A battle is being fought in the Vanderbilt football players rape trial. However , the battle is not between the accused verses the government. It is The Tennessean verses Metro Police. The Tennessean issued a request pursuant to the Tennessee Open Records Act . Metro Police issued a denial of the records request based upon
October 2013
Revocation of a Suspended Sentence in Nashville
The District Attorney’s Office here in Nashville is using a new tool at their disposal. On some simple crimes , a defendant is offered a suspended sentence. A suspended sentence is suspended for a period of time . Recently , the assistant district attorneys have been more aggressive in filing motions to revoke a suspended sentence…
Tips On How Not To Have Your Probation Violated
While I was working on this post in court yesterday , I mentioned it to a fellow lawyer who showed me this Chris Rock video on "How not to get your ass kicked." Some of Chris Rocks tips are very similar to mine. Probation should be easy. There are simple rules like not get arrested…
“You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take”
Wayne Gretzky was one of the best hockey players ever to put on skates. He had a great line which is the title to this post "You miss 100% of the shots you never take.’ That advice is very true for criminal defense lawyers. A criminal defense attorney must take the shot early and often.…
How Not To Get a Search Warrant in Tennessee ?
A search warrant is one of the main tools that police have in obtaining evidence. Last week , a Robertson County , Tennessee man had his animal cruelty charge dismissed by the assistant district attorney. The reason was that the judge ruled that the search warrant was not legally valid.
The search warrant was signed…
Avoid Driving While Intoxicated Tip 1
You know why they serve food at cocktail parties ? It slows down the absorption of alcohol. Texas DUI lawyer Deandra Grant wrote a great post on how to avoid driving while intoxicated. Tip 1. Notice I borrowed her title.
Drinking alcohol on an empty stomach increases rapid gastric emptying which is associated with a much…
Should Tennessee Regulate Mugshots ?
Arrested in Nashville, Tennessee? One of the routine procedures in the booking process is taking a mug shot. Here in Nashville, your picture appears in a magazine called Busted where all your friends can see your picture. Some newspapers even publish the mug shots like The Expositor in Sparta, Tennessee. The New York Times ran a story on…
Can A Tennessee DUI Case Be Dismissed If the Police Lose The Video ?
One of the critical pieces of evidence in any Nashville DUI case is the arrest video tape. Surprisingly , few Metro Nashville police cars have video dash cams. In Williamson County , Tennessee almost all police cars have video dash cams. The Tennessee Supreme Court recently issued a ruling on lost video tapes.
In some…