Dallas Police Shooting

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/breakingnews/police-5-officers-dead-6-hurt-in-dallas-protest-shooting/ar-BBu5aky?li=BBnb7Kz

“The world is going crazy”

I woke up to a friend and  retired, decorated police officer, texting me.

Last night in Dallas, Texas, 5 Police Officers are shot and 6 others were wounded, apparently for revenge or in protest of the Alton Sterling shooting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The facts are not in. The evidence has not been completely collected and the investigation is on-going.

I thought we had reached a point in this country where racism was no longer a major issue. I was wrong. It is a terrible thing to kill another person. I used to hunt and quit because I could stand killing. I cannot understand how anyone could shoot another human, especially to target and hunt them down in an ambush.

I know there are bad people out there, but I hope that this was an isolated incident. That will be no comfort to the grieving families on both sides of the blue line. I think it is important that we start a dialog with the goal of seek a better understanding of race issues as well as better training.

I don’t feel comfortable writing about the actual evidence and what really happened because honestly, I don’t think we know everything, yet. I admit that the videos of the Alton Sterling shooting are horrific and if it is proven to be murder, then let the criminal justice process do its job. Everyone is entitled to due process under rule of law.

There are so many issues on so many levels that simple solutions solutions are not going to work. There is no panacea.

Racism is a national, if not global, problem. But do we expect a government to solve it or can we, as individuals take a look at our prejudices and biases and be honest enough with ourselves.

In the end, I hope that truth and justice prevail but the only way to make that happen is for each of us, as an individual, to make sure that we are not contributing to the problem.

I leave off today with a quote from the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan ruler/monk:

“The very purpose of our life is happiness, which is sustained by hope. We have no guarantee about the future, but we exist in the hope of something better. Hope means keeping going, thinking, ‘I can do this.’ It brings inner strength, self-confidence, the ability to do what you do honestly, truthfully and transparently.”

Be mindful of your actions to others today and let’s all take a deep breath and try do a lot better.

DWI Trials?

I get asked all of the time about the cases I tried as a Judge and why certain cases go to trial. Most recently, I was asked,”Do DWI cases ever go to trial?”

Yes, they do.

All of the time, in fact. There are many reasons for this. Primarily, the offense is subjective. It is impossible for one person to determine if another person is above the legal limit of .08. But this is a hot ticket item for prosecutors and big money for cops, MADD  (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), and the entire machine of the criminal justice system. DPS estimates that one DWI can cost as much as $17,000.00. So you can see how the criminal justice system needs to keep the money flowing with these cases.

The detection of borderline (just above or below .08) DWI cases and even those that are alleged to be much higher can always be disputed as the science behind certain methods of testing is not actually very scientific and can rarely be verified by duplication. You can have a person give three different breath tests and every one of them will be different. That’s not scientifically reliable nor accurate and absolutely should not be used as evidence to convict a person of the offense of DWI. But it is used every day, which is why these cases are tried and won by good lawyers.

So if you get stopped this holiday weekend, and are arrested for DWI, make sure you investigate and hire a lawyer that is well versed in the science of blood draws and DWI cases. These sorts of cases have almost become a speciality focus because the State invests so much in prosecuting these cases.

Hopefully, you will never have to deal with this, but I have had people who had nothing to drink that were still pulled over, arrested and prosecuted for DWI – with no alcohol or drugs in their system.

Best bet – stay home and bar-b-que! Have a safe and Happy Fourth and enjoy the long weekend!