Here in St. Louis County on an August day in 2014, Michael Brown was shot and killed. There have been questions about the circumstances around his death since that time. Conflicting accounts from many eyewitnesses only added to the confusion. One thing everyone seemed to agree on in the aftermath of Michael Brown’s death and the eventual civil unrest in and around Ferguson, was that police should wear body cameras. If police officer Darren Wilson had been wearing a body camera when he shot and killed Michael Brown, then we would have answers to many of the questions for which we will never have answers. Was it justifiable homicide because Darren Wilson acted in self-defense? Did Darren Wilson get scared and act outside of the law? Was it simply a cold-blooded murder?

Not long after the incidents in Ferguson, a ballot measure known as Proposition P, or Prop P, was added to the St. Louis County ballot. Prop P was lobbied for as a way to raise funds specifically for dashboard cameras for police cars and for body cameras for police officers. It was also said there would be money for additional training for police officers, and that better pay would result in better officers. Prop P passed by a large margin. Unfortunately, none of the funds were specifically earmarked for any particular cause other than “public safety.” Police officers and prosecutors received pay raises, but few if any new cameras showed up. All of a sudden “public safety” was defined broadly. Potholes on streets can cause accidents, so they are a public safety issue, so now Prop P money can be used on routine road maintenance in St. Louis County. This is only one example of how voters were deceived. Voters voted for Prop P so the next time there was a police shooting there would be video to help answer the important questions about what happened. That simply did not happen.

Seven years after Ferguson, and one year after George Floyd, St. Louis County still has not learned important lessons. In 2021, when a 10-year-old kid with a cell phone can take video of any event, there is simply no excuse for police not wearing body cameras. Officials have often pointed to money as the issue, but we saw with Prop P that money was not the problem. The most obvious answer for not having cameras is also the scariest, that police officers simply do not want to be held accountable for their actions while in uniform.

The post George Floyd, Cameras, and Police Accountability appeared first on Korner Law.

The post Illinois Getting Rid of Bail Bonds/New Pre-Trial Release Laws appeared first on Korner Law.

The police chief in Leadwood, Missouri (about 75 southwest of St. Louis) has been charged with tampering with evidence and stealing a handgun from the evidence locker at the police department. The charges stem from an incident where a woman was arrested after two handguns and methamphetamine were found in her car during a traffic stop. The police chief did not become involved in the case until the woman arrived at the police department. The chief told the arresting officer the woman would not be charged with a crime and no police report was to be written about the incident.  The woman came to the station months later and tried to get the two handguns back. At that time, other officers identified discrepancies with the evidence log on the date of the original incident. The Missouri State Highway Patrol was notified and began an investigation. When interviewed, the police chief admitted to falsifying the evidence log and taking one of the handguns from the evidence locker and keeping it at his home.

Police Misconduct Comes in Many Forms

These charges against the Leadwood Chief of Police highlight the fact that police misconduct does exist. That may sound obvious given the state of the news recently after a rash of police violence and shootings across the country over the past few months, but the important lesson to take away from what happened in Leadwood is that police misconduct can manifest in many different ways. A case like this is much more subtle than a police shooting, but it is no less dangerous to the criminal justice system as a whole. Thankfully, other officers in the department reported this misconduct and a full investigation was conducted to uncover the tampering with evidence. How many times does an issue like this go unreported?

Good Police Officers Investigate a Bad Police Officer

It is important to say there are many good police officers. In this particular case, there were good, honest police who identified this issue and reported it to Highway Patrol, and Highway Patrol then did their job professionally as well. Police are people just like any other occupation. There are good teachers and bad teachers, good lawyers and bad lawyers, and good doctors and bad doctors. One issue with bad police is they are often covered for by the good police. An old school code exists where police do not hurt other police, even if they did something wrong. They all cover for each other. That did not happen in this case, and the criminal justice system and the city of Leadwood, Missouri are better off because good police officers acted appropriately. The charges against the police chief are currently pending and will be handled in the St. Francois Circuit Court in Farmington, Missouri.

Missouri Criminal Defense Attorney Jason Korner

If you have been arrested or charged with a crime, please contact Jason Korner at 314-409-2659 or click here to fill out a form and our office will contact you. It is important to have good legal representation in all criminal matter so they are investigated fully and the best outcome is achieved.

