A first-time DWI conviction with a fairly low blood alcohol concentration (BAC) may not, in and of itself, seem to be too bad, and you may be content to plead guilty, take the minimal punishment, and get on with your life. As many as 90 days in jail, a maximum fine of $1,000, up to two years’ probation, and a 90-day loss of license may seem to be a small price to pay to not have to deal with the legal ins and outs of fighting a DWI. Whereas a first-time offender will usually only serve a fraction of time, pay a smaller fine, and be eligible for community service instead of probation, while these may not seem like too harsh of consequences for a DWI, they are only one piece of a larger puzzle. Read More...

Minnesota commercial DWI laws are different from “regular” DWI laws. Perhaps the most important difference is that for a commercial driver’s license (CDL) holder, state law criminalizes driving, being in control or, or operating any commercial motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) or .04 or above. This is an important distinction from the law for non-commercial vehicles where the threshold BAC is .08. Read More...

Back in 2014, we discussed the potential for false positives in ignition interlock devices (IIDs). As mentioned, false positives can occur in several situations. For one, spicy foods that mix with stomach acid can create methane that will oftentimes yield a positive result because the IID sensor confuses it with alcohol. Other items that have caused false positives include mouthwash, mouth sprays, breath mints, liquid oral analgesics, and even chewing tobacco because they contain alcohol. Similarly, with sweet treats, the sugar and yeast can combine to create a low-level alcohol failure in some cases. Even energy drinks can provide a false positive because many of them contain ethanol. Finally, certain diets may also contribute to IID false positives. For example, diabetics and certain dieters oftentimes have higher-than-average levels of acetone in their bodies which can be easily misread as ethanol—or beverage alcohol—thus resulting in a positive result. Read More...

Even though it may not sound as serious as it is, shoplifting carries with it serious penalties such as jail time, fines, and potentially being sued in civil court. Read More...

At the start of the year, a 23-year-old Burnsville man was arrested for DWI in St. Cloud and held at the Stearns County Jail. When he called for a sober driver, his 54-year-old father arrived to pick him up and was given a standard voluntary breath test for alcohol. Unfortunately for both men, the father blew a .11—above the .08 legal limit. After the father admitted he had driven to the jail to collect his son, deputies arrested him on fourth-degree DWI charges and both father and son spent the night in the same jail cell. Read More...

Not only is the experience of being stopped for DWI scary and stressful, but being convicted and worrying about how said conviction may affect one’s ability to get a job or a home can add to that stress. Even though Minnesota has participated in the Ban the Box law since 2014 wherein potential employers are prohibited from asking applicants about any criminal history on applicants’ initial employment applications to permit them the opportunity to be evaluated on their experience and skills, there is understandable worry that having a DWI on one’s record may negatively impact certain areas of one’s life. Read More...

A few years back, Polk County Sheriff’s deputies in Lakeland, Florida, arrested a 53-year-old woman for riding her horse down a busy highway while intoxicated. Officers responded to numerous 911 calls reporting a woman on a horse was galloping down the road and that they feared she might have been in danger. When officers conducted a roadside sobriety test and took a breath sample, the woman blew a .161—more than double Florida’s threshold limit for being legally intoxicated. Read More...

Manufacturing/cultivating and trafficking drugs are two of the most serious drug-related offenses in Minnesota with potentially harsh criminal penalties. The drug trade costs as much as $321 billion annually, thus making this a salient state and federal issue. Read More...

Being convicted of a drug crime in Minnesota can have serious and far-reaching implications. Whereas most people are aware of criminal punishment to include incarceration, fines, probation, community service, and mandatory drug counseling, for example, there are many more civil and financial penalties which arise from a drug crime conviction. Read More...

Pursuant to Minnesota law, it is a crime for anyone to refuse to submit to a chemical breath test to determine intoxication. For blood and urine tests, it is a crime to refuse to submit to said tests if a search warrant was obtained. However, prior to 2015, a warrant wasn’t necessary for said invasive tests. Thus, questions arise as to whether a conviction for refusing a blood or urine chemical test for intoxication prior to the new law can be overturned. Read More...