM8tOzXekLFmr3-QP3zQkyNrDtOEepGhYAytBA9HOgsl6-qs/s1600/prescription+drugs.JPG&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;As illegal &lt;b&gt;prescription drug&lt;/b&gt; use soars, the number of cases of driving &lt;b&gt;under the influence&lt;/b&gt; in which the substance is a prescription drug rather than alcohol is rising steadily, authorities say.&lt;br /&gt;
  141. &lt;br /&gt;
  142. But prosecuting and obtaining convictions against suspects charged with DUI involving prescription drugs can be a challenge.&lt;br /&gt;
  143. &lt;br /&gt;
  144. Many states, including Florida, do not require a test to quantify the amount of drugs in a person&#39;s body in a DUI case, and impairment is difficult to prove.&lt;br /&gt;
  145. &lt;br /&gt;
  146. &quot;What we and other states have run into historically is that there is a well-developed system to quantify the amount of alcohol in the human body,&quot; said Rob Parker, a Brevard County, Fla., prosecutor.&lt;br /&gt;
  147. &lt;br /&gt;
  148. However, &quot;when you have oxycodone or an opiate, we do not have a well-developed way to quantify the amount of drugs so that a jury can then compare that value to a standard established as an unlawful when operating an automobile.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  149. &lt;br /&gt;
  150. Parker prosecuted a man charged with four counts of DUI after a crash in Melbourne in 2007. Minutes after the accident, a police officer observed that the 33-year-old driver&#39;s eyes were bloodshot, his eyelids droopy and his speech mumbled. A blood sample from the driver tested positive for the presence of prescription drugs.&lt;br /&gt;
  151. &lt;br /&gt;
  152. &quot;The jury heard all of that and could not conclude that he was DUI with drugs beyond reasonable doubt,&quot; Parker said.&lt;br /&gt;
  153. &lt;br /&gt;
  154. The jury acquitted the driver of the DUI charges in August.&lt;br /&gt;
  155. &lt;br /&gt;
  156. A DUI charge is the same whether the suspect is accused of driving while influenced by alcohol or drugs.&lt;br /&gt;
  157. &lt;br /&gt;
  158. In Florida, the charge can be proved in two ways: a blood alcohol content of .08 or higher, or if the driver demonstrates he is under the influence of alcohol or a drug that impairs his normal faculties.&lt;br /&gt;
  159. &lt;br /&gt;
  160. The second is not so cut and dried.&lt;br /&gt;
  161. &lt;br /&gt;
  162. Law enforcement has limited means to prove impairment. Field sobriety tests are one tool. The state also sometimes relies on drug recognition experts (DREs), police officers who have completed specialized training in detecting impairment due to drugs.&lt;br /&gt;
  163. &lt;br /&gt;
  164. Michelle Perlman, misdemeanor division chief for the Brevard State Attorney&#39;s office, said her office recommends law enforcement agencies get a DRE to the scene as soon as possible if a suspected DUI involves drugs.&lt;br /&gt;
  165. &lt;br /&gt;
  166. &quot;This cannot usually be conclusively diagnosed by the average police officer,&quot; she said.&lt;br /&gt;
  167. &lt;br /&gt;
  168. There are about a dozen DREs in Brevard, where more than 2,000 people were charged with operating a vehicle under the influence in 2009. As is common around the country, Brevard does not separately track DUIs involving drugs.&lt;br /&gt;
  169. &lt;br /&gt;
  170. Cpl. Wendy Wheeler, who heads the DUI unit at the Brevard County Sheriff&#39;s Office and who is a certified expert, said it can take three to six months for an officer to become a DRE.&lt;br /&gt;
  171. &lt;br /&gt;
  172. &quot;The program is real intense,&quot; she said.&lt;br /&gt;
  173. &lt;br /&gt;
  174. Another important tool is a patrol car dashboard camera that can record impaired drivers. But not all police vehicles have them.&lt;br /&gt;
  175. &lt;br /&gt;
  176. When cases go to trial, a lot is up to the officer and the attorney, Perlman said.&lt;br /&gt;
  177. &lt;br /&gt;
  178. &quot;I do think that we see more difficulty in obtaining guilty verdicts on drug DUIs and that is probably because we are unable to prove the amount of drug in the person&#39;s system or the precise time when it was consumed,&quot; Perlman said. &quot;I think if we can show a quantitative analysis, we will get a lot more plea deals.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  179. &lt;br /&gt;
  180. Florida law does not require reporting the quantity of a drug in a driver&#39;s body in DUIs. But the Florida Department of Law Enforcement has started to conduct quantitative tests for drugs like cannabis and prescribed drugs like Xanax, Valium and Ativan and the date-rape drug GHB.&lt;br /&gt;
  181. &lt;br /&gt;
  182. &quot;We will continue to add quantitative tests for additional drugs,&quot; said Heather Smith, an FDLE spokeswoman.&lt;br /&gt;
  183. &lt;br /&gt;
  184. She said law enforcement agencies also have the option to seek similar testing done by private labs &quot;if the drug is one that FDLE does not currently quantify.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  185. &lt;br /&gt;
  186. Defense Attorney Steve Casanova, who handles scores of local DUI cases, said traces of some drugs can stay in a person&#39;s system for as long as 30 days.&lt;br /&gt;
  187. &lt;br /&gt;
  188. &quot;How do you prove it was affecting him at the time of the arrest?&quot; Casanova said.&lt;br /&gt;
  189. &lt;br /&gt;
  190. In other cases, the suspect may have been prescribed the drug legally.&lt;br /&gt;
  191. &lt;br /&gt;
  192. One state quantifying drug usage in DUI cases is Nevada, where the statute mentions specific quantities of some drugs that have to be present in a person&#39;s blood or urine.&lt;br /&gt;
  193. &lt;br /&gt;
  194. But even when the presence of drugs can be quantified, the effects they have on different people may not be the same, said Joanne Michaels, program director for the National Traffic Law Center in Virginia.&lt;br /&gt;
  195. &lt;br /&gt;
  196. &quot;What they do in different amounts in different people is still being studied,&quot; she said. &quot;Toxicologists are raising concerns because it can be an issue.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  197. resource:&amp;nbsp; http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-10-17-dui-drugs_N.htm</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/10/under-influence-of-prescription-drugs.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7pRbh7eiWqvxm9tDMnpAQLaVefzoIVULtmjQm01mjXVu3-ZnHEbF2pfMp-EBPm_YIqg-gbvwFVk3BP4noyWospb8Wv-OAM8tOzXekLFmr3-QP3zQkyNrDtOEepGhYAytBA9HOgsl6-qs/s72-c/prescription+drugs.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-8010651134255529634</guid><pubDate>Sun, 26 Sep 2010 14:19:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-09-26T10:30:50.987-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Avoiding a DUI Charge</category><title>Avoiding a DUI Charge</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiNxH37vydc2vIgybX4M4P_zSaWiCbVMGAuZQgMYbuI70Yf96CzgNXupBc0jszOKYQUPAfqjo8HnqSUwyqbWdCiR52-Z_F97NMoJZkCarWErjBdfgrhJnxi2lCmUD2hZwkcnuL0rC9CIM/s1600/avoidadui.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;220&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiNxH37vydc2vIgybX4M4P_zSaWiCbVMGAuZQgMYbuI70Yf96CzgNXupBc0jszOKYQUPAfqjo8HnqSUwyqbWdCiR52-Z_F97NMoJZkCarWErjBdfgrhJnxi2lCmUD2hZwkcnuL0rC9CIM/s320/avoidadui.JPG&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;Ever been pulled over on a DUI charge? Yes this happens but you can beat the system with the help of a criminal defense lawyer.&lt;br /&gt;
  198. &lt;br /&gt;
  199. &lt;iframe align=&quot;left&quot; frameborder=&quot;0&quot; marginheight=&quot;0&quot; marginwidth=&quot;0&quot; scrolling=&quot;no&quot; src=&quot;http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sexforwomen09-20&amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;asins=1581606176&amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;f=ifr&quot; style=&quot;height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;&quot;&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;Driving under the influence or DUI requires fast action on your part so that your license will not be suspended. The first thing you have to do of course is hire a lawyer so you can immediately be released from jail.&lt;br /&gt;
  200. &lt;br /&gt;
  201. In some cases, this does not happen because you are released on your own recognizance. However, some will require you to post bail which your lawyer can take care of.&lt;br /&gt;
  202. &lt;br /&gt;
  203. Once released, it is now time to address this issue. In some states, a DUI charge generates 2 separate cases. The first is filed with the Department of Motor Vehicles while the other is a criminal court case. When faced with this problem, you have to face these charges within ten days from the date of the arrest.&lt;br /&gt;
  204. &lt;br /&gt;
  205. Just like any other criminal case, this begins with your arraignment. You will be asked to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty.&lt;br /&gt;
  206. &lt;br /&gt;
  207. A DUI is a mistake that can plague you for life &amp;amp; make your future miserable . From super high insurance rates to trouble passing a simple employment background check, those three letters will mark you as sure as if you had them written in red ink on your forehead. Figuring out how to beat a DUI is imperative if you are to get on with your life. Luckily, there are things you can do to completely erase or seriously minimize the damage a DUI does to your driving AND criminal records. &lt;br /&gt;
  208. &lt;br /&gt;
  209. When a charged person contacts a legal representative chances are they know very little about what happens next. Unless they have been charged before, they are typically unaware of the details which must be attended to following the arrest.&lt;br /&gt;
  210. &lt;br /&gt;
  211. Chances are, your criminal defense lawyer will tell you to plead not guilty to these charges. This will give him or her time to review the facts of the case so your defense will be established.&lt;br /&gt;
  212. &lt;br /&gt;
  213. There are many strategies available that your lawyer can use to you get out of a DUI and have proven to be successful.&lt;br /&gt;
  214. &lt;br /&gt;
  215. Your lawyer may for example argue lack of probably cause for the initial stop. This means there was no reason at all to stop you and if that is the case, submit a petition to suppress any evidence that the police obtained when you were pulled over.&lt;br /&gt;
  216. &lt;br /&gt;
  217. It is also possible to argue faulty of unreliable BAC results. The BAC stands for blood alcohol test which is used to test if the person&#39;s alcohol level has reached the maximum limit which makes him or her unsafe to drive a vehicle.&lt;br /&gt;
  218. &lt;br /&gt;
  219. The results could be faulty if your lawyer can prove that the test was not properly administered, the equipment used was not properly maintained or you have a medical condition that may have an impact on the reliability of the test.&lt;br /&gt;
  220. &lt;br /&gt;
  221. Another tactic is to attack the credibility of the arresting officer. If your lawyer is able to question the police officer and prove there are inconsistencies in their testimony compared with the police report they filed, you just might have a chance of getting a not guilty verdict.&lt;br /&gt;
  222. &lt;br /&gt;
  223. But if things are not working in your favor and everything was done by the book, then your criminal defense lawyer may advise you to accept a favorable plea agreement. Doing so may get you reduced charges or sentencing concessions with the district attorney.&lt;br /&gt;
  224. &lt;br /&gt;
  225. If you don&#39;t want to negotiate and decide to gamble in court and lose, then you can try to appeal the court&#39;s decision. If you don&#39;t, there will likely be an increase in your insurance cost, limits on employment options and you will now have a permanent record.&lt;br /&gt;
  226. &lt;br /&gt;
  227. Hiring a criminal defense lawyer is the only way to get out of a DUI charge. After all, there are circumstances which you can argue so that you name will not be included in the criminal database system.&lt;br /&gt;
  228. &lt;br /&gt;
  229. resource:http://society.ezinemark.com/beating-a-dui-charge-168fea8eb05.html&lt;br /&gt;
  230. &lt;br /&gt;
  231. Precautions for DUI Arrest&lt;br /&gt;
  232. &lt;br /&gt;
  233. First Precaution:&lt;br /&gt;
  234. &lt;br /&gt;
  235. Buy a cologne or perfume and then put it in the glove box of your car. You should take care of one thing that the cologne or perfume needs to be much more expensive since the cheaper brands you can get at Wal-mart tend to wear off quickly and are not as much effective as the expensive perfumes are. The whole purpose behind using the cologne or perfume is to mask the scent of the alcohol in your vehicle as well as on your person.&lt;br /&gt;
  236. &lt;br /&gt;
  237. After you have been drinking preferably use a spray bottle to apply the cologne to yourself from head to toe. Before you drive a vehicle make sure that you have sprayed the cologne around the interior of the vehicle to mask the scent in the vehicle. dui_precautions&lt;br /&gt;
  238. &lt;br /&gt;
  239. Second Precaution:&lt;br /&gt;
  240. &lt;br /&gt;
  241. Always make sure that you have some breath aids in your car at all times. There is no need to skimp on price here either. What you have to do is to buy some gum or mints that are fairly strong and will actually work like nu-breath or something similar to that.&lt;br /&gt;
  242. &lt;br /&gt;
  243. These breath mints will help you in a way that they will not only mask the scent of the alcohol on your breath, but will also help to slightly slur your speech due to the sucking and chewing action. Those people who have been consuming alcohol will typically have slurred speech patterns.&lt;br /&gt;
  244. &lt;br /&gt;
  245. So when the officer stop you to investigate he will have a problem in judging that either the slurred speech pattern is due to alcohol consumption or it is because you are sucking or chewing on a breath mint.&lt;br /&gt;
  246. &lt;br /&gt;
  247. Third Precaution:&lt;br /&gt;
  248. &lt;br /&gt;
  249. Before driving your car always spray the interior of your car with an air freshener. Here again I must tell you to use a more expensive air freshener then you would normally use. The air freshener should be a spray air freshener and it should not be the one of those scented pine trees that you hang from your rearview mirror.&lt;br /&gt;
  250. &lt;br /&gt;
  251. If you use all three of the above suggestions in combination as precautions for DUI arrest it will help you to greatly reduce your chances of being arrested for DUI. If the investigating officer would have just the slightest hint of alcohol on you or in your vehicle during a routine traffic stop, it can turn into a DUI arrest. As said by Ben Franklin “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”.&lt;br /&gt;
  252. resource: http://www.dwiblog.org/2009/05/three-simple-precautions-to-reduce-your-chances-of-a&lt;br /&gt;
  253. -dui-arrest/</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/09/beating-dui-charge.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiNxH37vydc2vIgybX4M4P_zSaWiCbVMGAuZQgMYbuI70Yf96CzgNXupBc0jszOKYQUPAfqjo8HnqSUwyqbWdCiR52-Z_F97NMoJZkCarWErjBdfgrhJnxi2lCmUD2hZwkcnuL0rC9CIM/s72-c/avoidadui.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-4979890842044943762</guid><pubDate>Mon, 20 Sep 2010 00:33:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-09-19T20:33:55.542-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">What Not to Say When Pulled Over by a Cop</category><title>What Not to Say When Pulled Over by a Cop</title><description>In what he calls an &quot;educational video&quot; that&#39;s widely circulated on YouTube, comedian Chris Rock offers advice on what to do when you get pulled over for a traffic violation.&lt;br /&gt;
  254. &lt;object height=&quot;344&quot; width=&quot;425&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;movie&quot; value=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/XujaB4HkBgE?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;color1=0xe1600f&amp;amp;color2=0xfebd01&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/XujaB4HkBgE?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;color1=0xe1600f&amp;amp;color2=0xfebd01&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; width=&quot;425&quot; height=&quot;344&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  255. &quot;Obey the law&quot; he says. &quot;Stop immediately&quot; and &quot;stay in your car with your hands on the wheel.&quot; Finally, &quot;if your woman is mad at you, leave her at home. There&#39;s nothing she&#39;d like to see more than you getting your [you-know-what] kicked.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  256. &lt;br /&gt;
  257. It&#39;s a dead-on spoof of a hard truth: Respect authority. If you don&#39;t, you increase the odds of a pricey ticket.&lt;br /&gt;
  258. &lt;br /&gt;
  259. &quot;Everything in that video is absolutely true,&quot; said Sgt. Matthew Koep of the South Plainfield, N.J., Police Department. &quot;It&#39;s funny, but it&#39;s accurate.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  260. &lt;br /&gt;
  261. Citizens who are generally law-abiding are likely to come into contact with the police only under two circumstances: If you&#39;re a crime victim or you get pulled over for a traffic violation.&lt;br /&gt;
  262. &lt;br /&gt;
  263. Police officers are not out to make your life miserable, but to make sure you&#39;re following the rules of the road and not endangering yourself or those around you.&lt;br /&gt;
  264. &lt;br /&gt;
  265. With a few exceptions, and an egregious traffic violation is top among them, cops aren&#39;t mandated to write tickets. Most would rather send you on your way with a friendly warning -- that can save you time and money.&lt;br /&gt;
  266. &lt;br /&gt;
  267. But handle the situation with an aggressive or arrogant attitude and you can expect to squeeze an expensive court date into your busy schedule.&lt;br /&gt;
  268. &lt;b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  269. &lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  270. &lt;b&gt;Play Nice&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  271. &lt;br /&gt;
  272. First rule: don&#39;t argue.&lt;br /&gt;
  273. &lt;br /&gt;
  274. &quot;I get this all the time,&quot; said Karen Rittorno, a nine-year veteran with the Chicago Police Department. &quot;&#39;What are you stopping me for? I didn&#39;t do nothing.&#39; If they try to take charge of the traffic stop, they&#39;re not going to get out of it without a ticket,&quot; she said. &quot;We ask the questions, not them.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  275. &lt;br /&gt;
  276. Accept that the police have caught you doing something that&#39;s against the law, such as speeding or gliding through a stop sign.&lt;br /&gt;
  277. &lt;br /&gt;
  278. &quot;All we do is react to what people do when you pull them over,&quot; said Dennis Fanning, a homicide detective and veteran officer with the Los Angeles Police Department. &quot;We don&#39;t instigate the stuff, but we will react to you. The situation will escalate or de-escalate depending on how that person reacts.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  279. &lt;br /&gt;
  280. To argue with cops is akin to calling them idiots. Don&#39;t do that. &quot;That&#39;s implying that I pulled you over for no reason and that bothers me,&quot; Koep said.&lt;br /&gt;
  281. &lt;b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  282. &lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  283. &lt;b&gt;Keep It Honest&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  284. &lt;br /&gt;
  285. Don&#39;t lie, either. Cops are trained to note the human characteristics of lying, including twitching and looking to the left, and they know the right questions to ask to suss out the truth.&lt;br /&gt;
  286. &lt;br /&gt;
  287. Fanning estimates that nine out of 10 people lie to him. &quot;It&#39;s an attack on our intelligence,&quot; he said.&lt;br /&gt;
  288. &lt;br /&gt;
  289. Moreover, the truth can set you free. Koep recalled an incident when he pulled a young guy over for speeding.&lt;br /&gt;
  290. &lt;br /&gt;
  291. &quot;He looks straight at me and says, &#39;You know, officer, I wasn&#39;t even paying attention. I just had the best date of my life. I just met my future bride. I&#39;m just on cloud nine right now.&#39;&lt;br /&gt;
  292. &lt;br /&gt;
  293. &quot;The guy was completely serious,&quot; Koep said. &quot;How are you going to write that guy up after that? Who makes that kind of stuff up?&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  294. &lt;br /&gt;
  295. Of course, don&#39;t use pejoratives when addressing the police, unless you&#39;re eager for a ticket. But other words may backfire, too. Rittorno works in a crime-ridden section of Chicago where the majority of people she pulls over for traffic violations don&#39;t have licenses or insurance, she said.&lt;br /&gt;
  296. &lt;br /&gt;