The Daily Journal, Leadwood Police Chief Charged with Stealing, Tampering with Evidence, September 24, 2020, https://dailyjournalonline.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/leadwood-police-chief-charged-with-stealing-tampering-with-evidence/article_9628e91f-7423-5339-bf41-f162f26e5d81.html

The post Missouri Police Chief Charged With Tampering With Evidence appeared first on Korner Law.

Please note that this is different from my usual blog content, but we are dealing with different times right now.

When we look back, the Spring of 2020 will be The Lost Spring. We have had our fair share of spring rain showers and March has given us temperatures from the top of the thermometer to the bottom, but we lost out on so much more. For sports fans we have lost out on March Madness, Opening Day, and The Masters, all sure fire signs of spring. Spring break beaches and barbecues evaporated (for most of us) before our eyes. Unfortunately, for many people, their income and paychecks evaporated before their eyes also. The closing of restaurants, movie theaters, and amusement parks just to name a few left people searching for answers. The hardest answer to find in all of this is “for how long?” That uncertainty is the most unsettling part for everyone, but especially those with a sudden loss of income.

I remember in August of 2014 sitting in a condo in Wisconsin on summer vacation with my family when we heard some news from St. Louis. A black man had been shot and killed by a white police officer and people were upset. At that point, on that August day, those were the only parts of the story that made it to Wisconsin. I had no way of knowing then, that particular incident would nearly stop my income as a criminal defense attorney for months and months. It is not that I did not care about the social justice issues associated with Ferguson, there were many underlying issues that came to light during that time, especially the abuses of some municipal courts in the St. Louis area, but I was just a young attorney trying to support a wife and two small children, and the extreme slowing of income was terrifying.

Of course the man who was shot and killed was Michael Brown, and it sparked the beginning of the Ferguson Movement. I had never been so close to a large social movement before, either geographically or professionally. Every issue discussed about the investigation of the shooting, the prosecutorial procedures, and the grand jury process were all parts of my daily professional life. At first it fascinated me, but as time passed from the August shooting, the unrest continued, and we grew closer and closer to a decision whether or not to charge the police officer with murder that could change everything. No timeline was given on when a decision would be made and that made the autumn of 2014 tense. It was even more tense for criminal defense attorneys who had watched business dry up almost overnight. Police resources were being diverted to Ferguson related issues, and police officers seemed to be more timid to conduct their day to day business. This led to a sharp drop in new criminal cases.

Finally, the Monday night before Thanksgiving, I watched along with the rest of the country when the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney announced a grand jury had chose not to issue any criminal charges against the police officer. Protests rang out around St. Louis, but I was just happy it was over. I was ready for business to get back to normal, for my life to get back to normal. But that’s not how these things work. It took several more months for things to begin to improve, and much longer to return to “normal.”

I learned many lessons from Ferguson, but the most important was that I had the ability to overcome professional adversity on the highest level. I would never want to go through it again, but that time period gave me a confidence that my law firm can stare down adversity and thrive on the other side of it. Well, here we are again. I am not one of the first to be professionally affected by the corona virus shut downs, but with the courts closed I know not much business will not be walking through my doors for at least the near future.

With Ferguson the effect was very specific on only a few industries, and it only affected a number of people. Our whole country, our whole world, are feeling the effects of the corona shut downs, let alone the virus itself. People are scared and there is uncertainty. I am scared and uncertain. But we can all look back at past adversity and know we conquered it then, and we can feel confident because we are all in this together. We do not know the twists and turns this terrible situation may take, and we do not know how many people will get sick, or how long it will last. All of that said, please remember, as you sit segregated from society because of social distancing, that there is hope. At times like these we can focus on the fear, we can focus placing blame, or we can choose hope. As we stare out into the dark unknown, I choose hope.

The post The Lost Spring appeared first on Korner Law.

The corona virus and the associated COVID-19 has upended daily life in the St. Louis area and throughout Missouri. Finally after days of uncertainty surrounding court dockets and schedules, the Missouri Supreme Court handed down a sweeping declaration on Monday, March 16th, closing courts statewide until at least April 6th. There are few exceptions to the closures, mostly for emergency situations, and a few for confined defendants. Although confined defendants will continue to have some dockets, they will only be seen by video and will not be transported to court.