  297. &quot;So I get a lot of, &#39;I&#39;m sorry, baby. I didn&#39;t mean it, sweetheart,&#39;&quot; she said. &quot;I hate being called &#39;baby&#39; or &#39;sweetheart.&#39; I&#39;m &#39;officer&#39; to you.&#39;&#39;&lt;br /&gt;
  298. &lt;br /&gt;
  299. The police don&#39;t like being talked over, either. &quot;Be polite,&quot; said Chicago Officer Mike Thomas. &quot;You have your rights as a citizen, too, but it doesn&#39;t do you any good to talk while he&#39;s talking.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  300. &lt;br /&gt;
  301. Cops know that people are nervous when they get pulled over, and they expect a certain amount of jumpiness when they approach a car. Rittorno even admitted she&#39;s intimidated in the same situation. &quot;I&#39;m the police and I get scared if I get pulled over,&quot; she said.&lt;br /&gt;
  302. &lt;br /&gt;
  303. But did you know they&#39;re on edge, too? You know who they are, but they don&#39;t know whether you&#39;re a good guy or a bad guy. &quot;The only thing on his mind when he approaches you is safety,&quot; Thomas said. &quot;You know you don&#39;t have a gun in your lap, but the officer doesn&#39;t know it.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  304. &lt;br /&gt;
  305. Rittorno, for one, said she assumes everyone has a gun. &quot;I&#39;m always on 10,&quot; she said, referring to her high level of vigilance. &quot;I take it down depending on their demeanor or what I see.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  306. &lt;br /&gt;
  307. &lt;br /&gt;
  308. &lt;b&gt;Stay Calm&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  309. &lt;br /&gt;
  310. When those headlights go on, it&#39;s best to pull the car to the right, stay in the car, turn the interior lights on if it&#39;s dark and put your hands on the steering wheel.&lt;br /&gt;
  311. &lt;br /&gt;
  312. Don&#39;t make any quick movements, and don&#39;t turn to grab your purse or put your hands in your pocket or under your seat to retrieve your license -- until the officer instructs you to. Then, do it slowly.&lt;br /&gt;
  313. &lt;br /&gt;
  314. Don&#39;t move to open the glove box either, until directed. And do that slowly, too. Let the police shine a light inside the box before you reach in. Many criminals hide guns in glove boxes.&lt;br /&gt;
  315. &lt;br /&gt;
  316. &quot;What&#39;s going to cause the situation to get worse is for the fear factor to rise in that officer,&quot; Koep said. &quot;The officer is more likely to cut you a break as long as you can reduce that fear. …If you&#39;re friendly with me, not arguing or denying what happened, that lowers the fear factor and will make me a lot more cooperative with you.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  317. &lt;br /&gt;
  318. Don&#39;t boast about who you know, either. That can infuriate cops. They consider it a veiled threat to their livelihoods. Fortunately, most municipalities have laws in place to insure that an officer is not fired or reprimanded for ticketing, say, the mayor&#39;s daughter.&lt;br /&gt;
  319. &lt;br /&gt;
  320. Finally, never try to buy off a cop. &quot;In those instances where they&#39;ve offered me a bribe,&quot; Fanning said. &quot;I loved making those arrests.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  321. &lt;br /&gt;
  322. Jennifer Waters is a MarketWatch reporter, based in Chicago.</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/09/what-not-to-say-when-pulled-over-by-cop.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-3031708600515044588</guid><pubDate>Sat, 18 Sep 2010 00:16:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-09-17T20:16:20.133-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Beer Distributors Say NO to Prop 19</category><title>Beer Distributors Say NO to Prop 19</title><description>&lt;table cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; class=&quot;tr-caption-container&quot; style=&quot;float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;&quot;&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;
  323. &lt;tr&gt;&lt;td style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXM0XCiLDXzd-7chSjfGGRnCOHfLnWMjwZV45a0aWqWn-GJ0lUziLW-Bns6FmvCqXIaYjL5YkwntXnWN3U_XYVh9kIq5rGHstB4sFKYOI11pKd-lBxUaiQKRAE3tegy4tPHZjgfsxsdck/s1600/solution.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXM0XCiLDXzd-7chSjfGGRnCOHfLnWMjwZV45a0aWqWn-GJ0lUziLW-Bns6FmvCqXIaYjL5YkwntXnWN3U_XYVh9kIq5rGHstB4sFKYOI11pKd-lBxUaiQKRAE3tegy4tPHZjgfsxsdck/s320/solution.JPG&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;
  324. &lt;tr&gt;&lt;td class=&quot;tr-caption&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;SOLUTION&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;
  325. &lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;The California Beer and Beverage Distributors have given the “No on Proposition 19” campaign a $10,000 contribution according to The Marijuana Policy Project.&lt;br /&gt;
  326. &lt;br /&gt;
  327. How ironic it is to have alcohol makers teaming up with law enforcement groups to oppose marijuana legalization. This $10,000 goes with $30,000 from the California Police Chiefs Association and $20,500 from the California Narcotics Officers’ Association.&lt;br /&gt;
  328. &lt;br /&gt;
  329. “Unless the beer distributors in California have suddenly developed a philosophical opposition to the use of intoxicating substances, the motivation behind this contribution is clear,” said Steve Fox, Director of Government Relations at MPP. “Plain and simple, &lt;b&gt;the alcohol industry is trying to kill the competition&lt;/b&gt;. They know that marijuana is less addictive, less toxic and less likely to be associated with violent behavior than alcohol. So they don’t want adults to have the option of using marijuana legally instead of alcohol. Their mission is to drive people to drink.”&lt;br /&gt;
  330. &lt;br /&gt;
  331. These are the people we are up against. The beer distributors don’t care how many of their consumers die of liver disease or crash their car.&lt;br /&gt;
  332. &lt;br /&gt;
  333. “Members of law enforcement have argued against Proposition 19 by asserting, ‘We have enough problems with alcohol, we don’t need to add another intoxicating substance to the mix,’ implying that marijuana is just as bad as alcohol,” Steve Fox continued. “But the truth is that a legal marijuana market would not add another dangerous intoxicant to the mix; rather it would provide adults with a less harmful legal alternative to alcohol.”&lt;br /&gt;
  334. &lt;br /&gt;
  335. When contacted by us, Allen St. Pierre – Executive Director of NORML – had the following to say:&lt;br /&gt;
  336. &lt;br /&gt;
  337. “NORML is both interested and disturbed by the recent donation of $10,000 to the ‘Say No on Prop 19′ campaign, which seeks to maintain the many decade-old prohibition laws, thereby trying to protect some of their market share and profits that they know they’ll partially lose to a legal and taxed cannabis market.&lt;br /&gt;
  338. &lt;br /&gt;
  339. In some ways what they’re doing is both parochial and logical, but bad for society, public health and consumers on the whole.”&lt;br /&gt;
  340. &lt;br /&gt;
  341. Some cannabis activists are so disgusted with the alcohol lobby that they take their protests a step further.&lt;br /&gt;
  342. &lt;br /&gt;
  343. “I have been so outraged by the role of the alcohol industry in funding Prohibition and opposing legalization, that I took an oath, ten years ago, to not buy or consume alcohol until cannabis is legalized,” Steve Kubby – Director of The American Medical Marijuana Association – told The 420 Times. This may seem like a small protest to some, but hitting the alcohol distributors in the profit margin is where it will hurt them the most. After all, if you make a product like alcohol you are pretty immune to public censure; but without money contributions to anti-cannabis groups becomes much harder.&lt;br /&gt;
  344. &lt;br /&gt;
  345. Retired CA Judge and Law Enforcement Against Prohibition spokesman Jim Gray says the alcohol companies are being smart. “It was a really wise thing to do from a merchandising standpoint to reaffirm the distinction between a legal and an illegal drug,” he said. “They are protecting their own economic self interest.” This is obviously the right of any business. It is up to us to show them that it is not in their economic self interest to alienate cannabis users.&lt;br /&gt;
  346. &lt;br /&gt;
  347. California Proposition 19 has many enemies, some with major political clout, and some with deep pockets. But the days of their propaganda are over. It is a new time, and the truth can no longer be contained. Cannabis is a safer alternative to alcohol, and the alcohol companies know it.&lt;br /&gt;
  348. resource:&amp;nbsp; http://the420times.com/2010/09/beer-distributors-contribute-to-anti-prop-19-campaign/</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/09/beer-distributors-say-no-to-prop-19.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXM0XCiLDXzd-7chSjfGGRnCOHfLnWMjwZV45a0aWqWn-GJ0lUziLW-Bns6FmvCqXIaYjL5YkwntXnWN3U_XYVh9kIq5rGHstB4sFKYOI11pKd-lBxUaiQKRAE3tegy4tPHZjgfsxsdck/s72-c/solution.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-7466987808814478906</guid><pubDate>Sat, 21 Aug 2010 14:20:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-08-21T10:20:51.438-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Driving Under the Influence of Pets</category><title>Driving Under the Influence of Pets</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_KlAUVHAZumPVvgkQZPQ8xowPXyGbKrps_toWCHREhuyYVHqLd_4BaQLoPinHVpnmj6aO7dAlHASaxi_R8Tc0pJt308_qtH8lkZdhw5Mxds_BmMV68KMNdEN_bSHkHM2cF6Ta_rJ2eqo/s1600/dui-p.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_KlAUVHAZumPVvgkQZPQ8xowPXyGbKrps_toWCHREhuyYVHqLd_4BaQLoPinHVpnmj6aO7dAlHASaxi_R8Tc0pJt308_qtH8lkZdhw5Mxds_BmMV68KMNdEN_bSHkHM2cF6Ta_rJ2eqo/s320/dui-p.JPG&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div id=&quot;articletextheader&quot;&gt;Officials say: Pets are as dangerous as texting to drivers&lt;/div&gt;&lt;script&gt;
  349. document.title = unescape(&quot;Officials%3A%20Pets%20as%20dangerous%20as%20texting%20to%20drivers&quot;) + &quot; - Fosters&quot;;
  350. &lt;/script&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  351. A survey released by AAA this week found nearly one-third of dog owners admitted to being distracted when having their animal in the car. Twenty-one percent of drivers allowed their dog to sit on their laps — a big no-no, according to law enforcement officials. And some even admitted to feeding their dog or playing with it while in motion.&lt;br /&gt;
  352. &lt;br /&gt;
  353. &quot;Drivers not only love to bring Fido along, but they also often engage in risky behaviors when man&#39;s best friend is along for the ride,&quot; said AAA Northern New England spokesman Pat Moody. &quot;Looking away from the road for only two seconds doubles your risk of being in a crash.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  354. &lt;br /&gt;
  355. Police said DUI-P is just as dangerous as texting. They advise owners to put dogs in a crate and refrain from having them as co-pilots.&lt;br /&gt;
  356. &lt;br /&gt;
  357. &quot;They belong in the back seat, not in the front seat,&quot; said Kittery police Sgt. Gary Eaton. &quot;If you have a crate, put them in it.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  358. &lt;br /&gt;
  359. Eaton said he can remember responding to several accidents stemming from drivers who were distracted by a pet.&lt;br /&gt;
  360. &lt;br /&gt;
  361. A New Hampshire State Police spokesman said while dogs may seem to enjoy sitting on a driver&#39;s lap with their head sticking out the window, the risks are not worth it.&lt;br /&gt;
  362. &lt;br /&gt;
  363. &quot;If the dog sees a cat or something that catches his interest, what&#39;s going to prevent the dog from leaping out?&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  364. &lt;br /&gt;
  365. Moody noted an unrestrained dog in a 30 mph crash has the same force as a 2,400-pound projectile.&lt;br /&gt;
  366. &lt;br /&gt;
  367. &quot;Imagine the devastation that impact can cause to your pet and anyone in the vehicle in its path,&quot; he said.&lt;br /&gt;
  368. &lt;br /&gt;
  369. Many states, including New Hampshire and Maine, have laws discouraging drivers from playing with pets in the front seat. Fines can be hefty.&lt;br /&gt;
  370. &lt;br /&gt;
  371. Maine&#39;s recent distracted driving law can levy up to a $500 fine, while New Hampshire&#39;s obstructed and negligent driving statutes can impose a $75-250 fine.&lt;br /&gt;
  372. &lt;br /&gt;
  373. In 2008, California legislators passed a bill that would have imposed a $35 fine for drivers caught with a pet in their lap. It was nicknamed the &quot;Paris Hilton bill&quot; after the hotel heiress was one of several celebrities caught with their dogs in the front seat. Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger eventually vetoed the bill after critics called it an unnecessary government intrusion.&lt;br /&gt;
  374. &lt;br /&gt;
  375. The AAA survey was conducted in conjunction with Kurgo, a Salisbury, Mass.-based business that sells pet &lt;iframe align=&quot;left&quot; frameborder=&quot;0&quot; marginheight=&quot;0&quot; marginwidth=&quot;0&quot; scrolling=&quot;no&quot; src=&quot;http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sexforwomen09-20&amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;asins=B001INRIQW&amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;f=ifr&quot; style=&quot;height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;&quot;&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;travel products. Its &quot;Skybox Booster Seat&quot; for smaller dogs is recommended by AAA for securing the pets on car rides. &lt;br style=&quot;clear: both; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;&quot; /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  376. &lt;br /&gt;
  377. &lt;img alt=&quot;Picture&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=FD&amp;amp;Date=20100821&amp;amp;Category=GJNEWS_01&amp;amp;ArtNo=708219893&amp;amp;Ref=V2&amp;amp;MaxW=250&quot; /&gt;&lt;br clear=&quot;all&quot; /&gt;     resource:&amp;nbsp; http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100821/GJNEWS_01/708219893/-1/FOSNEWS</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/08/driving-under-influence-of-pets.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_KlAUVHAZumPVvgkQZPQ8xowPXyGbKrps_toWCHREhuyYVHqLd_4BaQLoPinHVpnmj6aO7dAlHASaxi_R8Tc0pJt308_qtH8lkZdhw5Mxds_BmMV68KMNdEN_bSHkHM2cF6Ta_rJ2eqo/s72-c/dui-p.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-787572468551590364</guid><pubDate>Wed, 11 Aug 2010 15:30:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-08-11T11:30:00.046-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Why is Marijuana Illegal</category><title>Why is Marijuana Illegal?</title><description>7000-8000 B.C.&lt;br /&gt;
  378. First woven fabric believed to be from hemp.&lt;br /&gt;
  379. &lt;br /&gt;
  380. 1619&lt;br /&gt;
  381. Jamestown Colony, Virginia passes law requiring farmers to grow hemp.&lt;br /&gt;
  382. &lt;br /&gt;
  383. 1700s&lt;br /&gt;
  384. Hemp was the primary crop grown by George Washington at Mount Vernon, and a secondary crop grown by Thomas Jefferson at Monticello.&lt;br /&gt;
  385. &lt;br /&gt;
  386. 1884&lt;br /&gt;
  387. Maine is the first state to outlaw alcohol.&lt;br /&gt;
  388. &lt;br /&gt;
  389. 1906&lt;br /&gt;
  390. Pure Food and Drug Act is passed, forming the Food and Drug Administration. First time that drugs have any government oversight.&lt;br /&gt;
  391. &lt;br /&gt;
  392. 1913California, apparently, passes the first state marijuana law, though missed by many because it referred to “preparations of hemp, or loco weed.”&lt;br /&gt;
  393. &lt;br /&gt;
  394. 1914&lt;br /&gt;
  395. Harrison Act passed, outlawing opiates and ******* (taxing scheme)&lt;br /&gt;
  396. &lt;br /&gt;
  397. 1915&lt;br /&gt;
  398. Utah passes state anti-marijuana law.&lt;br /&gt;
  399. &lt;br /&gt;
  400. 1919&lt;br /&gt;
  401. 18th Amendment to the Constitution (alcohol prohibition) is ratified.&lt;br /&gt;
  402. &lt;br /&gt;
  403. 1930&lt;br /&gt;
  404. Harry J. Anslinger given control of the new Federal Bureau of Narcotics (he remains in the position until 1962)&lt;br /&gt;
  405. &lt;br /&gt;
  406. 1933&lt;br /&gt;
  407. 21st Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, repealing alcohol prohibition.&lt;br /&gt;
  408. &lt;br /&gt;
  409. 1937&lt;br /&gt;
  410. Marijuana Tax Act&lt;br /&gt;
  411. &lt;br /&gt;
  412. 1938&lt;br /&gt;
  413. Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act&lt;br /&gt;
  414. &lt;br /&gt;
  415. 1951&lt;br /&gt;
  416. Boggs Amendment to the Harrison Narcotic Act (mandatory sentences)&lt;br /&gt;
  417. &lt;br /&gt;
  418. 1956&lt;br /&gt;
  419. Narcotics Control Act adds more severe penalties&lt;br /&gt;
  420. &lt;br /&gt;
  421. 1970&lt;br /&gt;
  422. Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act.&lt;br /&gt;
  423. Replaces and updates all previous laws concerning narcotics and other dangerous drugs. Empasis on law enforcement. Includes the Controlled Substances Act, where marijuana is classified a Schedule 1 drug (reserved for the most dangerous drugs that have no recognized medical use).&lt;br /&gt;
  424. &lt;br /&gt;
  425. 1972&lt;br /&gt;
  426. Drug Abuse Office and Treatment Act.&lt;br /&gt;
  427. Establishes federally funded programs for prevention and treatment&lt;br /&gt;
  428. &lt;br /&gt;
  429. 1973&lt;br /&gt;
  430. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)&lt;br /&gt;
  431. Changes Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs into the DEA&lt;br /&gt;
  432. &lt;br /&gt;
  433. 1974 and 1978&lt;br /&gt;
  434. Drug Abuse Treatment and Control Amendments. Extends 1972 act&lt;br /&gt;
  435. &lt;br /&gt;
  436. 1988&lt;br /&gt;
  437. Anti-Drug Abuse Act.&lt;br /&gt;
  438. Establishes oversight office: National Office of Drug Control Policy and the Drug Czar&lt;br /&gt;
  439. &lt;br /&gt;
  440. 1992&lt;br /&gt;
  441. ADAMHA Reorganization.&lt;br /&gt;
  442. Transfers NIDA, NIMH, and NIAAA to NIH and incorporates ADAMHA’s programs into the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)&lt;br /&gt;
  443. &lt;br /&gt;
  444. &lt;br /&gt;
  445. Many people assume that marijuana was made illegal through some kind of process involving scientific, medical, and government hearings; that it was to protect the citizens from what was determined to be a dangerous drug.&lt;br /&gt;
  446. &lt;br /&gt;
  447. The actual story shows a much different picture. Those who voted on the legal fate of this plant never had the facts, but were dependent on information supplied by those who had a specific agenda to deceive lawmakers. You’ll see below that the very first federal vote to prohibit marijuana was based entirely on a documented lie on the floor of the Senate.&lt;br /&gt;
  448. &lt;br /&gt;
  449. You’ll also see that the history of marijuana’s criminalization is filled with:&lt;br /&gt;
  450. &lt;br /&gt;
  451. * Racism&lt;br /&gt;
  452. * Fear&lt;br /&gt;
  453. * Protection of Corporate Profits&lt;br /&gt;
  454. * Yellow Journalism&lt;br /&gt;
  455. * Ignorant, Incompetent, and/or Corrupt Legislators&lt;br /&gt;
  456. * Personal Career Advancement and Greed&lt;br /&gt;
  457. &lt;br /&gt;
  458. These are the actual reasons marijuana is illegal.&lt;br /&gt;
  459. &lt;br /&gt;
  460. &lt;br /&gt;
  461. &lt;br /&gt;
  462. For most of human history, marijuana has been completely legal. It’s not a recently discovered plant, nor is it a long-standing law. Marijuana has been illegal for less than 1% of the time that it’s been in use. Its known uses go back further than 7,000 B.C. and it was legal as recently as when Ronald Reagan was a boy.&lt;br /&gt;
  463. &lt;br /&gt;
  464. The marijuana (hemp) plant, of course, has an incredible number of uses. The earliest known woven fabric was apparently of hemp, and over the centuries the plant was used for food, incense, cloth, rope, and much more. This adds to some of the confusion over its introduction in the United States, as the plant was well known from the early 1600’s, but did not reach public awareness as a recreational drug until the early 1900’s.&lt;br /&gt;
  465. &lt;br /&gt;
  466. America’s first marijuana law was enacted at Jamestown Colony, Virginia in 1619. It was a law “ordering” all farmers to grow Indian hempseed. There were several other “must grow” laws over the next 200 years (you could be jailed for not growing hemp during times of shortage in Virginia between 1763 and 1767), and during most of that time, hemp was legal tender (you could even pay your taxes with hemp — try that today!) Hemp was such a critical crop for a number of purposes (including essential war requirements – rope, etc.) that the government went out of its way to encourage growth.&lt;br /&gt;
  467. &lt;br /&gt;
  468. The United States Census of 1850 counted 8,327 hemp “plantations” (minimum 2,000-acre farm) growing cannabis hemp for cloth, canvas and even the cordage used for baling cotton.&lt;br /&gt;
  469. &lt;br /&gt;
  470. The Mexican Connection&lt;br /&gt;