There are two main concerns with the with an open court system. The first is that the court buildings are crowded every day Monday through Friday, which creates an incredible opportunity for transmission of any virus or illness. This does not only apply to defendants and lawyers, but also to victims, jurors, witnesses, and parties in civil cases. The second major concern is if the corona virus was transmitted to an inmate. Despite best efforts, if one inmate gets sick, it is very difficult to keep any illness from spreading through the jail like wildfire. This is especially concerning with an illness as potentially dangerous as COVID-19.

Federal Courts Remain Open

Although all Missouri state and municipal courts have been closed for three weeks, the federal courthouses remain open at this time. Jury trials in the federal court in the Eastern District of Missouri in downtown St. Louis have been cancelled. Other federal criminal matters continue on in some aspects. Specific procedures for Change of Plea Hearings or Sentencing Hearings have not been conveyed, but some of those will proceed as scheduled.

Contact Korner Law With Any Questions

During these uncertain times, please follow the instructions from government agencies and the CDC concerning socializing and hygiene. If you have questions regarding court dates or court cases, please contact our office at 314-409-2659. Our office will remain open to keep our clients and others informed about their cases and the courts in general. Please stay safe and keep hope during these unprecedented times.

The post Corona Virus Closes Missouri Courts appeared first on Korner Law.

Drug sniffing dogs are often used by law enforcement to try to locate drugs during traffic stops, at houses, in postal packages, among many other situations. Historically, the courts have viewed these highly trained dogs as an important factor when determining whether there was probable cause to allow law enforcement to take the next steps, often a search that would be illegal in the absence of probable cause. Two problems with these drug sniffing dogs have come to light. One, which I will write about more in depth next week, has to do with dogs who have been trained to alert the handler to the existence of drugs, including marijuana. This is a problem in eleven states plus the District of Columbia, marijuana is no longer illegal. The dogs do not have the ability to unlearn that they need to alert for marijuana, so there is a large possibility of a false positive of illegal drugs when it is only marijuana the dog smells. The second issue was recently covered in depth by the Washington Post in an investigative argument. Drug sniffing dogs were only correct about half the time when tested by an independent agency. Needless to say, half the time is not nearly good enough when talking about the kind of invasive, warrantless searches the courts allow with a positive alert from a drug sniffing.

The main reason sited for the low accuracy of the drug sniffing dogs is that despite the dogs’ intensive training they still have an overwhelming desire to please their handlers. This was shown through the independent studies. At least one study made some of the test packages look more appealing to the drug sniffing dogs, whether or not there were drugs in those packages. This made no difference in the dogs’ level of accuracy. However, when the packages were made more suspicious looking to the handler there was a marked increase in false positives on those packages. Despite the handlers’ best efforts to stay neutral, their dogs knew when the handler thought the dog should alert and the dogs happily complied to please their handlers. The most egregious and shocking aspect of the independent studies came after those studies were complete. With an obvious need for more studies and more testing to understand the shortcomings of the drug sniffing dog program, the law enforcement agencies who had participated refused to offer any further participation. Essentially, they received a bad grade on a test and instead of wanting to seek areas to improve, they just walked away from school entirely. That is unacceptable in all areas of work, but it is appalling when dealing with law enforcement and an obvious infringement on people’s civil liberties.

St. Louis Drug Lawyer Jason Korner

If you or a loved one has been arrested for a drug crime it is important for you to know your rights, and to have someone who can fight to protect those rights. St. Louis drug lawyer Jason Korner has years of experience challenging drug charges in both state and federal court. Please contact Jason Korner’s office at 314-409-2659 or click here to fill out a contact form and Mr. Korner’s office will reach out to you.

Source: The Washington Post, The Supreme Court’s ‘Alternative Facts’ About Drug-Sniffing Dogs, February 4, 2019, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/02/05/supreme-courts-alternative-facts-about-drug-sniffing-dogs

The post Drug Sniffing Dogs As Accurate As a Coin Flip, Study Says appeared first on Korner Law.

The Illinois governor signed a new law that will eliminate many driver’s license suspensions for non-moving violations. The “License to Work Act” will take effect in July. One of the main initial benefits of the bill is that it will be retroactive. This means that people who currently have a driver’s license suspension that falls within the new law will be eligible for the reinstatement of driving privileges immediately upon the bill going into effect in July. The governor believes more than ten thousand people could be positively effected by the new law.

Effect of the New Law on Suspensions

Driver’s license suspension can be a tricky area for legislators to navigate. If drivers do too many things that are not allowed, then there must be a punishment. The initial punishment are fines for parking or traffic violations, but if that is not a deterrent then historically a person’s driver’s license has been suspended as punishment. However, once a person’s license has been suspended it can lead to a terrible spiral effect. If a person was suspended for not paying fines and now cannot legally drive to work then how are those fines supposed to be paid. If a person drives regardless of the license suspension and receives a ticket for Driving on a Suspended License, then suspension times are increased and there are additional fines and court costs.

In the case of moving violations such as speeding or running a red light, there are few options when a person habitually disregards traffic laws and a suspension is necessary. Those cases will not be affected by the new law. In the past legislator’s have punished people with a license suspension for unpaid parking tickets, unpaid child support, or failing to appear in court. Many of these suspension will no longer exist when the new law goes into effect in July.

The Possible Impact on Missouri Suspensions

Other states will be eagerly watching Illinois and how the new law effects driving privileges, employment, and compliance things that used to be punished more harshly under the old law. If the new system works in Illinois then Missouri would be smart to enact similar legislation. Suspended drivers are a major issue facing many communities throughout Missouri, and the current system disproportionately effects low-income areas in both the urban and rural parts of the state.

St. Louis Criminal Defense Lawyer Jason Korner

If you have a suspended driver’s license in Missouri and need help getting reinstated, please call St. Louis criminal defense lawyer Jason Korner at 314-409-2659, or click here to fill out the contact form and his office will contact you. Do not get caught in the downward spiral of driver’s license suspensions in Missouri.

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Illinois Cutting Back on Driver’s License Suspensions, January 20, 2020, https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/illinois-cutting-back-on-driver-s-license-suspensions-article_0128b0c8-0707-56df-a302-f799e09e79b-html

The post Illinois to Reduce Driver’s License Suspensions appeared first on Korner Law.

Last week came news that the Michigan State Police had written a letter to all law enforcement agencies and prosecutor’s offices in Michigan to inform them of flaws with breath tests used in conjunction with DWI investigations in Michigan. A local St. Louis connection has been exposed as a major part of the problem with the Michigan breath testing machines. The machines at issue were manufactured by Intoximeters right here in St. Louis. A total of 203 Datamaster DMT machines manufactured by Intoximeters have been taken out of service in Michigan since the initial letter was sent by the Michigan State Police.

This issue has more than just a local manufacturing tie to the St. Louis area. Many law enforcement agencies in St. Louis and throughout Missouri utilize breath test machines manufactured by Intoximeters. To this point, law enforcement agencies in Missouri have not acknowledged any potential issue with the Intoximeter devices. The Michigan State Police letter did not specify the issues that had been identified with the Intoximeter devices, but any issue that took 203 devices out of service should be a cause for concern for law enforcement agencies using devices manufactured by the same company.

Small Issues Result in Big Consequences

Small issues with a breath test machine can lead to great consequences for people who blow into those machines during a DWI investigation. Many people forget that drinking and driving is legal. It is one hundred percent legal to go to a bar after work and have a drink or two, then drive home, as long as you are not intoxicated. The 0.08% blood alcohol content is often referred to as the “legal limit,” but it is really the level of blood alcohol content where a person is legally considered to be intoxicated. Therefore, the difference between a breath test result of 0.07% and 0.08%, despite being only one – one hundredth of a percent different can lead one person to being released and the other person to being charged with a DWI with a long legal fight ahead of them. It does not take much of an error in a breath test machine to make such a small numerical mistake. If a breath test machine is not functioning perfectly, if it has not been used perfectly by well-trained personnel, and if the breath test sample is not obtained according to all proper instructions, then the result of the breath test is worthless. These machines are not magic black boxes that always dispense justice, and are incapable of error. The proof of that is playing out in Michigan right now, with 203 breath test machines that were manufactured right here in St. Louis.

St. Louis DWI Lawyer Jason Korner

If you or a loved one have been arrested for a DWI in Missouri, whether there was a breath test or not, it is important to have the specific facts of the case reviewed by a lawyer that specializes in DWI defense. Jason Korner has been defending DWI cases for twelve years, and DWI defense has always been more than half of his case volume. Please call Mr. Korner’s office today at 314-409-2659 or click here to fill out the contact page and Mr. Korner’s office will contact you about the case.