  471. &lt;br /&gt;
  472. In the early 1900s, the western states developed significant tensions regarding the influx of Mexican-Americans. The revolution in Mexico in 1910 spilled over the border, with General Pershing’s army clashing with bandit Pancho Villa. Later in that decade, bad feelings developed between the small farmer and the large farms that used cheaper Mexican labor. Then, the depression came and increased tensions, as jobs and welfare resources became scarce.&lt;br /&gt;
  473. &lt;br /&gt;
  474. One of the “differences” seized upon during this time was the fact that many Mexicans smoked marijuana and had brought the plant with them, and it was through this that California apparently passed the first state marijuana law, outlawing “preparations of hemp, or loco weed.”&lt;br /&gt;
  475. &lt;br /&gt;
  476. However, one of the first state laws outlawing marijuana may have been influenced, not just by Mexicans using the drug, but, oddly enough, because of Mormons using it. Mormons who traveled to Mexico in 1910 came back to Salt Lake City with marijuana. The church’s reaction to this may have contributed to the state’s marijuana law. (Note: the source for this speculation is from articles by Charles Whitebread, Professor of Law at USC Law School in a paper for the Virginia Law Review, and a speech to the California Judges Association (sourced below). Mormon blogger Ardis Parshall disputes this.)&lt;br /&gt;
  477. &lt;br /&gt;
  478. Other states quickly followed suit with marijuana prohibition laws, including Wyoming (1915), Texas (1919), Iowa (1923), Nevada (1923), Oregon (1923), Washington (1923), Arkansas (1923), and Nebraska (1927). These laws tended to be specifically targeted against the Mexican-American population.&lt;br /&gt;
  479. &lt;br /&gt;
  480. When Montana outlawed marijuana in 1927, the Butte Montana Standard reported a legislator’s comment: “When some beet field peon takes a few traces of this stuff… he thinks he has just been elected president of Mexico, so he starts out to execute all his political enemies.” In Texas, a senator said on the floor of the Senate: “All Mexicans are crazy, and this stuff [marijuana] is what makes them crazy.”&lt;br /&gt;
  481. &lt;br /&gt;
  482. Jazz and Assassins&lt;br /&gt;
  483. &lt;br /&gt;
  484. In the eastern states, the “problem” was attributed to a combination of Latin Americans and black jazz musicians. Marijuana and jazz traveled from New Orleans to Chicago, and then to Harlem, where marijuana became an indispensable part of the music scene, even entering the language of the black hits of the time (Louis Armstrong’s “Muggles”, Cab Calloway’s “That Funny Reefer Man”, Fats Waller’s “Viper’s Drag”).&lt;br /&gt;
  485. &lt;br /&gt;
  486. Again, racism was part of the charge against marijuana, as newspapers in 1934 editorialized: “Marihuana influences Negroes to look at white people in the eye, step on white men’s shadows and look at a white woman twice.”&lt;br /&gt;
  487. &lt;br /&gt;
  488. Two other fear-tactic rumors started to spread: one, that Mexicans, Blacks and other foreigners were snaring white children with marijuana; and two, the story of the “assassins.” Early stories of Marco Polo had told of “hasheesh-eaters” or hashashin, from which derived the term “assassin.” In the original stories, these professional killers were given large doses of hashish and brought to the ruler’s garden (to give them a glimpse of the paradise that awaited them upon successful completion of their mission). Then, after the effects of the drug disappeared, the assassin would fulfill his ruler’s wishes with cool, calculating loyalty.&lt;br /&gt;
  489. &lt;br /&gt;
  490. By the 1930s, the story had changed. Dr. A. E. Fossier wrote in the 1931 New Orleans Medical and Surgical Journal: “Under the influence of hashish those fanatics would madly rush at their enemies, and ruthlessly massacre every one within their grasp.” Within a very short time, marijuana started being linked to violent behavior.&lt;br /&gt;
  491. &lt;br /&gt;
  492. Alcohol Prohibition and Federal Approaches to Drug Prohibition&lt;br /&gt;
  493. &lt;br /&gt;
  494. During this time, the United States was also dealing with alcohol prohibition, which lasted from 1919 to 1933. Alcohol prohibition was extremely visible and debated at all levels, while drug laws were passed without the general public’s knowledge. National alcohol prohibition happened through the mechanism of an amendment to the constitution.&lt;br /&gt;
  495. &lt;br /&gt;
  496. Earlier (1914), the Harrison Act was passed, which provided federal tax penalties for opiates and *******.&lt;br /&gt;
  497. &lt;br /&gt;
  498. The federal approach is important. It was considered at the time that the federal government did not have the constitutional power to outlaw alcohol or drugs. It is because of this that alcohol prohibition required a constitutional amendment.&lt;br /&gt;
  499. &lt;br /&gt;
  500. At that time in our country’s history, the judiciary regularly placed the tenth amendment in the path of congressional regulation of “local” affairs, and direct regulation of medical practice was considered beyond congressional power under the commerce clause (since then, both provisions have been weakened so far as to have almost no meaning).&lt;br /&gt;
  501. &lt;br /&gt;
  502. Since drugs could not be outlawed at the federal level, the decision was made to use federal taxes as a way around the restriction. In the Harrison Act, legal uses of opiates and ******* were taxed (supposedly as a revenue need by the federal government, which is the only way it would hold up in the courts), and those who didn’t follow the law found themselves in trouble with the treasury department.&lt;br /&gt;
  503. &lt;br /&gt;
  504. In 1930, a new division in the Treasury Department was established — the Federal Bureau of Narcotics — and Harry J. Anslinger was named director. This, if anything, marked the beginning of the all-out war against marijuana.&lt;br /&gt;
  505. &lt;br /&gt;
  506. &lt;br /&gt;
  507. Harry J. Anslinger&lt;br /&gt;
  508. &lt;br /&gt;
  509. Anslinger was an extremely ambitious man, and he recognized the Bureau of Narcotics as an amazing career opportunity — a new government agency with the opportunity to define both the problem and the solution. He immediately realized that opiates and ******* wouldn’t be enough to help build his agency, so he latched on to marijuana and started to work on making it illegal at the federal level.&lt;br /&gt;
  510. &lt;br /&gt;
  511. Anslinger immediately drew upon the themes of racism and violence to draw national attention to the problem he wanted to create. He also promoted and frequently read from “Gore Files” — wild reefer-madness-style exploitation tales of ax murderers on marijuana and sex and… Negroes. Here are some quotes that have been widely attributed to Anslinger and his Gore Files:&lt;br /&gt;
  512. &lt;br /&gt;
  513. “There are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the US, and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos, and entertainers. Their *****ic music, jazz, and swing, result from marijuana use. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with Negroes, entertainers, and any others.”&lt;br /&gt;
  514. &lt;br /&gt;
  515. “…the primary reason to outlaw marijuana is its effect on the degenerate races.”&lt;br /&gt;
  516. &lt;br /&gt;
  517. “Marijuana is an addictive drug which produces in its users insanity, criminality, and death.”&lt;br /&gt;
  518. &lt;br /&gt;
  519. “Reefer makes darkies think they’re as good as white men.”&lt;br /&gt;
  520. &lt;br /&gt;
  521. “Marihuana leads to pacifism and communist brainwashing”&lt;br /&gt;
  522. &lt;br /&gt;
  523. “You smoke a joint and you’re likely to kill your brother.”&lt;br /&gt;
  524. &lt;br /&gt;
  525. “Marijuana is the most violence-causing drug in the history of mankind.”&lt;br /&gt;
  526. &lt;br /&gt;
  527. And he loved to pull out his own version of the “assassin” definition:&lt;br /&gt;
  528. &lt;br /&gt;
  529. “In the year 1090, there was founded in Persia the religious and military order of the Assassins, whose history is one of cruelty, barbarity, and murder, and for good reason: the members were confirmed users of hashish, or marihuana, and it is from the Arabs’ ‘hashashin’ that we have the English word ‘assassin.’”&lt;br /&gt;
  530. &lt;br /&gt;
  531. &lt;br /&gt;
  532. &lt;br /&gt;
  533. &lt;br /&gt;
  534. Harry Anslinger got some additional help from William Randolf Hearst, owner of a huge chain of newspapers. Hearst had lots of reasons to help. First, he hated Mexicans. Second, he had invested heavily in the timber industry to support his newspaper chain and didn’t want to see the development of hemp paper in competition. Third, he had lost 800,000 acres of timberland to Pancho Villa, so he hated Mexicans. Fourth, telling lurid lies about Mexicans (and the devil marijuana weed causing violence) sold newspapers, making him rich.&lt;br /&gt;
  535. &lt;br /&gt;
  536. Some samples from the San Francisco Examiner:&lt;br /&gt;
  537. &lt;br /&gt;
  538. “Marihuana makes fiends of boys in thirty days — Hashish goads users to bloodlust.”&lt;br /&gt;
  539. &lt;br /&gt;
  540. “By the tons it is coming into this country — the deadly, dreadful poison that racks and tears not only the body, but the very heart and soul of every human being who once becomes a slave to it in any of its cruel and devastating forms…. Marihuana is a short cut to the insane asylum. Smoke marihuana cigarettes for a month and what was once your brain will be nothing but a storehouse of horrid specters. Hasheesh makes a murderer who kills for the love of killing out of the mildest mannered man who ever laughed at the idea that any habit could ever get him….”&lt;br /&gt;
  541. &lt;br /&gt;
  542. And other nationwide columns…&lt;br /&gt;
  543. &lt;br /&gt;
  544. “Users of marijuana become STIMULATED as they inhale the drug and are LIKELY TO DO ANYTHING. Most crimes of violence in this section, especially in country districts are laid to users of that drug.”&lt;br /&gt;
  545. &lt;br /&gt;
  546. “Was it marijuana, the new Mexican drug, that nerved the murderous arm of Clara Phillips when she hammered out her victim’s life in Los Angeles?… THREE-FOURTHS OF THE CRIMES of violence in this country today are committed by DOPE SLAVES — that is a matter of cold record.”&lt;br /&gt;
  547. &lt;br /&gt;
  548. Hearst and Anslinger were then supported by Dupont chemical company and various pharmaceutical companies in the effort to outlaw cannabis. Dupont had patented nylon, and wanted hemp removed as competition. The pharmaceutical companies could neither identify nor standardize cannabis dosages, and besides, with cannabis, folks could grow their own medicine and not have to purchase it from large companies.&lt;br /&gt;
  549. &lt;br /&gt;
  550. This all set the stage for…&lt;br /&gt;
  551. &lt;br /&gt;
  552. The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937.&lt;br /&gt;
  553. &lt;br /&gt;
  554. After two years of secret planning, Anslinger brought his plan to Congress — complete with a scrapbook full of sensational Hearst editorials, stories of ax murderers who had supposedly smoked marijuana, and racial slurs.&lt;br /&gt;
  555. &lt;br /&gt;
  556. It was a remarkably short set of hearings.&lt;br /&gt;
  557. &lt;br /&gt;
  558. The one fly in Anslinger’s ointment was the appearance by Dr. William C. Woodward, Legislative Council of the American Medical Association.&lt;br /&gt;
  559. &lt;br /&gt;
  560. Woodward started by slamming Harry Anslinger and the Bureau of Narcotics for distorting earlier AMA statements that had nothing to do with marijuana and making them appear to be AMA endorsement for Anslinger’s view.&lt;br /&gt;
  561. &lt;br /&gt;
  562. He also reproached the legislature and the Bureau for using the term marijuana in the legislation and not publicizing it as a bill about cannabis or hemp. At this point, marijuana (or marihuana) was a sensationalist word used to refer to Mexicans smoking a drug and had not been connected in most people’s minds to the existing cannabis/hemp plant. Thus, many who had legitimate reasons to oppose the bill weren’t even aware of it.&lt;br /&gt;
  563. &lt;br /&gt;
  564. Woodward went on to state that the AMA was opposed to the legislation and further questioned the approach of the hearings, coming close to outright accusation of misconduct by Anslinger and the committee:&lt;br /&gt;
  565. &lt;br /&gt;
  566. “That there is a certain amount of narcotic addiction of an objectionable character no one will deny. The newspapers have called attention to it so prominently that there must be some grounds for [their] statements [even Woodward was partially taken in by Hearst&#39;s propaganda]. It has surprised me, however, that the facts on which these statements have been based have not been brought before this committee by competent primary evidence. We are referred to newspaper publications concerning the prevalence of marihuana addiction. We are told that the use of marihuana causes crime.&lt;br /&gt;
  567. &lt;br /&gt;
  568. But yet no one has been produced from the Bureau of Prisons to show the number of prisoners who have been found addicted to the marihuana habit. An informed inquiry shows that the Bureau of Prisons has no evidence on that point.&lt;br /&gt;
  569. &lt;br /&gt;
  570. You have been told that school children are great users of marihuana cigarettes. No one has been summoned from the Children’s Bureau to show the nature and extent of the habit, among children.&lt;br /&gt;
  571. &lt;br /&gt;
  572. Inquiry of the Children’s Bureau shows that they have had no occasion to investigate it and know nothing particularly of it.&lt;br /&gt;
  573. &lt;br /&gt;
  574. Inquiry of the Office of Education— and they certainly should know something of the prevalence of the habit among the school children of the country, if there is a prevalent habit— indicates that they have had no occasion to investigate and know nothing of it.&lt;br /&gt;
  575. &lt;br /&gt;
  576. Moreover, there is in the Treasury Department itself, the Public Health Service, with its Division of Mental Hygiene. The Division of Mental Hygiene was, in the first place, the Division of Narcotics. It was converted into the Division of Mental Hygiene, I think, about 1930. That particular Bureau has control at the present time of the narcotics farms that were created about 1929 or 1930 and came into operation a few years later. No one has been summoned from that Bureau to give evidence on that point.&lt;br /&gt;
  577. &lt;br /&gt;
  578. Informal inquiry by me indicates that they have had no record of any marihuana of Cannabis addicts who have ever been committed to those farms.&lt;br /&gt;
  579. &lt;br /&gt;
  580. The bureau of Public Health Service has also a division of pharmacology. If you desire evidence as to the pharmacology of Cannabis, that obviously is the place where you can get direct and primary evidence, rather than the indirect hearsay evidence.”&lt;br /&gt;
  581. &lt;br /&gt;
  582. Committee members then proceeded to attack Dr. Woodward, questioning his motives in opposing the legislation. Even the Chairman joined in:&lt;br /&gt;
  583. &lt;br /&gt;
  584. The Chairman: If you want to advise us on legislation, you ought to come here with some constructive proposals, rather than criticism, rather than trying to throw obstacles in the way of something that the Federal Government is trying to do. It has not only an unselfish motive in this, but they have a serious responsibility.&lt;br /&gt;
  585. &lt;br /&gt;
  586. Dr. Woodward: We cannot understand yet, Mr. Chairman, why this bill should have been prepared in secret for 2 years without any intimation, even, to the profession, that it was being prepared.&lt;br /&gt;
  587. &lt;br /&gt;
  588. After some further bantering…&lt;br /&gt;
  589. &lt;br /&gt;
  590. The Chairman: I would like to read a quotation from a recent editorial in the Washington Times:&lt;br /&gt;
  591. &lt;br /&gt;
  592. The marihuana cigarette is one of the most insidious of all forms of dope, largely because of the failure of the public to understand its fatal qualities.&lt;br /&gt;
  593. &lt;br /&gt;
  594. The Nation is almost defenseless against it, having no Federal laws to cope with it and virtually no organized campaign for combating it.&lt;br /&gt;
  595. &lt;br /&gt;
  596. The result is tragic.&lt;br /&gt;
  597. &lt;br /&gt;
  598. School children are the prey of peddlers who infest school neighborhoods.&lt;br /&gt;
  599. &lt;br /&gt;
  600. High school boys and girls buy the destructive weed without knowledge of its capacity of harm, and conscienceless dealers sell it with impunity.&lt;br /&gt;
  601. &lt;br /&gt;
  602. This is a national problem, and it must have national attention.&lt;br /&gt;
  603. &lt;br /&gt;
  604. The fatal marihuana cigarette must be recognized as a deadly drug, and American children must be protected against it.&lt;br /&gt;
  605. &lt;br /&gt;
  606. That is a pretty severe indictment. They say it is a national question and that it requires effective legislation. Of course, in a general way, you have responded to all of these statements; but that indicates very clearly that it is an evil of such magnitude that it is recognized by the press of the country as such.&lt;br /&gt;
  607. &lt;br /&gt;
  608. And that was basically it. Yellow journalism won over medical science.&lt;br /&gt;
  609. &lt;br /&gt;
  610. The committee passed the legislation on. And on the floor of the house, the entire discussion was:&lt;br /&gt;
  611. &lt;br /&gt;
  612. Member from upstate New York: “Mr. Speaker, what is this bill about?”&lt;br /&gt;
  613. &lt;br /&gt;
  614. Speaker Rayburn: “I don’t know. It has something to do with a thing called marihuana. I think it’s a narcotic of some kind.”&lt;br /&gt;
  615. &lt;br /&gt;
  616. “Mr. Speaker, does the American Medical Association support this bill?”&lt;br /&gt;
  617. &lt;br /&gt;
  618. Member on the committee jumps up and says: “Their Doctor Wentworth[sic] came down here. They support this bill 100 percent.”&lt;br /&gt;
  619. &lt;br /&gt;
  620. And on the basis of that lie, on August 2, 1937, marijuana became illegal at the federal level.&lt;br /&gt;
  621. &lt;br /&gt;
  622. The entire coverage in the New York Times: “President Roosevelt signed today a bill to curb traffic in the narcotic, marihuana, through heavy taxes on transactions.”&lt;br /&gt;
  623. &lt;br /&gt;
  624. Anslinger as precursor to the Drug Czars&lt;br /&gt;
  625. &lt;br /&gt;
  626. Anslinger was essentially the first Drug Czar. Even though the term didn’t exist until William Bennett’s position as director of the White House Office of National Drug Policy, Anslinger acted in a similar fashion. In fact, there are some amazing parallels between Anslinger and the current Drug Czar John Walters. Both had kind of a carte blanche to go around demonizing drugs and drug users. Both had resources and a large public podium for their voice to be heard and to promote their personal agenda. Both lied constantly, often when it was unnecessary. Both were racists. Both had the ear of lawmakers, and both realized that they could persuade legislators and others based on lies, particularly if they could co-opt the media into squelching or downplaying any opposition views.&lt;br /&gt;
  627. &lt;br /&gt;
  628. Anslinger even had the ability to circumvent the First Amendment. He banned the Canadian movie “Drug Addict,” a 1946 documentary that realistically depicted the drug addicts and law enforcement efforts. He even tried to get Canada to ban the movie in their own country, or failing that, to prevent U.S. citizens from seeing the movie in Canada. Canada refused. (Today, Drug Czar John Walters is trying to bully Canada into keeping harsh marijuana laws.)&lt;br /&gt;
  629. &lt;br /&gt;
  630. Anslinger had 37 years to solidify the propaganda and stifle opposition. The lies continued the entire time (although the stories would adjust — the 21 year old Florida boy who killed his family of five got younger each time he told it). In 1961, he looked back at his efforts:&lt;br /&gt;
  631. &lt;br /&gt;
  632. “Much of the most irrational juvenile violence and that has written a new chapter of shame and tragedy is traceable directly to this hemp intoxication. A gang of boys tear the clothes from two school girls and rape the screaming girls, one boy after the other. A sixteen-year-old kills his entire family of five in Florida, a man in Minnesota puts a bullet through the head of a stranger on the road; in Colorado husband tries to shoot his wife, kills her grandmother instead and then kills himself. Every one of these crimes had been proceeded [sic] by the smoking of one or more marijuana “reefers.” As the marijuana situation grew worse, I knew action had to be taken to get the proper legislation passed. By 1937 under my direction, the Bureau launched two important steps First, a legislative plan to seek from Congress a new law that would place marijuana and its distribution directly under federal control. Second, on radio and at major forums, such that presented annually by the New York Herald Tribune, I told the story of this evil weed of the fields and river beds and roadsides. I wrote articles for magazines; our agents gave hundreds of lectures to parents, educators, social and civic leaders. In network broadcasts I reported on the growing list of crimes, including murder and rape. I described the nature of marijuana and its close kinship to hashish. I continued to hammer at the facts.&lt;br /&gt;