Source: Fox 2 Now, Local Company That Makes Breathalyzers at the Center of Drunk Driving Controversy, January 15, 2020, https://fox2no2.com/2020/01/15/local-company-that-makes-breathalyzers-at-the-center-of-drunk-driving-controversy

The post St. Louis Connection for Breath Test Problems appeared first on Korner Law.

The Michigan State Police have discovered a flaw in the breath testing program used in DWI investigations in the state. The Michigan State Police sent a letter to other police departments and prosecutor’s offices throughout Michigan to inform them there is an issue with the breath test program. Unfortunately, the letter did not specify the flaws with the breath testing program, but it did state the contract with the breath testing company has been suspended due to the flaws.

Types of Breath Test Problems

Many people look at a breath test machine as perfect and beyond fault, but that often is the furthest thing from the truth. There are three main areas where breath testing can be flawed. First, like the current situation in Michigan, the breath testing systems can be flawed as a whole due to fundamental issues with the machines or with the processes needed to obtain a breath sample. Second, breath testing can also deal with flaws within the individual breath testing machines if the machine is not calibrated or maintained properly, or just has an unknown problem. Finally, there can be flaws in the process that law enforcement uses to obtain a breath sample. Simply put, there are many possible defenses to breath tests available, especially when an experienced DWI lawyer is involved.

Any problem with one of the three above potential flaws would cause the breath test reading to be erroneous. Once a breath test result is erroneous, it needs to be thrown out of court altogether because the legal foundations used to obtain the number are faulty and cannot be relied on in a court of law. Breath test machines are like any other piece of technology, and anyone who has used a copy machine at work or dealt with a slightly outdated computer knows, there are plenty of potential problems when dealing with technology.

What If the Breath Test Result is Thrown Out?

If there is a problem with the breath test and the results are not allowed in court, it does not necessary end a DWI prosecution. The prosecutor still may be able to prove the case through other evidence, such as video of a person acting intoxicated or possibly even admitting to drinking “eight to ten beers.” That being said, it is a fundamental blow to the prosecutor’s case anytime the breath test result is disallowed in court.

St. Louis DWI Lawyer Jason Korner

If you or a someone you know has been arrested for a DWI, whether there was a breath test or not, please contact St. Louis DWI lawyer Jason Korner at 314-409-2659, or click here to fill out the contact form and Mr. Korner’s office will contact you.

Source: The Detroit News, Michigan State Police finds flaw in breath alcohol testing, suspends contract,” January 13, 2020, https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2020/01/11/michigan-state-police-breath-alcohol-testing-devices-performance-issues/4444435002

The post Flawed Breath Testing Program in Michigan appeared first on Korner Law.

I was fortunate enough recently to be a guest of another attorney on his podcast. Tyson Mutrix, a personal injury attorney in Missouri, asked me to be on his podcast to discuss how a pending Driving While Intoxicated charge can affect an injury case arising out of the same incident. Essentially, if a person gets in an accident and someone is hurt by a drunk driver, how does that change the case and how do the two cases interact. My expertise lies in the criminal aspect of these cases. Tyson Mutrix’s expertise is in the injury portion of the case. My fight is with a criminal prosecutor, while his fight is against an insurance company who he is tryin to get to pay his client for pain and suffering from the injuries sustained in the accident.

Defending Possible Felony DWI Charges

My view on the interaction between the two cases is simple: the criminal case has the higher priority of the two cases. I will not allow my client to give any kind of statement to an investigator or an insurance company while the criminal case is still pending. I will generally speak with my client’s insurance company to explain the situation and inform them that my client is willing to give a statement, but just not until the criminal case has been resolved. I cannot have a client admitting to facts involving the accident, injuries, or intoxication when there is a pending criminal DWI case. A DWI case involving an injury can be charged as a felony DWI in Missouri, which can result in far greater penalties than a DWI without accident or injury.

Listen to the Podcast & Call with Any Questions

The full audio from the podcast is available at the link below. It’s a quick listen at only twelve minutes in length, but it is packed with a lot of valuable information regarding DWI accident resulting in an injury. If you have any further questions regarding these cases please contact my office at 314-409-2659, or click here to fill out the contact form and my office will contact you. If your question relates to the criminal aspects of the case then I will speak with you and answer your questions. If your question is regarding the injury aspect of the case then I will answer anything I can, but will refer you to speak with Tyson Mutrix so he can fully answer your questions.

Click Here to Listen to the Podcast

The post How a DWI Can Affect an Injury Case appeared first on Korner Law.