  633. &lt;br /&gt;
  634. I believe we did a thorough job, for the public was alerted and the laws to protect them were passed, both nationally and at the state level. We also brought under control the wild growing marijuana in this country. Working with local authorities, we cleaned up hundreds of acres of marijuana and we uprooted plants sprouting along the roadsides.”&lt;br /&gt;
  635. &lt;br /&gt;
  636. After Anslinger&lt;br /&gt;
  637. &lt;br /&gt;
  638. On a break from college in the 70s, I was visiting a church in rural Illinois. There in the literature racks in the back of the church was a lurid pamphlet about the evils of marijuana — all the old reefer madness propaganda about how it caused insanity and murder. I approached the minister and said “You can’t have this in your church. It’s all lies, and the church shouldn’t be about promoting lies.” Fortunately, my dad believed me, and he had the material removed. He didn’t even know how it got there. But without me speaking up, neither he nor the other members of the church had any reason NOT to believe what the pamphlet said. The propaganda machine had been that effective.&lt;br /&gt;
  639. &lt;br /&gt;
  640. The narrative since then has been a continual litany of:&lt;br /&gt;
  641. &lt;br /&gt;
  642. * Politicians wanting to appear tough on crime and passing tougher penalties&lt;br /&gt;
  643. * Constant increases in spending on law enforcement and prisons&lt;br /&gt;
  644. * Racist application of drug laws&lt;br /&gt;
  645. * Taxpayer funded propaganda&lt;br /&gt;
  646. * Stifling of opposition speech&lt;br /&gt;
  647. * Political contributions from corporations that profit from marijuana being illegal (pharmaceuticals, alcohol, etc.)&lt;br /&gt;
  648. &lt;br /&gt;
  649. … but that’s another whole story.  resource:http://www.420magazine.com/forums/petitions-initiatives/125665-why-marijuana&lt;br /&gt;
  650. -illegal.html</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/08/why-is-marijuana-illegal.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-5730276011464243522</guid><pubDate>Thu, 22 Jul 2010 23:22:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-07-22T19:36:41.647-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Flaws With Breathalyzer Tests and DUI Charges</category><title>Flaws With Breathalyzer Tests and DUI Charges</title><description>lawyerarticle blog &lt;br /&gt;
  651. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTnu3V6GTKHXaQYY6FjkWg6bi7-xZe15k_LbSjOERa4TyD_v9_2mVEpacfmZ4Ums49Au0aUsXhyphenhyphen6yEPsqCSu0gYtg2obGNOQAdzKJQx18HobDRlCU7CwKSDavAiE0QcM53I3pg9zBcoJY/s1600/flawedbreathalyzer.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; linkindex=&quot;15&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;203&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTnu3V6GTKHXaQYY6FjkWg6bi7-xZe15k_LbSjOERa4TyD_v9_2mVEpacfmZ4Ums49Au0aUsXhyphenhyphen6yEPsqCSu0gYtg2obGNOQAdzKJQx18HobDRlCU7CwKSDavAiE0QcM53I3pg9zBcoJY/s320/flawedbreathalyzer.JPG&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;Most people consider a breathalyzer reading to be irrefutable evidence when it comes to proving whether or not you were driving while your Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) was elevated past the legal limit. However, as with all equipment, there is still a margin of error and many variables that can adversely affect the readings of a breathalyzer test.&lt;br /&gt;
  652. &lt;br /&gt;
  653. &lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;Causes of Errors in BAC Readings&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/div&gt;An improperly calibrated breathalyzer can cause the ratio at which the machine calculates the amount of alcohol in your blood to fluctuate as much as 1000 points, causing extremely inaccurate results. General malfunctions such as low batteries or magnetic interference with onboard storage media can also compromise result reports from a breathalyzer unit.&lt;br /&gt;
  654. &lt;br /&gt;
  655. The state of your mouth at the time of your BAC testing also has a huge effect on the readings. Residual alcohol trapped in your mouth within your saliva, food caught in your teeth, or residue on your tongue can all increase your BAC readings. Breathalyzers also detect the methyl part of a molecule present in alcohol – and many other substances. The machine may be detecting other chemical compounds that contain methyl besides liquor. For example, use of an alcohol-inclusive mouthwash has been shown to increase BAC readings.&lt;br /&gt;
  656. &lt;br /&gt;
  657. Another major flaw in the breathalyzer unit is that the breathalyzer assumes the temperature of your mouth is about 93 degrees Fahrenheit. Some studies have shown that individuals arrested for &lt;b&gt;DUI&lt;/b&gt; had actual mouth temperatures between 93 and 98 degrees, another variable that can negatively influence the BAC reading. A breathalyzer can only estimate the content of alcohol in your blood, and this estimation is based on the amount in your lungs and breath. Therefore, if you have belched, hiccuped, or vomited within 20 minutes of testing, this may also increase the BAC readings and lead to a &lt;b&gt;DUI&lt;/b&gt; arrest when you were driving while below the legal limit.&lt;br /&gt;
  658. &lt;br /&gt;
  659. Your body composition is also an important factor in how your BAC readings are reported. Two people with a 100-pound weight difference can consume the same amount of alcohol in the same period of time, but the lighter person can be affected up to twice as much as the heavier person. Your metabolism also impacts alcohol absorption. Breathalyzers test the level of alcohol as it has been absorbed into the bloodstream, but depending on how fast your metabolism works, it may not have completely absorbed at the time of testing.&lt;br /&gt;
  660. &lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  661. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;Unreliable results can alter court rulings&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/div&gt;If your &lt;b&gt;DUI&lt;/b&gt; defense attorney can convince a jury that your BAC test was flawed, they’re less likely to consider a guilty verdict. With all the variables that can affect breathalyzer readings, there’s a good chance that any of the issues listed above affected your breathalyzer readings. A good &lt;b&gt;DUI&lt;/b&gt; defense &lt;b&gt;lawyer&lt;/b&gt; knows what to look for and knows how to question this kind of evidence in court.&lt;br /&gt;
  662. &lt;br /&gt;
  663. With all of these ways the BAC test can be inaccurate or altered, a breathalyzer BAC reading is not always considered to be an accurate indicator of &lt;b&gt;DUI&lt;/b&gt;. While some state DUI law does not allow you to deny a breath test when suspected of &lt;b&gt;DUI&lt;/b&gt;, a blood test can be used if the person accused is unable to submit to a breath test.&lt;br /&gt;
  664. &lt;object width=&quot;360&quot; height=&quot;240&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;movie&quot; value=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/1PEdAnKHQQU&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;fs=1?color1=0xe1600f&amp;amp;color2=0xfebd01&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/1PEdAnKHQQU&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;fs=1?color1=0xe1600f&amp;amp;color2=0xfebd01&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; width=&quot;360&quot; height=&quot;240&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  665. If you trust the breathalyzer and want to know what your BAC reading is before you get behind the wheel there are many products you can purchase at amazon.com.&lt;br /&gt;
  666. &lt;iframe frameborder=&quot;0&quot; marginheight=&quot;0&quot; marginwidth=&quot;0&quot; scrolling=&quot;no&quot; src=&quot;http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&amp;amp;bc1=FBF6F3&amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;bg1=FBF6F3&amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;lc1=EF4F35&amp;amp;t=sexforwomen09-20&amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;l=as1&amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;f=ifr&amp;amp;asins=B000FJCX6U&quot; style=&quot;height: 240px; width: 120px;&quot;&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  667. &lt;br /&gt;
  668. &lt;div style=&quot;color: orange;&quot;&gt;Product Description&lt;/div&gt;Designed for maximum accuracy - used by hospitals, schools, and law enforcement as an alcohol screening device. The AlcoHAWK Pro is one of the most accurate semiconductor-oxide breathalyzers available. This new model takes a deeper breath sample from subjects and provides more accurate results than similar models. This model is trusted by many professional organizations for employee screening, emergency room care, and roadside testing. The semiconductor sensor accuracy is ±0.01%BAC at 0.10% BAC and is DOT / NHTSA approved as an alcohol screening device. The AlcoHAWK Pro is also 510(k) Certified by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The AlcoHAWK Pro now includes innovative FlowCheck technology. An important aspect of breath testing is ensuring that subjects blow a large volume of air through the tester. FlowCheck will verify that enough air has been blown through the AlcoHAWK Pro before displaying a test result. If the FlowCheck engages and recognizes that not enough air was blown, an error message will be displayed and a retest should be performed.</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/07/flaws-with-breathalyzer-tests-and-dui.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTnu3V6GTKHXaQYY6FjkWg6bi7-xZe15k_LbSjOERa4TyD_v9_2mVEpacfmZ4Ums49Au0aUsXhyphenhyphen6yEPsqCSu0gYtg2obGNOQAdzKJQx18HobDRlCU7CwKSDavAiE0QcM53I3pg9zBcoJY/s72-c/flawedbreathalyzer.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>1</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-6814006123443429492</guid><pubDate>Thu, 17 Jun 2010 03:21:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-06-16T23:23:52.299-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">10 Most Hilarious Ways to Get a DUI</category><title>10 Most Hilarious Ways to Get a DUI</title><description>resource: Super Tight Stuff&lt;br /&gt;
  669. &lt;div id=&quot;postimage&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;10 Most Hilarious Ways to Get a DUI&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/coolertrain.jpg&quot; /&gt;                 &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div id=&quot;postvideo&quot; style=&quot;display: none;&quot;&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  670. Everyone knows that drinking and driving isn’t safe, and that there are laws in place to prevent the operation of vehicles while under the influence of alcohol. For example, in the United States there is a national law that a blood alcohol content over 0.080 is considered ‘drunk driving.’ However, what you may not know is how widely those laws can apply — and how dumb people can end up with hilarious DUI arrests. Without further ado, I present the 10 funniest DUI cases — and STS’s new game “Did You Know You Can Get a DUI On A…?”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  671. &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  672. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;1. Riding Lawnmower&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;aligncenter size-full wp-image-6184&quot; height=&quot;270&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/ridinglawnmower.jpg&quot; title=&quot;ridinglawnmower&quot; width=&quot;620&quot; /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  673. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  674. &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;On the list of “Dumb Ways You Can Get a DUI” the riding lawnmower is a &lt;i&gt;very&lt;/i&gt; popular choice. And, for reasons we can’t fathom, especially popular in Tennessee. Go figure. This April, in Blountville Tennessee, Martin Junior McMurray took police on a low-speed pursuit for a half mile on his lawnmower, swerving between lanes and ignoring their police sirens. He failed a field sobriety test, blew a 0.15, and had an unopened can of beer in his pocket. A hero.&lt;br /&gt;
  675. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  676. &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;Now, this seems almost too impossible to believe, but it appears the very same week Athens, Tennessee police arrested Jimmy Graham Junior (why are they all ‘juniors?’) for intoxication on his riding lawnmower. He was also charged with stealing fishing poles out of his neighbors garage. Video of his sobriety test below:&lt;br /&gt;
  677. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  678. &lt;object classid=&quot;clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000&quot; codebase=&quot;http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0&quot; height=&quot;265&quot; width=&quot;345&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;src&quot; value=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/uFpIj3a-QeE&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;fs=1&amp;amp;&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowfullscreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;embed type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/uFpIj3a-QeE&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;fs=1&amp;amp;&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; height=&quot;265&quot; width=&quot;345&quot;&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  679. &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  680. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;2. Motorized Wheelchair&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  681. &lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;size-medium wp-image-6204 alignright&quot; height=&quot;168&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/motorizedwheelchair-300x300.jpg&quot; title=&quot;motorizedwheelchair&quot; width=&quot;168&quot; /&gt;Everyone knows the Aussies like to drink, but hows &lt;i&gt;this&lt;/i&gt; for a story. In 2008 a man was found asleep in his motorized wheelchair on a highway in Northern Australia, very very drunk. Like blowing a 0.301 kind of drunk. It was also 10 A.M, and he was 64 years old. He claimed he was driving the “nine mile trip” to his friends house.&lt;br /&gt;
  682. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  683. &lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  684. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;3. Zamboni&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;script type=&quot;text/javascript&quot;&gt;
  685. &lt;/script&gt; &lt;ins style=&quot;border: medium none; height: 60px; margin: 0pt; padding: 0pt; position: relative; visibility: visible; width: 468px;&quot;&gt;&lt;ins style=&quot;border: medium none; display: block; height: 60px; margin: 0pt; padding: 0pt; position: relative; visibility: visible; width: 468px;&quot;&gt;&lt;/ins&gt;&lt;/ins&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;size-medium wp-image-6205 alignleft&quot; height=&quot;218&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/zamboni-300x218.jpg&quot; title=&quot;zamboni&quot; width=&quot;300&quot; /&gt;Maine is big into hockey, so it makes sense that they would have ice rinks everywhere. Which means it makes perfect sense when a man from Portland, Maine was arrested right around Christmas time in 2008 for “trying to drive an ice smoothing machine inside a Portland, Maine civic center.” Adam Patterson, a 22 year old, had crashed the Zamboni “into a wall near a storage area.” He was pretty drunk, and my favorite part of the story — “Authorities say he had also tried to operate two forklifts.” Champion.&amp;nbsp;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www2.wnct.com/news/2008/dec/31/me_man_driving_zamboni_faces_dui_charges-ar-51824/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
  686. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;4. Motorized Barstool&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;size-full wp-image-6179 alignleft&quot; height=&quot;219&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/barstool.jpg&quot; title=&quot;barstool&quot; width=&quot;292&quot; /&gt;6′1″, 230-pound Kile Wygle, a 26 year old from Ohio, welded a barstool to a 5 horsepower lawnmower engine and built himself every drunkards perfect form of transport. Well, until he crashed it at around 20 mph and had to be taken to the hopsital for minor injuries. This happened in March of 2009, and he entered a plea of not guilty for his DUI charges. That doesn’t make a lot of sense, because when the police asked him how much he had had to drink, he responded “a lot.” Later clarified to “around 15 beers.” He also said that his motorized barstool can hit a top speed of 38 mph, which is pretty speedy, so he &lt;i&gt;must&lt;/i&gt; be smart.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
  687. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;5. 3-Wheeled ATV&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;This one hails from Kentucky. Just curious, anyone noticing a bit of a trend developing here? Anyway, 18 year old Justin Dale Peters drank “about three beers” and took a 3-wheeled ATV for a drive. He attempted to evade the police, before stopping in a driveway with his hands held in the air. He blew a 0.09 on the breathalyzer, which is disappointingly low.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;aligncenter size-full wp-image-6254&quot; height=&quot;247&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/trikeatv.jpg&quot; title=&quot;trikeatv&quot; width=&quot;620&quot; /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
  688. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;6. Motorized Lay-Z-Boy&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;alignright size-medium wp-image-6181&quot; height=&quot;180&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/layzboy-300x225.png&quot; title=&quot;layzboy&quot; width=&quot;240&quot; /&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;alignleft size-full wp-image-6182&quot; height=&quot;210&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/layzboymugshot.png&quot; title=&quot;layzboymugshot&quot; width=&quot;167&quot; /&gt;In August 2008 a 62 year old Minnesota man drank “eight or nine beers” and drove his motorized Lay-Z-Boy reclining chair into a parked car. Well, more specifically he left a bar while&amp;nbsp;driving his chair (did he drive it to the bar as well?), and &lt;i&gt;then&lt;/i&gt; hit the parked car. The chair was powered by a lawnmower engine (another trend we got going) and was outfitted with a stereo, cupholders, and a magazine rack. He pleaded guilty to drunk driving. But, the story doesn’t end there — the chair has been auctioned off to support the Proctor Police Department. For $3,700. Now that’s just ridiculous.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
  689. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;7. Horse&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;alignright size-full wp-image-6180&quot; height=&quot;180&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/horsecolorado.jpg&quot; title=&quot;horsecolorado&quot; width=&quot;240&quot; /&gt;A Colorado man received a class-B traffic violation in 2009 for drunkenly riding his horse, named Cricket, to a strip mall in Arvada. He said he was out for a “joyride” and was given a $25 ticket. Apparently, this wasn’t the first time he has done this.&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; Even funnier, an Alabaman woman took her horse for a midnight jaunt through town in 2009, and was arrested for being intoxicated and carrying drug paraphernalia. Like, crystal meth and “pills”. 40 year old Melissa Byrum York apparently used the horse to “ram a police car.” I’m really not sure how that works.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17953259/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
  690. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;8. Barbie Power Wheels&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;alignleft size-medium wp-image-6178&quot; height=&quot;134&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/barbiecarpaulhutton-300x187.jpg&quot; title=&quot;barbiecarpaulhutton&quot; width=&quot;216&quot; /&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-6186&quot; height=&quot;150&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/barbiepowerwheels-150x150.jpg&quot; title=&quot;barbiepowerwheels&quot; width=&quot;150&quot; /&gt;Our second entry from overseas, and also from a part of the former British Empire. This is Paul Hutton, 40, from Essex. And he drove a home-built electric vehicle designed for 3-5 year olds, with a top speed of 4 mph, at twice the legal limit. He was initially given a 3-year driving ban, because he had received another drunk-driving offense in the last 10 years. Because the vehicle is “easy capable of being outrun by a pedestrian” his sentence has been reduced. The best part? Its a pink Barbie car. The police confiscated the vehicle, but Mr. Hutton hopes to get it back. I mean, who wouldn’t?&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
  691. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;9. Tricycle&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;alignleft size-full wp-image-6185&quot; height=&quot;146&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/tricycle.jpg&quot; title=&quot;tricycle&quot; width=&quot;194&quot; /&gt;A 58 year old from Oregon was arrested in August 2008 for riding an “adult-sized tricycle” while he was hammered. Do they even make those? Like, is that even a thing? Adult-sized? Anyway, he was booked for drunk driving on a public road. At 2 PM. He rode through a stop sign and down the wrong side of the road, where he was pulled over and failed a field sobriety test.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
  692. &lt;h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;10. Cruizin’ Cooler&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 150%;&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;alignright size-medium wp-image-6267&quot; height=&quot;240&quot; src=&quot;http://www.supertightstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/cruizincoolerdog-300x240.jpg&quot; title=&quot;cruizincoolerdog&quot; width=&quot;300&quot; /&gt;Ah, its time. For the single greatest man-invention ever. The Cruizin Cooler, a motorized cooler scooter that can cruise at about 15 mph. You sit on it, ride down to buy yourself a 6 (or 30) pack, and the beer stays chilled on your ride home. Advertised as the “fastest cooler on the planet” it can even come with a trailer (or many trailers). Genius! Well, it came out in 2006 and took almost &lt;i&gt;2&lt;/i&gt; years for someone to get a DUI on one. 57 year old Leslie J. “Bomber” Marr, from Whitehall NY is the one. He faces felony DUI charges (Felony!) and charges for aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. The cooler contained 14 beers, and Mr. “Bomber” Marr was swerving and riding on the sidewalk. According to police he’s been “riding around town on that cooler for years.” And that is awesome!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/06/10-most-hilarious-ways-to-get-dui.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-254584171825700846</guid><pubDate>Sun, 13 Jun 2010 14:17:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-06-13T10:17:11.622-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">6 DUI Myths — The Truth About DUI</category><title>6 DUI Myths — The Truth About DUI</title><description>&amp;nbsp;Resource:&amp;nbsp; thaipparambil.com&lt;br /&gt;
  693. &lt;br /&gt;
  694. FACT VS. FICTION—THE TRUTH ABOUT DUI&lt;br /&gt;
  695. &lt;br /&gt;
  696. Driving Under the Influence (DUI) is one of the most common criminal infractions reported, but it is also one of the most misunderstood. Among the public, and even among many attorneys, the truth about DUI is riddled with myth. The unfortunate result is that many of those who are accused of driving under the influence do not know their rights. And because they do not know their rights, they do not obtain adequate legal representation and they receive unfair and unjust penalties, regardless of whether they are guilty or innocent. Before we look at each phase of the DUI process in detail, let us begin by setting the record straight on some common and damaging misconceptions.&lt;br /&gt;
  697. &lt;br /&gt;
  698. Myth #1: “Most people accused of DUI are guilty.”&lt;br /&gt;
  699. &lt;br /&gt;
  700. This is what we call The DUI Guilt Myth. Many people unconsciously assume that, if a person is arrested, “they must have done something wrong.” This assumption is especially widespread when it comes to DUI. Though it is understandable why someone might feel this way, this is not the way the law works. It is not the way the law should work. Being accused of a DUI is not a conviction. No matter what your situation is, if you have been accused of driving under the influence, you have every right to the fairness, justice and protection that the American legal system guarantees.&lt;br /&gt;
  701. &lt;br /&gt;
  702. Myth #2: “These cases can’t be won.”&lt;br /&gt;
  703. &lt;br /&gt;
  704. Because they hold this mistaken belief, and because they do not know their rights, many people end up pleading guilty to a DUI charge when they should have fought the flimsy evidence against them.&lt;br /&gt;
  705. &lt;br /&gt;
  706. Myth #3: “DUI cases are just like any other criminal case.”&lt;br /&gt;
  707. &lt;br /&gt;
  708. This couldn’t be further from the truth. DUI law is markedly different from many other areas of law. Some even say that there is a DUI exception to the Constitution. Most of the time, a police officer must have “probable cause” before pulling you over. In layman’s terms, the probable cause requirement means that an officer must have some concrete reason to believe that a person is breaking the law. While this is always true if a single officer pulls you over on the road, consider the fact that, with sobriety checkpoints, a police officer needs nothing more than for you to drive through it.&lt;br /&gt;
  709. &lt;br /&gt;
  710. Myth #4: “A DUI is a minor offense.”&lt;br /&gt;
  711. &lt;br /&gt;
  712. DUI laws get tougher every year. Politicians know that they can gain points among their constituents by increasing the penalties and prosecutions of DUI. Over the years, a DUI charge has become more and more serious in most States. This is yet another reason why it is so crucial that individuals understand the process and the rights they are guaranteed.&lt;br /&gt;
  713. &lt;br /&gt;
  714. Myth #5: “Once you have seen one DUI, you have seen them all.”&lt;br /&gt;
  715. &lt;br /&gt;
  716. Every DUI case is different. One of the worst mistakes you can make —and a tragically common one— is to assume that your case is just like any other. It is not. While prosecutors must stick to a set mold to prove their case, a good defense lawyer will know how to break the mold in your favor.&lt;br /&gt;
  717. &lt;br /&gt;
  718. Myth #6: “Any attorney can represent a person accused of DUI.”&lt;br /&gt;
  719. &lt;br /&gt;
  720. This is like saying that it is fine to see podiatrist for high blood pressure. Like medicine, law is an area where it is impossible to know and do everything. There is no way for one person to have all the necessary knowledge and experience. You might know a lawyer who you are sure is competent, decent and trustworthy—all of which are important traits to look for in an attorney—but these qualities cannot substitute for experience in the area of DUI law.</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/06/6-dui-myths-truth-about-dui.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-5672045968024071416</guid><pubDate>Mon, 10 May 2010 20:00:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-05-10T16:09:53.423-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">San Diego DUI Attorney Challenges Marijuana DUI Laws</category><title>San Diego DUI Attorney Challenges Marijuana DUI Laws</title><description>&lt;object height=&quot;344&quot; width=&quot;425&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;movie&quot; value=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/KOAMDc6SwNo&amp;hl=en_US&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0xe1600f&amp;color2=0xfebd01&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/KOAMDc6SwNo&amp;hl=en_US&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0xe1600f&amp;color2=0xfebd01&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; width=&quot;425&quot; height=&quot;344&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  721. &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS154241+03-Sep-2009+PRN20090903&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;Reuters&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  722. &lt;span id=&quot;articleText&quot;&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;focusParagraph&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  723. San Diego DUI lawyer Lawrence Taylor claimsthat California DUI laws should not be applied&amp;nbsp;to marijuana usage. Unlike alcohol and many drugs, he says, marijuana probably does not impair driving.&lt;br /&gt;
  724. &lt;br /&gt;
  725. Taylor, known nationally as &quot;The Dean of DUI Attorneys,&quot; &lt;br /&gt;
  726. argues that although it has always been assumed that cannabis, like alcohol, affects the ability to safely operate a motor vehicle, the studies do not support that.&lt;br /&gt;
  727. &lt;br /&gt;
  728. On the one hand, the California Department of Justice has found that marijuana impairs psychomotor abilities that are functionally related to driving, particularly at high-dose levels or among inexperienced users. (&quot;Marijuana and Alcohol: A Driver Performance Study,&quot; California Office of Traffic Safety Project No. 087902)&lt;br /&gt;
  729. &lt;br /&gt;
  730. However, the San Diego DUI defense attorney points out, two federal studies contradict this.&lt;br /&gt;
  731. &lt;br /&gt;
  732. In one, the U.S. Department of Transportation conducted DUI research with a fully interactive simulator on the effects of alcohol and marijuana, alone and in combination, on driver-controlled behavior and performance. Although alcohol was found consistently and significantly to cause impairment, marijuana had only an occasional effect. &lt;br /&gt;
  733. &lt;br /&gt;
  734. Accidents and speeding tickets reliably increased with alcohol, but no marijuana or combined alcohol-marijuana influence was noted. (&quot;The Effects of Alcohol on Driver-Controlled Behavior in a Driving Simulator, Phase I&quot;(DOT-HS-806-414).)&lt;br /&gt;
  735. &lt;br /&gt;
  736. Taylor, who heads a large firm of DUI attorneys with offices in Los Angeles,San Diego, Orange County, Riverside and San Francisco, points to another more recent report. Entitled &quot;Marijuana and Actual Performance&quot; (DOT-HS-808-078), it also found that &quot;THC is not a profoundly impairing drug....It apparently affects controlled information processing in a variety of laboratory tests, but not to the extent which is beyond the individual&#39;s ability to control when he is motivated and permitted to do so in driving.&quot; &lt;br /&gt;
  737. &lt;br /&gt;
  738. The researchers found that it &quot;appears not possible to conclude anything about a driver&#39;s impairment on the basis of his/her plasma concentrations of THC and THC-COOH determined in a single sample.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  739. &lt;br /&gt;
  740. THC, Taylor explains, is the intoxicating ingredient in marijuana, and is fairly quickly converted by the body into inactive metabolites -- which can stay in the body for hours or even days. But it is these metabolites that&lt;br /&gt;
  741. police are measuring in blood tests taken after drunk driving arrests. &lt;br /&gt;
  742. &lt;br /&gt;
  743. In other words, the San Diego DUI lawyer says, (1) marijuana may not impair driving ability at all, and (2) the blood &quot;evidence&quot; only measures an inactive substance which may have been there for days. &lt;br /&gt;
  744. &lt;br /&gt;
  745. For more information, visit the firm&#39;s website at http://sandiego.duicentral.com/.&amp;nbsp; Inquiries may be directed to the firm&#39;s San Diego office: 619.232.5034.&lt;br /&gt;
  746. &lt;br /&gt;
  747. About THE LAW OFFICES OF LAWRENCE TAYLOR&lt;br /&gt;
  748. The Law Offices of Lawrence Taylor has specialized in DUI defense exclusively for 29 years, and is unique in having a staff of former California DUI law enforcement experts. The firm&#39;s California DUI defense attorneys serve clients statewide from offices in Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County, Riverside and San Francisco. &lt;br /&gt;
  749. &lt;object height=&quot;344&quot; width=&quot;425&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;movie&quot; value=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/usVjwg9Whzo&amp;hl=en_US&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0xe1600f&amp;color2=0xfebd01&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/usVjwg9Whzo&amp;hl=en_US&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0xe1600f&amp;color2=0xfebd01&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; width=&quot;425&quot; height=&quot;344&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/05/san-diego-dui-attorney-challenges.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-9150337066748911768</guid><pubDate>Sat, 01 May 2010 18:11:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-05-01T14:48:47.250-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">DUI Charges: Watch Out What You Put on Facebook</category><title>DUI Charges: Watch Out What You Put on Facebook</title><description>&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.polkcountyduilawyers.com/uncategorized/dui-charges-watch-put-facebook/&quot;&gt;Polk County DUI Defense Lawyer&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  750. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1vd7JwlYnAS6NW0C41Nzqd9TJd_uYBuJLq-hixEmjadJ-w4zwJnEgi4lHyr0ijZRW20_1-eV2Vqhp_YdbRvzm0vxMWhAl6dkM_lZ16l-LKPKxsF_Rg1YvEUMFmGKVy-2fkf59QegjxPc/s1600/facebook.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1vd7JwlYnAS6NW0C41Nzqd9TJd_uYBuJLq-hixEmjadJ-w4zwJnEgi4lHyr0ijZRW20_1-eV2Vqhp_YdbRvzm0vxMWhAl6dkM_lZ16l-LKPKxsF_Rg1YvEUMFmGKVy-2fkf59QegjxPc/s320/facebook.JPG&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;Facebook and other social media sites have become a prime place for prosecutors to gather evidence against DUI suspects in Florida and across the country. People, especially underage drinkers, feel posting pictures of themselves partying is harmless, but we are constantly seeing it come back to bite them. For example, if someone is arrested for DUI on 1-1-10 and pleads not guilty, a picture of them at a New Year’s party that night drinking alcohol can go a long way if the prosecutor gets their hands on it (and they will).&lt;br /&gt;
  751. &lt;br /&gt;
  752. There was even a story recently in which a juvenile girl was charged with DUI manslaughter where an alcohol related post on Facebook directly caused her to be sentenced as an adult. Apparently, the girl who was charged with killing her boyfriend driving drunk posted a picture of herself captioned ‘drunk in Florida’ just months after the crash. When the judge saw the photo he decided to charge her as an adult.&lt;br /&gt;
  753. &lt;br /&gt;
  754. I am not condoning drinking and driving and I understand pictures of this nature seem OK because you never plan on being arrested for DUI in the first place. All I am saying is be smart. Is it really necessary to show the world (or your group of friends) you were up all night drinking?&lt;br /&gt;
  755. &lt;br /&gt;
  756. No matter what people think, content that is put on Facebook is available to anyone and everyone. Don’t get me wrong, privacy settings are great – but they aren’t 100 percent effective. Back in March, Facebook had a &lt;a href=&quot;http://racetalkblog.com/2008/03/26/facebook-security-lapse-reveals-photo-albums/&quot;&gt;security lapse&lt;/a&gt; that allowed the Associated Press to access anyone’s photo albums. These things happen and they are inevitable.&lt;br /&gt;
  757. &lt;br /&gt;
  758. That’s why new members of the NYPD are encouraged to clean out their Facebook and MySpace profiles. For the first time, the NYPD is formally investigating all social networks to review the lives of every recruit who wants to be a police officer. This new initiative can’t come at a better time, as &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.newsday.com/services/newspaper/printedition/tuesday/news/ny-nyface065675274may06,0,6230359.story&quot; onclick=&quot;javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(&#39;/outbound/article/www.newsday.com&#39;);&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;Newsday&lt;/i&gt; reports&lt;/a&gt;:&lt;br /&gt;
  759. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;The NYPD initiative, which went into effect when the current Police Academy class was sworn in Jan. 8, comes at a fitting time. Rookie cop Christian Torres, arrested last month and charged with robbing a Sovereign Bank in Pennsylvania and a Sovereign branch in Manhattan twice, had a MySpace account that would make any NYPD investigator wince. The page, now private and accessible only to his friends, listed his profession as “Oink,” an apparent reference to “pig,” a derogatory term for police.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span id=&quot;more-243&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  760. The page also had a cartoon about robbing banks and a video in which Torres is seen skating on a half-pipe ramp. The video, police sources said, struck Internal Affairs as the work of an immature man and not representative of the serious image the NYPD wants to project.&lt;/blockquote&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;Clearly, not everyone has thought twice before posting something to Facebook. Last week, &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.allfacebook.com/2008/04/basketball-player-kicked-off-facebook-for-ad/&quot; onclick=&quot;javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(&#39;/outbound/article/www.allfacebook.com&#39;);&quot;&gt;AllFacebook.com reported&lt;/a&gt; that Andy Robinson, a member of the University of Buffalo basketball team posted an ad on Facebook in which he offered to pay someone to write a paper for him:&lt;/div&gt;&lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;I am paying anybody who have read the book ‘there are no children here’ by Alex Kotlowitz $30-40 which in some classes you have to read at UB (even more money if you have to read the book a little more!!) to write a 3-4 page paper, on a couple questions which was assigned.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;This post effectively ended Andy’s basketball career at the University of Buffalo.&lt;/div&gt;The issues with security and privacy may be best summarized by Clint Boulton, in his &lt;a href=&quot;http://racetalkblog.com/2008/03/28/qa-with-eweeks-clint-boulton/&quot;&gt;Q&amp;amp;A with RaceTalk&lt;/a&gt; in March, in which he said, “The social network has, unfortunately, become a snooping tool.”&lt;br /&gt;
  761. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;The lesson here is that even though items posted on social networks may not be meant for just anyone to see, assume that it will be seen by everyone. Better to be safe than sorry.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;resource:&amp;nbsp; racetalkblog.com&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;object width=&quot;425&quot; height=&quot;344&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;movie&quot; value=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/KpLNlSKugHw&amp;hl=en_US&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/KpLNlSKugHw&amp;hl=en_US&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; width=&quot;425&quot; height=&quot;344&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/05/dui-charges-watch-out-what-you-put-on.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1vd7JwlYnAS6NW0C41Nzqd9TJd_uYBuJLq-hixEmjadJ-w4zwJnEgi4lHyr0ijZRW20_1-eV2Vqhp_YdbRvzm0vxMWhAl6dkM_lZ16l-LKPKxsF_Rg1YvEUMFmGKVy-2fkf59QegjxPc/s72-c/facebook.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-4045663066994527911</guid><pubDate>Sun, 11 Apr 2010 04:06:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-04-11T00:06:40.591-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Marijuana starting to look like a new revenue source for states</category><title>Marijuana starting to look like a new revenue source for states</title><description>&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/nation/marijuana-starting-to-look-like-a-new-revenue-source-for-states&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;Your State. Your News.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  762. Mary Lou Dickerson had seen enough. After wrenching cuts to Washington&#39;s state drug and alcohol treatment programs, Dickerson, a Democratic representative, introduced a bill this year to sell marijuana in state liquor stores — and tax it.&lt;br /&gt;
  763. &lt;br /&gt;
  764. Dickerson is an unlikely crusader for marijuana legalization. A 63-year-old grandmother who doesn&#39;t use it, she says money was the only reason for proposing her controversial bill. &quot;According to the state&#39;s own estimates, it would bring in an additional $300 million per biennium,&quot; she says. &quot;I dedicated (in the bill) a great deal of the proceeds from the tax on marijuana to treatment.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  765. &lt;br /&gt;
  766. The proposal died in committee, but Dickerson, who chairs the House Human Services Committee, expects to reintroduce it. Other advocates in almost two dozen states have been making similar efforts to loosen marijuana laws.&lt;br /&gt;
  767. &lt;br /&gt;
  768. This has been a bumper year for marijuana legislation, according to state policy observers. Crushing state budget deficits gave advocates in California, Washington, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, New York and elsewhere an opening to pitch marijuana as a new source of tax revenue. At the same time, the Obama administration gave users and distributors some breathing room by signaling in October that it would scale back on prosecuting them as long as they comply with state law.&lt;br /&gt;
  769. &lt;br /&gt;
  770. Eighteen states discussed medical marijuana through legislation or citizen initiatives this year, an unusually high number. Most visibly, California election officials announced on March 24, that this year&#39;s ballot would include a question to allow local governments to legalize and tax marijuana, casting a spotlight on the state that first legalized medical marijuana in 1996.&lt;br /&gt;
  771. &lt;br /&gt;
  772. While most state legislative efforts are likely to fail, a victory in California could encourage other states to follow suit just as they did when California approved medical marijuana. A 2009 poll found 56 percent of California voters support outright legalization. Estimates from California&#39;s Board of Equalization peg the amount the state could raise from marijuana legalization at $1.4 billion.&lt;br /&gt;
  773. &lt;br /&gt;
  774. But those projections rest on shaky assumptions that the state could keep track of growers and that distributors would accurately disclose their sales, if at all. And since marijuana is still illegal under federal law, it&#39;s unclear how the Obama administration would ultimately react to more permissive state marijuana laws. Officials have struggled for years with the legal questions posed by state and federal marijuana laws that appear to be in conflict.&lt;br /&gt;
  775. &lt;blockquote&gt;&quot;The more people talk about marijuana laws the more people come to the conclusion that they&#39;ve completely failed, so we&#39;re definitely optimistic here,&quot; said Aaron Smith, California policy director for the Marijuana Policy Project.&lt;/blockquote&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;marijuanachart040510_opt&quot; height=&quot;559&quot; src=&quot;http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/images/stories/misc2/marijuanachart040510_opt.jpg&quot; style=&quot;float: right; margin: 10px;&quot; width=&quot;450&quot; /&gt;Meanwhile, opponents of legalization in California are gearing up for their own campaign, knowing that the rest of the country will be watching. &quot;We have a lot of pressure on us,&quot; says Aimee Hendle, statewide coordinator of Californians for Drug Free Youth. She sees marijuana advocates as opportunists exploiting the state&#39;s financial distress.&lt;br /&gt;
  776. &quot;They are seeing the vulnerability of the citizens of California with the state of our state,&quot; she says.&lt;br /&gt;
  777. Arizona is also going this route for new tax revenue. Senators there have already approved levying the state sales tax on medical marijuana, even though voters won&#39;t weigh in on medical marijuana until this November&#39;s ballot. In Nevada, marijuana advocates are busy collecting signatures to place a legalization measure on the state&#39;s 2012 ballot. Rather than leaving the question of legalization up to local governments, as California&#39;s initiative does, Nevada&#39;s proposal would legalize and tax marijuana statewide. Nevada voters have already approved medical marijuana.&lt;br /&gt;
  778. &lt;blockquote&gt;David Schwartz, campaign manager for Nevadans for Sensible Drug Laws, will be watching his counterparts in California. &quot;If they win, it will be a stark event in the long battle to end marijuana prohibitions in this country,&quot; he says.&lt;/blockquote&gt;In South Dakota, Emmet Reistroffer is also among those following the news from California. Last year, he took time off from the University of South Dakota to gather signatures for a medical marijuana ballot initiative. It was a home-grown effort, drawing 40 volunteers, almost no national attention and no funding from major marijuana policy groups. Reistroffer, a Sioux Falls 20-year-old, took a part-time job at a local bar to make ends meet.&lt;br /&gt;
  779. &lt;br /&gt;
  780. While he says he doesn&#39;t necessarily support outright legalization, he wants to make marijuana accessible for patients like his mother, who suffers from lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. She has used marijuana in the past, he says.&lt;br /&gt;
  781. &lt;blockquote&gt;&quot;While I was growing up I had friends in DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education),&quot; he says. I&#39;ve always looked at it very differently. I&#39;ve always seen this injustice and felt obligated to do something about it.&quot;&lt;/blockquote&gt;Reistroffer plans to spend his summer trying to convince voters at county fairs. In 2006, voters turned down a medical marijuana measure on a close vote, the only state that has ever done so. If the measure passes this year, it will mark a significant shift in South Dakota&#39;s attitude towards the herb, he says.&lt;br /&gt;
  782. &lt;br /&gt;
  783. But states shouldn&#39;t count on a revenue bonanza from marijuana since distributors still risk federal prosecution by emerging from the shadows, according to Robert Mikos, a Vanderbilt University law professor. Ideally, the thousands of small-scale marijuana farm operations would consolidate into larger groups that would be easy for states to tax, but the federal ban makes that unlikely, he says.&lt;br /&gt;
  784. &lt;blockquote&gt;&quot;If you get too big, you attract the attention of the federal government. If you&#39;re a mom-and-pop marijuana distributor in California right now, you have almost no concern about the federal ban,&quot; Mikos says.&lt;/blockquote&gt;Also, states would have to keep track of growers who have paid taxes. &quot;That&#39;s a goldmine of information for the federal government,&quot; Mikos says. &quot;If California requires marijuana distributors to keep records of all their sales the federal government could sweep in, take that information and use it to prosecute these people.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  785. In October, the Justice Department released a memo indicating it would back off from prosecuting medical marijuana users who are complying with state law, but the memo did not say the department would tolerate outright legalization in states, opening up more legal ambiguities.&lt;br /&gt;
  786. &lt;br /&gt;
  787. &quot;The federal government will continue to try to combat recreational marijuana so California is kind of getting ahead of itself,&quot; Mikos says.&lt;br /&gt;
  788. &lt;br /&gt;
  789. But Hendle and other opponents of legalization will also keep up their fight. &quot;Even if you say it&#39;s only for people over the age of 21, that&#39;s what they say about alcohol and look at all the underage drinking that we have,&quot; she says. &quot;We&#39;re now going to make this a larger problem.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  790. &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.stateline.org/live/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 10pt;&quot;&gt;STATELINE.ORG&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/04/marijuana-starting-to-look-like-new.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>2</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-2463684329388276535</guid><pubDate>Sat, 20 Feb 2010 16:16:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-02-20T11:16:58.706-05:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Marijuana laws loosen gradually around the globe</category><title>Marijuana laws loosen gradually around the globe</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3_-RDZy2Xo4B4RSaVSSR5pN9e9WZkFo4LBpfml09sLEQtofhEO-uqpjhbaAwkmpGLTDZ_Axgz6Tw_Ifw-gcBVm-KU-W3BUdriKkMOwbORLhALCGJ4M_UFp6Scm-tHnRHIQIDhGTG3yGU/s1600-h/usmedmj.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;273&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3_-RDZy2Xo4B4RSaVSSR5pN9e9WZkFo4LBpfml09sLEQtofhEO-uqpjhbaAwkmpGLTDZ_Axgz6Tw_Ifw-gcBVm-KU-W3BUdriKkMOwbORLhALCGJ4M_UFp6Scm-tHnRHIQIDhGTG3yGU/s400/usmedmj.JPG&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  791. &lt;br /&gt;
  792. &lt;br /&gt;
  793. &lt;br /&gt;
  794. &lt;br /&gt;
  795. &lt;br /&gt;
  796. &lt;br /&gt;
  797. &lt;br /&gt;
  798. &lt;br /&gt;
  799. &lt;br /&gt;
  800. &lt;br /&gt;
  801. &lt;br /&gt;
  802. &lt;br /&gt;
  803. &lt;br /&gt;
  804. &lt;br /&gt;
  805. &lt;a href=&quot;http://worldfocus.org/blog/2010/02/19/marijuana-laws-loosen-gradually-around-the-globe/9724/&quot;&gt;Worldfocus&lt;/a&gt;: &quot;During a recent rise in drug violence along the Mexican border, many critics of the drug war have called for a change in U.S. policy toward marijuana use.&lt;br /&gt;
  806. &lt;br /&gt;
  807. Worldfocus compares current marijuana policy throughout the U.S. to policy in Europe and the rest of the world.&lt;br /&gt;
  808. &lt;br /&gt;
  809. The American decriminalization of marijuana has been a gradual process, with New Jersey becoming the 14th state to allow marijuana for medical use in January.&lt;br /&gt;
  810. &lt;br /&gt;
  811. This map shows 15 states that allow medical marijuana, including Maryland — a state not often included because the law there only reduces penalties for medical marijuana use.&lt;br /&gt;
  812. &lt;br /&gt;
  813. &lt;br /&gt;
  814. Following New Jersey’s change, Emily S. Rueb wrote in the New York Times‘ City Room about the potential for medical marijuana in New York:&lt;br /&gt;
  815. &lt;br /&gt;
  816. But though 14 states have now legalized medical marijuana, New York, which has relatively liberal possession laws and actually passed a medical-marijuana law in 1980 but never put it to use, remains forbidden ground for those who seek to relieve their symptoms with cannabis. This year, however, supporters of medical marijuana in Albany and elsewhere hope to harness what they see as growing momentum.&lt;br /&gt;
  817. &lt;br /&gt;
  818. In an October 2009 Gallup poll, 54 percent of Americans said they were opposed to legalizing marijuana, while 44 percent — a historical high — said they were in favor of legalization.&lt;br /&gt;
  819. &lt;br /&gt;
  820. Across the Atlantic, countries such as the Netherlands are famous for allowing the personal use and sale of marijuana, while many other European nations have decriminalized the drug to varying levels.&lt;br /&gt;
  821. &lt;br /&gt;
  822. The Czech Republic legalized the cultivation of up to five marijuana plants for personal use on January 1. Here’s a map showing the range of European marijuana restrictions:&lt;br /&gt;
  823. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV8E1XG3w6PEwbZSE67W5DCFRbXFqWZcU9UXtbnxlh_0TW2KnbgkQfRSTVMqXWP28Q3GYqO4tuSk-57wvByLMdCaEcI7Sdq5gfRKkgc7Tj06PBhQ838AAd3-POTpv8NEn8k3ICBhtFEL8/s1600-h/othermj.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;297&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV8E1XG3w6PEwbZSE67W5DCFRbXFqWZcU9UXtbnxlh_0TW2KnbgkQfRSTVMqXWP28Q3GYqO4tuSk-57wvByLMdCaEcI7Sdq5gfRKkgc7Tj06PBhQ838AAd3-POTpv8NEn8k3ICBhtFEL8/s400/othermj.JPG&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  824. &lt;br /&gt;
  825. &lt;br /&gt;
  826. &lt;br /&gt;
  827. &lt;br /&gt;
  828. &lt;br /&gt;
  829. &lt;br /&gt;
  830. &lt;br /&gt;
  831. &lt;br /&gt;
  832. &lt;br /&gt;
  833. &lt;br /&gt;
  834. &lt;br /&gt;
  835. &lt;br /&gt;
  836. &lt;br /&gt;
  837. &lt;br /&gt;
  838. &lt;br /&gt;
  839. The status of marijuana laws in Europe. (Iceland not to scale). Map: Wikimedia Commons&lt;br /&gt;
  840. &lt;br /&gt;
  841. Europeans’ attitudes towards marijuana decriminalization are not as simple as some might assume. In his blog Travel as a Political Act,  travel writer Rick Steves discusses the real Dutch view of marijuana policy:&lt;br /&gt;
  842. &lt;br /&gt;
  843. The Dutch are not necessarily “pro-marijuana.” In fact, most have never tried it or even set foot in a coffeeshop. They just don’t think the state has any business preventing the people who want it from getting it in a sensible way. To appease Dutch people who aren’t comfortable with marijuana, an integral component of the coffeeshop system is discretion. It’s bad form to smoke marijuana openly while walking down the street. Dutch people who don’t like pot don’t have to encounter or even smell it.  And towns that don’t want coffeeshops don’t have them. Occasionally a coffeeshop license will not be renewed in a particular neighborhood, as the city wants to keep a broad smattering of shops (away from schools) rather than a big concentration in any one area.&lt;br /&gt;
  844. &lt;br /&gt;
  845. In Latin America too, drug laws have begun to loosen up, after decades of zero-tolerance policies. Mexico recently decriminalized the possession of up to 5 grams (0.18 oz.) of marijuana for personal use.&lt;br /&gt;
  846. &lt;br /&gt;
  847. Global Voices blogger Issa Villarreal writes about the popular response to Mexico’s shift:&lt;br /&gt;
  848. &lt;br /&gt;
  849. Reactions are mixed, but certainly two things always came up in discussions: the situation of violence and murder in several Mexican cities related to the narco and drug trafficking, and also the haste approval. It can be said that an important part of the distribution of the story was “hand to hand” through social networks and re-publishing in independent media, but not properly from newspapers, which also carries some critique. Among the discussions, the difference between legalization and decriminalization was a frequent one, considering that the latter holds specific limits of use.&lt;br /&gt;
  850. &lt;br /&gt;
  851. Also from Global Voices, Juliana Rincón Parra writes about citizen groups around the world pushing for legalization:&lt;br /&gt;
  852. &lt;br /&gt;
  853. There are groups of people advocating for the legalization of drugs, but what would that actually mean? From Hungary to Colombia, from youth to teachers, from cops and clergy, individuals and groups are taking to citizen media to put forth their arguments regarding this potentially controversial subject.&quot;</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/02/marijuana-laws-loosen-gradually-around.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3_-RDZy2Xo4B4RSaVSSR5pN9e9WZkFo4LBpfml09sLEQtofhEO-uqpjhbaAwkmpGLTDZ_Axgz6Tw_Ifw-gcBVm-KU-W3BUdriKkMOwbORLhALCGJ4M_UFp6Scm-tHnRHIQIDhGTG3yGU/s72-c/usmedmj.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-896440618986484659</guid><pubDate>Sun, 14 Feb 2010 19:09:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-02-14T14:09:11.202-05:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Doctor to open pot clinic in Kalamazoo MI to help patients</category><title>Doctor to open pot clinic in Kalamazoo, MI to help patients</title><description>&lt;h5&gt;February 14, 2010, 7:00AM&lt;/h5&gt;&lt;h5&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/02/post_35.html&quot;&gt;mlive.com &lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h5&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;mt-enclosure mt-enclosure-photo&quot; style=&quot;display: inline;&quot;&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;photo-breakout photo-center large&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;0224778_4.jpg&quot; src=&quot;http://media.mlive.com/kzgazette_impact/photo/0224778-4jpg-9eb72b6057cd8743_large.jpg&quot; /&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;byline&quot;&gt;SPECIAL TO THE GAZETTE/CHRIS KILLIAN&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;caption&quot;&gt;Dr. David Crocker, 44, stands outside Michigan Holistic Health, a medical marijuana clinic he is opening on Monday. It will be the first full-time medical marijuana clinic in Southwest Michigan. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  854. &lt;b&gt;KALAMAZOO — &lt;/b&gt;Dr. David Crocker has never given a recommendation for a patient to use medical marijuana to treat a debilitating condition.&lt;br /&gt;
  855. &lt;br /&gt;
  856. But that will change Monday when Crocker is set to open Michigan Holistic Health — the first full-time medical marijuana clinic in Southwest Michigan — at 500 W. Crosstown Parkway, near the corner of South Westnedge Avenue, in Kalamazoo.&lt;br /&gt;
  857. &lt;br /&gt;
  858. “I think we’re going to be very busy, very fast,” said Crocker, 44. “This is a service that is really lacking in this area.”&lt;br /&gt;
  859. &lt;br /&gt;
  860. A graduate of the University of South Florida’s medical school, Crocker’s most recent job was at the Veterans Administration’s Sierra Nevada Health Care System in Reno, Nevada, where he served as an interventional radiologist.&lt;br /&gt;
  861. &lt;br /&gt;
  862. A strong belief in the healing and treatment properties of marijuana brought him to Michigan six months ago to become a medical-marijuana patient caregiver and practice medicine on the side, he said.&lt;br /&gt;
  863. &lt;br /&gt;
  864. He eventually became a caregiver, allowing him to help up to five patients grow their marijuana and take the drug. &lt;br /&gt;
  865. &lt;br /&gt;
  866. But while talking to John Targowski, a Kalamazoo attorney, he was urged by the lawyer to open a medical-marijuana clinic. To operate such a clinic, a person must either be a medical doctor or a doctor of osteopathy, according to state law.&lt;br /&gt;
  867. &lt;br /&gt;
  868. &amp;nbsp;“I’ve wanted to do this for as long as I can remember,”&amp;nbsp; said Crocker, whose wife’s family lives in the area. “You could say that everything has just fallen into place.”&lt;br /&gt;
  869. &lt;br /&gt;
  870. &lt;b&gt;Few clinics &lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  871. There are a handful of medical-marijuana clinics in the state.&lt;br /&gt;
  872. &lt;br /&gt;
  873. One is in Jackson, another in Farmington Hills, a suburb of Detroit. Another clinic is the Hemp and Cannabis Foundation Clinic in Southfield, also near Detroit. It is one of several clinics the foundation operates in 11 states that have medical-marijuana laws.&lt;br /&gt;
  874. &lt;br /&gt;
  875. Ricky G, who manages the Southfield clinic — which opened on Dec. 4, 2008, the day the medical-marijuana law took effect — said between 30 and 45 patients come into his clinic each day. About 60 percent are seeking a medical-marijuana recommendation to treat chronic pain, he said.&lt;br /&gt;
  876. &lt;br /&gt;
  877. Two contracted physicians work for the clinic, seeing patients at the Southfield office as many as three days a week and crisscrossing the state on other days. The physicians will set up a mobile clinic in Kalamazoo on Feb. 25 to consult with those seeking to use medical marijuana.&lt;br /&gt;
  878. &lt;br /&gt;
  879. Many doctors who are open to recommending marijuana to treat pain travel around the state, setting-up makeshift clinics in hotels to examine and consult with patients.&lt;br /&gt;
  880. &lt;br /&gt;
  881. “It’s a traveling road show, if you will,” he said.&lt;br /&gt;
  882. &lt;br /&gt;
  883. If the foot traffic at the Hemp and Cannabis Foundation Clinic in Southfield is any indication of the demand for medical marijuana, the Kalamazoo clinic is going to have plenty of business, he said.&lt;br /&gt;
  884. &lt;br /&gt;
  885. “Demand is high and it’s growing. There are a lot of people to see,” he said. “Most of them are poor. They don’t have a lot of money, but we’re here to help them.&lt;br /&gt;
  886. &lt;br /&gt;
  887. “I wish I had more physicians,” he said.&lt;br /&gt;
  888. &lt;br /&gt;
  889. &lt;b&gt;How it works&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  890. People who come to Crocker’s clinic in Kalamazoo will be asked to do the following: &lt;br /&gt;
  891. &lt;br /&gt;
  892. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Provide their medical records.— If they don’t have any medical records, a record of their condition or conditions would be started. For example, the person could keep a log of what hurts and the severity and frequency for a week or two.&lt;/li&gt;
  893. &lt;/ul&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Fill out a medical-history questionnaire.&lt;/li&gt;
  894. &lt;/ul&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Receive an examination. Crocker will answer any questions.&lt;/li&gt;
  895. &lt;/ul&gt;When the paperwork and examination are completed, Crocker will determine if the person qualifies to use medical marijuana. If they do, the clinic collects a $200 fee and helps the patient with paperwork that must be submitted to the Michigan Department of Community Health, which authorizes the required identification card indicating the person is a registered medical-marijuana user.&lt;br /&gt;
  896. &lt;br /&gt;
  897. The clinic does not help a patient acquire their marijuana. If a patient doesn’t qualify, there is no charge for the visit.&lt;br /&gt;
  898. &lt;br /&gt;
  899. To obtain a recommendation, the state lists conditions that qualify a person to receive medical marijuana. They include chronic pain, glaucoma, cancer, AIDS/HIV, chronic muscle spasms, multiple sclerosis, seizures and migraine headaches, among other conditions.&lt;br /&gt;
  900. &lt;br /&gt;
  901. The Michigan Department of Community Health is inundated with applications, receiving 79 per day on average, officials said. Currently, applications filed in November are under review. &lt;br /&gt;
  902. As of Feb. 5, 16,028 applications for medical marijuana had been received and 8,395 were approved, along with 3,487 caregiver registrations. Some 2,663 applications have been denied, mostly because of paperwork errors.&lt;br /&gt;
  903. &lt;br /&gt;
  904. The medical-marijuana law states that a copy of the application can be used as a temporary ID card if the applicant hasn’t received their ID card or a rejection letter within 20 days of submitting their application. The state charges a $100 fee, reduced to $25 for low-income applicants, for the identification card. &lt;br /&gt;
  905. &lt;br /&gt;
  906. &lt;b&gt;Police: Avoid abuses&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  907. Capt. Joseph Taylor, commander of the Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team, which targets illegal drug use in Kalamazoo County, said he has no problem with Crocker’s clinic as long as it’s run “ethically and legally.”&lt;br /&gt;
  908. &lt;br /&gt;
  909. “I don’t see it as being a problem for us,” Taylor said. “I don’t see it being an area of difficulty as long as it isn’t run as a business that rubber-stamps (the recommendations) for people who might abuse it.”&lt;br /&gt;
  910. &lt;br /&gt;
  911. Michigan’s medical-marijuana law was passed by voters in November 2008 and went into effect a month later. It allows registered patients to grow up to 12 marijuana plants and possess up to 2.5 ounces of usable marijuana.&lt;br /&gt;
  912. &lt;br /&gt;
  913. Crocker said he knows that even though medical marijuana is legal to possess and use in the state by those with approval, pot is still a sensitive issue — especially for law enforcement.&lt;br /&gt;
  914. “I’m going to do this tastefully,” he said. “I’m not here to slap local law enforcement or the more conservative members of this community in the face.&lt;br /&gt;
  915. &lt;br /&gt;
  916. “I’m not here to create tension or trouble. I’m here to help patients.”&lt;br /&gt;
  917. &lt;br /&gt;
  918. &lt;br /&gt;
  919. &lt;b&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 1.5625em;&quot;&gt;Michigan Holistic Health&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  920. &lt;b&gt;What: &lt;/b&gt;Full-time medical marijuana clinic.&lt;br /&gt;
  921. &lt;b&gt;Where:&lt;/b&gt; 500 W. Crosstown Parkway, Kalamazoo.&lt;br /&gt;
  922. &lt;b&gt;Hours:&lt;/b&gt; 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mondays through Fridays.&lt;br /&gt;
  923. &lt;b&gt;On the Web: &lt;/b&gt;www.michiganholistichealth.com.&lt;br /&gt;
  924. &lt;b&gt;Practitioner:&lt;/b&gt; Dr. David Crocker.&lt;br /&gt;
  925. &lt;b&gt;Charge:&lt;/b&gt; $200 pays for a consultation and examination with Crocker, and the submission of paperwork to receive an identification card authorizing the use of medical marijuana. If a patient doesn’t qualify for medical marijuana, there is no charge.</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/02/doctor-to-open-pot-clinic-in-kalamazoo.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-8015385034015396246</guid><pubDate>Tue, 26 Jan 2010 17:37:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-01-26T12:37:31.250-05:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Vodka price hike a shot to the wallet</category><title>Vodka price hike a shot to the wallet</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXJgqLfckrYq6ugfljpkIr8kx9W4CBx1edDmyyxazdo02zDnUprSd5h7ziiAqcBehdRqKIvR6pVWqffdIPLrNv85l5jCXdZRkOne6GBPkwMfLD_kWsiFbGk6YP87mRtL_-Ii2MYcvbVY/s1600-h/russian+vodka.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;200&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXJgqLfckrYq6ugfljpkIr8kx9W4CBx1edDmyyxazdo02zDnUprSd5h7ziiAqcBehdRqKIvR6pVWqffdIPLrNv85l5jCXdZRkOne6GBPkwMfLD_kWsiFbGk6YP87mRtL_-Ii2MYcvbVY/s200/russian+vodka.JPG&quot; width=&quot;120&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  926. &lt;/div&gt;Maybe you read about this: The Kremlin has doubled the price of vodka to discourage Russians from imbibing the national drink. They blame vodka for runaway alcoholism, shoddy work and early death.&lt;br /&gt;
  927. &lt;br /&gt;
  928. What a joke. Not the problem, the solution.&lt;br /&gt;
  929. &lt;br /&gt;
  930. Every time they try to keep vodka away from Russians, it fails miserably. Imagine banning wine in France, scotch in Scotland, or bourbon in Kentucky, and then multiply the reaction about tenfold.&lt;br /&gt;
  931. &lt;br /&gt;
  932. When Mikhail Gorbachev tried it in the early 1980s, the comrades started making booze in their bathtubs. There was also a run on antifreeze, shaving lotion and rubbing alcohol. They had to finally give up when emergency rooms became overcrowded.&lt;br /&gt;
  933. &lt;br /&gt;
  934. Now, as a New Year&#39;s present to his people, President Dmitry Medvedev has doubled the minimum price from the ruble equivalent of $1.60 to $3.25 for a half-liter. That might sound like peanuts, but the average Russian worker only earns $650 a month.&lt;br /&gt;
  935. &lt;br /&gt;
  936. Why I am telling you this? Because vodka is by far the most popular hard liquor in this country, too. &quot;No contest,&quot; said Edward &quot;Buddy&quot; Nejaime, owner of Nejaime&#39;s Spirit Shoppe in Torrington. &quot;We sell about 30 brands and flavors.&quot; Other package stores in the area confirm that vodka easily outsells all other hooch.&lt;br /&gt;
  937. &lt;br /&gt;
  938. But we treat vodka differently than the Russians do. We mix it with fruity fluids and other dilutants, and, sometimes pretend we don&#39;t even drink it. As one ad claimed, &quot;It leaves you breathless&quot; — meaning it&#39;s harder to detect on your breath.&lt;br /&gt;
  939. &lt;br /&gt;
  940. Russians don&#39;t mix vodka with anything, including ice, and don&#39;t worry much about their breath. They drink it straight from a frozen shot glass. No sipping allowed. Food is the preferred chaser. Vodka is mostly consumed at the dinner table, not standing around clinking glasses. Seated is clearly the best position to be in.&lt;br /&gt;
  941. &lt;br /&gt;
  942. The Russian reputation for loquaciousness seems to be directly related to the fine art of dinner toasts, which provide the best excuse for downing yet another shot.&lt;br /&gt;
  943. &lt;br /&gt;
  944. Vodka is also one of the few inventions Russia can legitimately lay claim to, dating back to the 14th century, although the Poles were pretty close. The Slavic word is a derivative of &quot;water,&quot; which gives you some idea of its importance.&lt;br /&gt;
  945. &lt;br /&gt;
  946. The equivalent of 2.1 billion quarts of it are produced each year in the former Soviet Union, and the average Russian drinks 19 of them.&lt;br /&gt;
  947. &lt;br /&gt;
  948. America, with more than twice the population, downs about 20 percent of that per capita, according to liquor industry statistics.&lt;br /&gt;
  949. &lt;br /&gt;
  950. When I lived in Moscow in the 1970s, vodka was very cheap for foreigners because we paid hard-currency dollars that were coveted by the Soviets. In fact, it was so cheap that it made very good windshield wiper fluid, especially in the winter, because it never froze. The first time I ever saw a grown Russian man cry was when my neighbor watched me pour a bottle of Stoly under the hood.&lt;br /&gt;
  951. &lt;br /&gt;
  952. Designer vodkas from such funny places as Sweden, Holland, Finland and America are a fairly recent development, but anathema to a true Russian. Because vodka is little more than watered down ethyl alcohol, with a few impurities to give it flavor, paying up to $40 a bottle is, well, a marketing achievement.&lt;br /&gt;
  953. &lt;br /&gt;
  954. Mevedev&#39;s new price edict is actually aimed at the cheap bootleg stuff that black marketeers peddle without paying excise taxes. Ironically, the new law may help sell the higher-priced legal brands, the experts say, keeping only the poorest drinkers out of the market.&lt;br /&gt;
  955. &lt;br /&gt;
  956. No one says alcohol consumption in Russia should be taken lightly. The country has one of the worst drunken-driving records in the world, even though their DUI laws are quite strict.&lt;br /&gt;
  957. &lt;br /&gt;
  958. Men are overwhelmingly the big offenders, and if weren&#39;t for women assuming the role of designated drivers, the roads would be even more menacing.&lt;br /&gt;
  959. &lt;br /&gt;
  960. One reason why the new price law is unrealistic is that the prudes in the Kremlin treat alcoholism solely as a cause, not a symptom, of Russia&#39;s problems. They don&#39;t want to admit that vodka helps the bear get through the day.&lt;br /&gt;
  961. &lt;br /&gt;
  962. George Krimsky can be reached at gkrimsky@rep-am.com.&lt;br /&gt;
  963. Resource: http://www.rep-am.com/articles/2010/01/25/news/local/463039.txt</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/01/vodka-price-hike-shot-to-wallet.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXJgqLfckrYq6ugfljpkIr8kx9W4CBx1edDmyyxazdo02zDnUprSd5h7ziiAqcBehdRqKIvR6pVWqffdIPLrNv85l5jCXdZRkOne6GBPkwMfLD_kWsiFbGk6YP87mRtL_-Ii2MYcvbVY/s72-c/russian+vodka.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-7923757607219642721</guid><pubDate>Sat, 23 Jan 2010 16:49:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-01-23T11:49:31.792-05:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">Marijuana in the classroom- Sometimes it&#39;s legal</category><title>Marijuana in the classroom? Sometimes it&#39;s legal</title><description>&lt;!-- /mTools --&gt;    &lt;br /&gt;
  964. &lt;div id=&quot;mLeader&quot;&gt;  &lt;div class=&quot;hr&quot;&gt;&lt;hr /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  965. &lt;h2 class=&quot;subhead&quot;&gt; Medical marijuana legally prescribed to young people is showing up in classrooms. This is putting teachers and principals in a new and challenging position.&lt;br /&gt;
  966. &lt;/h2&gt;&lt;!-- pgallerycarousel --&gt;                                                 &lt;script type=&quot;text/javascript&quot;&gt;
  967. //&lt;![CDATA[
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  971.    ];
  972. //]]&gt;
  973. &lt;/script&gt;    &lt;div class=&quot;podStoryGal&quot;&gt;  &lt;div class=&quot;thePhoto&quot;&gt;   &lt;div class=&quot;jcarousel-skin-storygal&quot;&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;jcarousel-container jcarousel-container-horizontal&quot; style=&quot;display: block;&quot;&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;jcarousel-clip jcarousel-clip-horizontal&quot;&gt;&lt;ul class=&quot;jcarousel-list jcarousel-list-horizontal&quot; id=&quot;pgallerycarousel&quot; style=&quot;left: 0px; width: 390px;&quot;&gt;&lt;li class=&quot;jcarousel-item jcarousel-item-horizontal jcarousel-item-1 jcarousel-item-1-horizontal&quot; jcarouselindex=&quot;1&quot;&gt;   &lt;a class=&quot;thickbox&quot; href=&quot;http://www.csmonitor.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/images/0123-medical-marijuana-in-school.jpg/7261430-1-eng-US/0123-medical-marijuana-in-school.jpg_full_600.jpg&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;&quot; src=&quot;http://www.csmonitor.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/images/0123-medical-marijuana-in-school.jpg/7261430-1-eng-US/0123-medical-marijuana-in-school.jpg_full_380.jpg&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;  &lt;/li&gt;
  974. &lt;/ul&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;!-- /thePhoto --&gt;    &lt;div class=&quot;podC&quot;&gt;   &lt;div class=&quot;pod&quot;&gt;    &lt;div class=&quot;caption&quot; id=&quot;pgallerycarousel_caption&quot; title=&quot;Photo Caption&quot;&gt;Aimee Polacci, garden product manager, carries a tray of cannabis clones to be sold at the Peace in Medicine dispensary in Sebastopol, Calif. The lone medical marijuana dispensary in this Northern California enclave has become such a pot destination that it has more patients on its rolls than the town has people.&lt;br /&gt;
  975. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;caption&quot; id=&quot;pgallerycarousel_credit&quot; title=&quot;Photo Credit&quot;&gt;Russel A. Daniels/AP/file&lt;br /&gt;
  976. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;caption&quot; id=&quot;pgallerycarousel_credit&quot; title=&quot;Photo Credit&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  977. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;span id=&quot;pgallerycarousel_related&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;   &lt;/div&gt;&lt;!-- /pod --&gt;   &lt;a class=&quot;thickbox pEnlarge&quot; href=&quot;http://www.csmonitor.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/images/0123-medical-marijuana-in-school.jpg/7261430-1-eng-US/0123-medical-marijuana-in-school.jpg_full_600.jpg&quot; id=&quot;pgallerycarousel_enlarge&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;!-- /storyToolbar --&gt;       &lt;div class=&quot;sByline&quot;&gt;   By        &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.csmonitor.com/About/Contact/Section-Editors/Brad-Knickerbocker&quot;&gt;Brad Knickerbocker&lt;/a&gt;    Staff writer /  January 23, 2010  &lt;br /&gt;
  978. &lt;/div&gt;A high school student found to have marijuana in the classroom would seem to be a prime candidate for a little “talk” with the vice principal – and maybe a trip to the police station.&lt;br /&gt;
  979. &lt;a class=&quot;hide&quot; href=&quot;http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2010/0123/Marijuana-in-the-classroom-Sometimes-it-s-legal#nextParagraph&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;     &lt;div class=&quot;podStoryRel&quot;&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;podBrdr&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  980. &lt;!-- /pod --&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;!-- /podBrder --&gt;              &lt;/div&gt;&lt;!-- /podStoryRel --&gt;       &lt;a href=&quot;&quot; name=&quot;nextParagraph&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;!-- Anchor skipper link. Should be placed at the end of the Related Items pod and before the next paragraph --&gt;           But around the country today, hundreds – perhaps thousands – of high schoolers are bringing pot to school, and they’re doing it legally. Not to get stoned, but as part of prescribed medical treatment. And they don’t have to tell school authorities about it.&lt;br /&gt;
  981. &lt;br /&gt;
  982. This is putting teachers and principals in a new and challenging position. In many counties and school districts, there are no clear guidelines – for school officials, students, or parents.&lt;br /&gt;
  983. &lt;blockquote&gt;“This is all just kind of starting to happen,” high school principal Jeff Schlecht told the Ashland Daily Tidings in Oregon. “It does place us in an awkward position.”&lt;br /&gt;
  984. &lt;/blockquote&gt;For many students, the issue comes as no surprise.&lt;br /&gt;
  985. &lt;blockquote&gt;“I’ve known about this for four years,” Ashland senior Wesley Davis, 17, told the newspaper. “Some of them have it for medical reasons, but others are just trying to get free weed and sell it, turn it around.”&lt;br /&gt;
  986. &lt;/blockquote&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;&quot; id=&quot;eztoc7261372_1&quot; name=&quot;eztoc7261372_1&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;h2&gt;Ritalin used as a recreational drug too&lt;/h2&gt;A similar problem has been reported with the prescription drug Ritalin, a stimulant used to treat Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) – mostly among boys and young men. But as a recreational drug, Ritalin is known as “Vitamin R” or “R-Ball” – used to stay awake at exam time, to help lose weight, or together with alcohol and other drugs to prolong partying. It can produce effects similar to cocaine and amphetamines.&lt;br /&gt;
  987. &lt;br /&gt;
  988. A study cited by the US Department of Education showed that of 6,000 high school students surveyed in Massachusetts, 13 percent were found to have abused Ritalin. The same study found that 4 percent of middle school students had also abused Ritalin.&lt;br /&gt;
  989. The issue is very likely to spread around the country.&lt;br /&gt;
  990. &lt;br /&gt;
  991. Earlier this month, New Jersey became the 14th state to legalize medical marijuana. And whereas the Bush administration had operated under the presumption that federal antidrug laws trumped state medical marijuana statutes, the Obama administration has reversed that position. &lt;br /&gt;
  992. &lt;blockquote&gt;&quot;It will not be a priority to use federal resources to prosecute patients with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with state laws on medical marijuana,&quot; Attorney General Eric Holder said last October. &quot;But we will not tolerate drug traffickers who hide behind claims of compliance with state law to mask activities that are clearly illegal.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  993. &lt;/blockquote&gt;Meanwhile, the California Supreme Court on Thursday rejected limits on medical marijuana imposed by state lawmakers, finding that people with prescriptions for pot can have and grow all they need for personal use.&lt;br /&gt;
  994. &lt;a href=&quot;&quot; id=&quot;eztoc7261372_2&quot; name=&quot;eztoc7261372_2&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;h2&gt;Marijuana used to treat ADHD&lt;/h2&gt;At the same time, doctors have become more inclined to prescribe marijuana (as an alternative to Ritalin) for children diagnosed with ADHD.&lt;br /&gt;
  995. &lt;br /&gt;
  996. It’s a controversial trend among medical practitioners.&lt;br /&gt;
  997. &lt;blockquote&gt;“It’s safer than aspirin,” Dr. Jean Talleyrand told the New York Times. Dr. Talleyrand is a marijuana advocate who founded a network of 20 clinics in Oakland, Calif. which dispense medical marijuana – including to teenagers diagnosed with ADHD.&lt;br /&gt;
  998. &lt;/blockquote&gt;But Stephen Hinshaw, the chairman of the psychology department at the University of California, Berkeley, calls it “one of the worst ideas of all time.” He cites studies showing that the active ingredient in cannabis disrupts attention, memory and concentration – already issues for people diagnosed with attention-deficit disorder. In addition to being at the forefront of medical marijuana law, California now is considering legalizing and regulating the general use of marijuana.&lt;br /&gt;
  999. &lt;br /&gt;
  1000. A proposed bill would remove marijuana and derivatives from existing statutes defining them as controlled substances and make it legal to possess, sell, and cultivate marijuana by those 21 and older, reports the Monitor’s Daniel B. Wood. It sets up wholesale and retail sales regulation with special fees to fund drug abuse prevention programs. And it bans local and state assistance “in enforcing inconsistent federal and other laws.”&lt;br /&gt;
  1001. &lt;br /&gt;
  1002. A recent poll in California shows overwhelming public support for the idea.</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/01/marijuana-in-classroom-sometimes-its.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-1523279622158117732</guid><pubDate>Mon, 18 Jan 2010 18:19:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-01-18T13:19:28.773-05:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">SF Might Beat California To The Pot-Approving Ballot Box: News</category><title>SF Might Beat California To The Pot-Approving Ballot Box: News</title><description>&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://sfappeal.com/news/2010/01/city-too-could-legalize-it.php%22%3E&quot;&gt; SFAppeal&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
  1003. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir0gn84X7Q9-88toqsIUIfBrC1VaSgeOaNXkmxxi9MPp_-NrOZD5U4AY1P2MBEzqylK5RsdMrCXvKxhnfBWDnhz2sVn_8T_PA3DH8l0WdweZXLgLp7IPq6nM-SBDsTYipIZU9sL8TV0CA/s1600-h/sfballotmj.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir0gn84X7Q9-88toqsIUIfBrC1VaSgeOaNXkmxxi9MPp_-NrOZD5U4AY1P2MBEzqylK5RsdMrCXvKxhnfBWDnhz2sVn_8T_PA3DH8l0WdweZXLgLp7IPq6nM-SBDsTYipIZU9sL8TV0CA/s320/sfballotmj.JPG&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  1004. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;b&gt;City, Too, Could Legalize it, Regulate It, Tax the shit out of it &lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  1005. (it being the reefer)&lt;br /&gt;
  1006. &lt;br /&gt;
  1007. Most California voters will have to wait until November to voice their pleasure or displeasure on legalizing and taxing marijuana for adult use. &lt;br /&gt;
  1008. But not San Francisco -- we&#39;re the city that knows how to use the June election. While it&#39;s neither binding nor does it actually, uh, DO anything, city voters could have the opportunity to say yea or nay this summer on a policy statement that would make it official city policy &quot;to license, regulate and tax the cultivation and sale of cannabis&quot; and to make adult-use OK for adult smokers 21 and over, whether or not they have an ailment for which marijuana can be recommended.&lt;br /&gt;
  1009. &lt;br /&gt;
  1010. &lt;br /&gt;
  1011. Keep in mind marijuana cultivation is already perfectly legal for some people; under Proposition 215 an approved medical marijuana patient can grow pot. But there&#39;s no rules or regulations controlling grow operations big or small, and the result is sometimes messy: growhouses can catch fire and burn down, pointed out Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who introduced the measure on Tuesday.&lt;br /&gt;
  1012. &lt;br /&gt;
  1013. &lt;br /&gt;
  1014. Any local push to legalize will of course have to wait until legalization doesn&#39;t violate state law. But taxation can happen now -- last year, Oakland passed a law allowing taxation on medical marijuana proceeds. &lt;br /&gt;
  1015. Mirkarimi said he&#39;s not yet sure how big an operation will have to be to be taxed, but that &quot;We don&#39;t need the state to regulate (medical grows).... and regulation needs to happen. And then once we do that, we should capitalize on the obvious through taxation.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1016. &lt;br /&gt;
  1017. A likely scenario would be as follows, surmises Dale Gieringer, director of California&#39;s National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (CALNORML): a cannabis collective would apply for a permit and pay a fee, city officials would investigate to make sure all is proper, and then grow operations could enjoy protection from both drug enforcement busts AND thievery.&lt;br /&gt;
  1018. &lt;br /&gt;
  1019. &lt;br /&gt;
  1020. Imagine: being able to call the cops to report a break-in at your marijuana farm?&lt;br /&gt;
  1021. Not all medical patients will enjoy being taxed, of course. &quot;The devil&#39;s in the details,&quot; Gieringer said. &quot;Medical patients don&#39;t take kindly to paying tax on their medicine.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1022. &lt;br /&gt;
  1023. However, for larger, collective or cooperative-style grows, city regulation could mean saving money. &quot;City approval means grows could no longer be burdened&quot; with secrecy and operating under the radar, &quot;and costs of pot could go down.&quot;</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/01/sf-might-beat-california-to-pot.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir0gn84X7Q9-88toqsIUIfBrC1VaSgeOaNXkmxxi9MPp_-NrOZD5U4AY1P2MBEzqylK5RsdMrCXvKxhnfBWDnhz2sVn_8T_PA3DH8l0WdweZXLgLp7IPq6nM-SBDsTYipIZU9sL8TV0CA/s72-c/sfballotmj.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-7663954530456031136</guid><pubDate>Mon, 18 Jan 2010 17:59:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2010-01-18T12:59:52.773-05:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">CA: Pot Clubs Popping Up Like Weeds</category><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">San Jose</category><title>San Jose, CA: Pot Clubs Popping Up Like Weeds</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8qYVosBpZZhktKarPWrrF-SaoupddPK-f7D5lccLhHo165JjVKnpIGgcaU-cM8QcG7-uPMDdzMZf6njKrt-jSVFHfzSWLh9_gyrAObGuZOA5thqOuBHorp2YDUOS39kZvkXDt0waR2I/s1600-h/potclubs.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8qYVosBpZZhktKarPWrrF-SaoupddPK-f7D5lccLhHo165JjVKnpIGgcaU-cM8QcG7-uPMDdzMZf6njKrt-jSVFHfzSWLh9_gyrAObGuZOA5thqOuBHorp2YDUOS39kZvkXDt0waR2I/s320/potclubs.JPG&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  1024. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  1025. &lt;br /&gt;
  1026. &lt;br /&gt;
  1027. &lt;br /&gt;
  1028. &lt;br /&gt;
  1029. &lt;br /&gt;
  1030. &lt;br /&gt;
  1031. &lt;br /&gt;
  1032. &lt;br /&gt;
  1033. &lt;br /&gt;
  1034. &lt;br /&gt;
  1035. &lt;br /&gt;
  1036. &lt;br /&gt;
  1037. &lt;br /&gt;
  1038. &lt;br /&gt;
  1039. &lt;br /&gt;
  1040. &lt;br /&gt;
  1041. &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_14207746&quot;&gt;San Jose Mercury News -&lt;span id=&quot;mn_Global&quot;&gt;&lt;span id=&quot;mn_Article&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;San Jose is yanking the welcome mat for medical marijuana dispensaries that have proliferated across the city in recent months — from just a handful last fall to as many as 30, according to one online directory.&lt;br /&gt;
  1042. &lt;br /&gt;
  1043. With San Jose, which had no known dispensaries a year ago, now home to perhaps as many as San Francisco — and more than four times as many as Santa Cruz — code enforcement officials have begun telling owners their operations are illegal under city law.&lt;br /&gt;
  1044. &lt;br /&gt;
  1045. &quot;We&#39;ve started to receive some complaints, and we&#39;re currently doing investigations on a number of these,&quot; said Mike Hannon, the city&#39;s code enforcement official. &quot;If it looks as though they&#39;re operating as dispensaries, we&#39;re going to advise the owners to shut the dispensaries.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1046. &lt;br /&gt;
  1047. Pot clubs have proliferated in San Jose since City Councilman Pierluigi Oliverio, alarmed by their rapid spread in other places, last fall suggested legalizing and taxing a limited number of them.&lt;br /&gt;
  1048. &lt;br /&gt;
  1049. Some fledgling clubs have filed business-tax paperwork with the city that makes no mention of marijuana — describing the operations vaguely as counseling, retail or health services.&lt;br /&gt;
  1050. &lt;br /&gt;
  1051. Hannon is sending letters to the dispensaries he and his staff have confirmed are operating, notifying them they must close within 30 days. The dispensaries&#39; landlords could face fines up to $2,500 a day if the outlets remain open after that deadline.&lt;br /&gt;
  1052. &lt;br /&gt;
  1053. Health Center dispensary off De Anza Boulevard, says he&#39;s optimistic the nonprofit cooperative can work things out with the city and avoid litigation.&lt;br /&gt;
  1054. &lt;br /&gt;
  1055. Though Hannon told him during a recent inspection that the dispensary is illegal, Schwaderer believes state law is on his side.&lt;br /&gt;
  1056. &lt;br /&gt;
  1057. &quot;We&#39;re eager to work with the city and establish a good relationship,&quot; said Schwaderer, who opened his doors last month. &quot;We will wait and respond accordingly to whatever the city has to say.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1058. &lt;br /&gt;
  1059. Voters in 1996 made California the first state in the nation to legalize medicinal use of marijuana for those with a doctor&#39;s recommendation, but the move has been mired in legal uncertainty ever since.&lt;br /&gt;
  1060. &lt;br /&gt;
  1061. Superseding federal law continues to outlaw the drug as a dangerous narcotic, although the U.S. attorney general last year stated that federal drug agents won&#39;t bust those who comply with state medical marijuana laws.&lt;br /&gt;
  1062. &lt;br /&gt;
  1063. Dispensaries have proliferated in California since then. That in turn has sparked a backlash among local officials seeking to limit their number or ban them outright.&lt;br /&gt;
  1064. &lt;br /&gt;
  1065. Three dozen cities, including Santa Clara, have joined in support of Anaheim&#39;s court battle in a closely watched case over the right to ban medical marijuana dispensaries. A patients&#39; group had challenged the Anaheim ban as a violation of state law, and an appellate court is expected to rule sometime in the spring.&lt;br /&gt;
  1066. &lt;br /&gt;
  1067. Gilroy, Los Gatos, Saratoga and Los Altos also have recently passed dispensary moratoriums.&lt;br /&gt;
  1068. &lt;br /&gt;
  1069. Oliverio in October proposed an ordinance that would allow a limited number of dispensaries in industrial areas with restrictions, and an additional tax to ease the city&#39;s chronic money shortages. A combination of winter holidays, open-government noticing rules and the need to analyze some legal issues has delayed efforts to get the proposal before the council.&lt;br /&gt;
  1070. &lt;br /&gt;
  1071. The city&#39;s Rules and Open Government Committee, which sets agendas for the full council, is scheduled to consider the measure again Jan. 27.&lt;br /&gt;
  1072. &lt;br /&gt;
  1073. Oliverio said the city&#39;s dithering is inviting chaos as medical marijuana providers rush to stake a claim on the local market.&lt;br /&gt;
  1074. &lt;br /&gt;
  1075. &quot;We&#39;ve gone from a couple of places that have opened to several,&quot; Oliverio said. &quot;The council needs to have a discussion.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1076. &lt;br /&gt;
  1077. Already there are signs of a budding backlash as more residents and businesses find themselves neighbors to new dispensaries.&lt;br /&gt;
  1078. &lt;br /&gt;
  1079. Lisa Roberts, whose law firm on the Alameda is near a proposed new dispensary, told the rules committee this week that the city should enact a moratorium.&lt;br /&gt;
  1080. &lt;br /&gt;
  1081. &quot;I&#39;m not personally against the concept&quot; of medical marijuana, Roberts said. &quot;It&#39;s just the location. Just the fact that a proposal has been made is viewed as a welcome mat.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1082. &lt;br /&gt;
  1083. San Jose approved zoning for medical marijuana providers in 1998, but the city dropped the provision while updating its zoning laws in 2001. City Attorney Rick Doyle said that makes any dispensaries operating in San Jose today illegal.&lt;br /&gt;
  1084. &lt;br /&gt;
  1085. Even so, the city has collected the $150 business license tax from a third of the dispensaries said to be operating here. In some cases, those dispensaries were quite clear about their intentions: San Jose Dispensary on West Hedding Street described itself on its business tax forms as a &quot;medical marijuana delivery srvc.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1086. &lt;br /&gt;
  1087. Others were less explicit on the city documents, though quite clear in their advertisements. Plant Providers Plus described its operation on the tax paperwork only as &quot;plant materials.&quot; But online, it advertises as &quot;San Jose Area Medical Marijuana Delivery,&quot; with products described as &quot;green crack&quot; and &quot;big bang brownie.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1088. &lt;br /&gt;
  1089. The South Bay Cannabis Buyers Collective on Monroe Street listed its operation on city tax paperwork under &quot;SJCBC Inc.&quot; as &quot;retail/internet.&quot; But its Web site offers a &quot;free joint for new members.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;
  1090. &lt;br /&gt;
  1091. Deputy Finance Director Julia Cooper, whose department handles the business license taxes, noted that acceptance of payment doesn&#39;t mean the city confers any legal status to a business — a matter left to code enforcement.&lt;br /&gt;
  1092. &lt;br /&gt;
  1093. &quot;It means they&#39;ve paid a tax,&quot; Cooper said. &quot;It doesn&#39;t mean they&#39;ve complied with all regulations.&quot;</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/01/san-jose-ca-pot-clubs-popping-up-like.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8qYVosBpZZhktKarPWrrF-SaoupddPK-f7D5lccLhHo165JjVKnpIGgcaU-cM8QcG7-uPMDdzMZf6njKrt-jSVFHfzSWLh9_gyrAObGuZOA5thqOuBHorp2YDUOS39kZvkXDt0waR2I/s72-c/potclubs.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5239648807810458280.post-1805156647424521058</guid><pubDate>Sun, 03 Jan 2010 18:29:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2011-08-29T22:28:49.423-04:00</atom:updated><category domain="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">How to Avoid a DUI - Buy a Portable Breathalyzer</category><title>How to Avoid a DUI - Buy a Portable Breathalyzer</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE77owRW_S2UQ6Jdk_Rfw34EHt3peSDZcfC3J0xjv0yUPDPee4sCFAe9JCQTQrhlocCGyxl4fEZUvoeliFxhK3yxT8nEb2xX0NWyNPklmkDS83xhmcBkdoanIRZHtmh0krbCz4lGP-8wg/s1600-h/slimbreathalyzer.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE77owRW_S2UQ6Jdk_Rfw34EHt3peSDZcfC3J0xjv0yUPDPee4sCFAe9JCQTQrhlocCGyxl4fEZUvoeliFxhK3yxT8nEb2xX0NWyNPklmkDS83xhmcBkdoanIRZHtmh0krbCz4lGP-8wg/s320/slimbreathalyzer.JPG&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;by &lt;a href=&quot;http://zedomax.com/blog/2010/01/02/dui-diy-how-to-avoid-a-dui/&quot;&gt;max&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;display: none;&quot;&gt; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seoul &lt;/span&gt;.....In the city Seoul, Korea where I am from, they have routine alcohol checkpoints at various different points in the city.&amp;nbsp; Basically, the cops stop everyone before permitting to pass through the alcohol checkpoints.&lt;br /&gt;
  1094. &lt;br /&gt;
  1095. In San Francisco here where I live now, we don’t have checkpoints but patrol cars will pull you over on individual-basis.&amp;nbsp; We have it very lucky indeed that at least we are not forced to blow into police breathalyzers at random times when we could have had one drink too much over the limit.&lt;br /&gt;
  1096. &lt;br /&gt;
  1097. &lt;br /&gt;
  1098. I think DUI laws are sound yet they can be rather harsh to those who’ve had just one drink too many. &lt;br /&gt;
  1099. Believe me, there’s a big difference between a guy who’s barely standing and the guy who’s a bit buzzed. &lt;br /&gt;
  1100. Since our DUI laws in California state that anything over BAC 0.08% is illegal, you simply need to keep it below that level before driving.&lt;br /&gt;
  1101. &lt;br /&gt;
  1102. &lt;br /&gt;
  1103. But how do we know exactly?&amp;nbsp; That’s the problem because DMV has been giving you a stupid CHART that shows you how many drinks you can drink in given number of hours. &lt;br /&gt;
  1104. Not only is that not scientific, if that CHART is wrong, you could end up jail, pay fines, and end up with a DUI that will haunt you for the rest of your life.&lt;br /&gt;
  1105. &lt;br /&gt;
  1106. &lt;br /&gt;
  1107. I blame this partly on DMV because they don’t tell you that there’s cheap breathalyzers you can buy. &lt;br /&gt;
  1108. For example, all my friends who drink a lot over in Korea carry a portable breathalyzer with them at all times due to the random and too-frequent alcohol checkpoints.&lt;br /&gt;
  1109. &lt;br /&gt;
  1110. &lt;br /&gt;
  1111. Now, I am telling you, if you ever drink even 1 glass of beer and drive, you should always check your BAC before driving.&lt;br /&gt;
  1112. &lt;br /&gt;
  1113. &lt;br /&gt;
  1114. This isn’t an advice to &lt;b&gt;avoid a DUI&lt;/b&gt;, it’s COMMON SENSE. &lt;br /&gt;
  1115. &lt;blockquote&gt;I wish DMV re-wrote their 50-year driving educational books to tell people that they can buy a breathalyzer for under 10 dollars. &lt;/blockquote&gt;Why not? &lt;br /&gt;
  1116. DMV and the government makes a lot of money giving DUIs to people on holidays such as New Years, Independence Day, and your celebration could abruptly end as the worst day in your life in jail because of DMV’s failure to educate people right.&lt;br /&gt;
  1117. &lt;br /&gt;
  1118. We gotta change the driving educational books, classes, because a $10 breathalyzer is certainly cheaper than thousands of dollars in DUI fees.&lt;br /&gt;
  1119. &lt;br /&gt;
  1120. One more thing, if you do carry portable breathalyzer with you, at least you know the breathalyzer that cops are carrying are working correctly.&amp;nbsp; Sometimes you never know, machines are prone to break or error. &lt;br /&gt;
  1121. You can find various different breathalyzers on Amazon and this one for $8.95. &lt;br /&gt;
  1122. Some more tips on basic rights of every driver in the U.S.: &lt;br /&gt;
  1123. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;You must be first pulled over for a reason such as a traffic violation, meaning you have ran a red light, didn’t stop fully at a stop sign, etc…etc… Simply pulling you over because cops want to randomly do a breathalyzer test on you is ILLEGAL.&amp;nbsp; I have seen this happen recently on New Year’s where my friend was pulled over without a reason.First thing you need to ask the cop, “Is there a problem Officer?”.&amp;nbsp; That is what I say everytime I get pulled over, even on speeding tickets&lt;span style=&quot;display: none;&quot;&gt; Traffic ticket &lt;/span&gt;.&lt;/li&gt;
  1124. &lt;li&gt;Second, don’t ever self-incriminate yourself when you get pulled over.&amp;nbsp; For example, if they ask you, “Do you know how fast you were going?”, you don’t want to say, “I was going 85MPH, going 20 miles over the speed limit.”&lt;br /&gt;
  1125. Cops are trained to make you self-incriminate yourself, a practice that’s not going to help the drivers. Remember your rights, “you have the right to be silent”, you can always tell the cop that you don’t want to answer any of his questions because you have to right to be silent. &lt;br /&gt;
  1126. &lt;/li&gt;
  1127. &lt;li&gt;Third, cops cannot legally search your car without your permission.&amp;nbsp; Don’t ever let them search your car because you feel like a nice guy.&amp;nbsp; Screw that, remember your rights, they cannot search your car without a good reason. &amp;nbsp; Just tell the officer that you would be happy if he/she respected your privacy and private items. However, know that cops can bring a dog to smell your car for drugs even if you refuse.&amp;nbsp; If the dog smells drugs in your car, they can search your car.&amp;nbsp; But if you have no drugs, you have nothing to worry about.&amp;nbsp; For people with guns in their car, this could be a good knowledge to have just in case you left a gun in your car by accident or whatever.&amp;nbsp; Whatever the case, you never know what you left in your car by accident and even your friends could have dropped something while you gave them a ride couple months ago.&amp;nbsp; Just say no because it’s your right.&lt;/li&gt;
  1128. &lt;/ul&gt;Whatever you do, remember your rights, you have the right to be silent and right to have privacy.&amp;nbsp; Police officers must respect that and a lot of times they will use creative languages to get around it but just say “NO!”. &lt;br /&gt;
  1129. One more thing, cops also cannot enter your house without your permission, they need a warrant, get a “Come Back With A Warrant” doormat, that should help a lot.&lt;br /&gt;
  1130. &lt;iframe align=&quot;left&quot; frameborder=&quot;0&quot; marginheight=&quot;0&quot; marginwidth=&quot;0&quot; scrolling=&quot;no&quot; src=&quot;http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=sexforwomen09-20&amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;asins=B000FJEQYM&amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;f=ifr&quot; style=&quot;align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;&quot;&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  1131. &lt;br /&gt;
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  1143. &lt;br /&gt;
  1144. Product Description&lt;br /&gt;
  1145. The AlcoHAWK Slim, a newly-released digital breath alcohol screener, is a compact unit with a sleek design. Operating on a single button, simply blow into the folding mouthpiece for an accurate BAC reading in seconds.The AlcoHAWK Slim includes removable mouthpiece covers that allow you to test multiple individuals in a sanitary fashion. The sleek design also makes the AlcoHAWK Slim very compact and easy to carry for personal use. It is the ideal solution for someone looking for a portable tester with professional quality with a consumer design and feel. Meets DOT/NHTSA Model Specifications for Breath Alcohol Screeners and passed FDA 510k Pre-marketing clearance.&lt;br /&gt;
  1146. &lt;br /&gt;
  1147. 41 of 43 people found the following review helpful:&lt;br /&gt;
  1148. 5.0 out of 5 stars Works as Described, March 21, 2008&lt;br /&gt;
  1149. By  C. Sanders - See all my reviews&lt;br /&gt;
  1150. (REAL NAME)   &lt;br /&gt;
  1151. Easy to use. Works as described. I bought it as a lark - just to see exactly how &quot;drunk&quot; I was. It&#39;s been fun at parties &amp;amp; drinking w/friends. However, having a measuring stick for alcohol has really slowed down my consumption - which no doubt is a good thing. I&#39;d compare this benefit to counting calories. When counting calories, one tends to eat less &amp;amp; eat healthier. This breathylizer has the same effect. I&#39;d love to find a breath tester for calories! By the way, one of this products greatest advantages is that it is SLIM &amp;amp; you can easily slip it into a pocket, or purse, and carry it with you anywhere. You don&#39;t have to leave it in your car! (keeping in mind that most of us with a blood alcohol level over .08 would find it difficult to go back into the party &amp;amp; call for a cab, after we&#39;ve already ventured out &amp;amp; warmed-up the car. THIS IS A TOOL THAT YOU WANT TO BE ABLE TO CARRY WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES).</description><link>http://duicharges.blogspot.com/2010/01/how-to-avoid-dui-buy-portable.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE77owRW_S2UQ6Jdk_Rfw34EHt3peSDZcfC3J0xjv0yUPDPee4sCFAe9JCQTQrhlocCGyxl4fEZUvoeliFxhK3yxT8nEb2xX0NWyNPklmkDS83xhmcBkdoanIRZHtmh0krbCz4lGP-8wg/s72-c/slimbreathalyzer.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>1</thr:total></item></channel></rss>

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