Happy Thanksgiving, and Make Sure Your Tail Lights Are Working Tonight by DWI Defense Lawyer Mark Stevens 603-893-0074

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

It is best to make sure tonight and throughout this holiday weekend that you are vigilant about making sure your license, registration and inspection stickers are up to date. You should also make sure that all the lighting is working on your vehicles before you drive tonight. Burned out plate lights are a magnet for the police on a holiday weekend. This is not because they have taken a sudden interest in plate lights; it is because it gives them a reason to stop you and see if you have been drinking.

Your chances of having an unwanted encounter with the police this weekend are high enough already. That is because the government has issued massive money for roadblocks and saturation patrols. Some points that might be helpful to bear in mind if you drive at night over this weekend are:

1. Make Sure Your Inspection Stickers and Registrations Are Valid. An important reminder if you are driving this weekend is to make sure that your car has a valid inspection sticker, as well as a valid registration. When you drive into a roadblock, or even drive by the police this weekend without a valid inspection sticker you can count on being stopped and hassled. Like all the motor vehicle code, the police often co-opt this to see if you have been drinking or have drugs in your car. The penalty for a violation of this section of the motor vehicle code is $60, but the real penalty is when the police smell alcohol or suspect that you have been drinking after stopping you for the lack of an inspection sticker. Many drivers who are initially stopped for this minor violation end up charged with DWI, DUI or OUI. AVOID one potential for this by making sure your inspection stickers are up to date.

2. Make Sure Your Plate Lights and Other Lights Work. Everyone driving at night should check their brake lights, plate lights, and other lighting, as well as their inspection stickers and license plates, to avoid some unwanted interaction with police. The cheesiest of motor vehicle stops begin with a passive equipment violation such as those I've just mentioned. In these types of stops, the driver is not exhibiting any signs of impairment. The driver may be obeying the speed limit, maintaining appropriate lane control, and otherwise following every rule of the road, but he finds himself in the flashing blue glow of police lighting wondering why he was stopped.

Avoid giving the police some of these chances to legally stop you by making sure that all your lights are functioning, your registration and inspection stickers are up to date, and your license is valid.

PREPARATION FOR THIS WORST CASE SCENARIO. It is not a bad idea to prepare for this event. Have your license and registration in an easy place to find and an easy place to quickly and effortlessly produce upon demand. Don't put your license in a difficult spot to pull it out quickly when you need to. Practice taking your license out of your wallet in the safety of your home. CONSIDER GETTING A REGISTRATION HOLDER TO KEEP YOUR VEHICLE REGISTRATION IN. If you do not have one send me an email with your mailing address and I will send you a registration holder for every one of your vehicles free of charge. Then practice producing your license and registration fairly frequently. It will make it easier to do if you ever have to produce them under a pressurized roadside situation.


Have a safe weekend and a Happy Thanksgiving,

Mark Stevens

http://www.ByeByeDWI.com

Appeals Case Reviewed in The Judicial Review Today- Mark Stevens 603-893-0074

Today's The Judicial View covers the case of United States v. Villar in an article today. Follow this link below to the article:

http://www.judicialview.com/Court-Cases/Criminal-Justice/Jury-Room-Reference-to-Profiling-Cited-in-Appeal/19/7780

Have a great day,

Mark Stevens

LAW OFFICES OF MARK STEVENS
5 Manor Parkway
Salem, NH 03079
603-893-0074

http://www.ByeByeDWI.com

http://www.ByeByeDUI.com

http://www.ByeByeOUI.com

http://www.twitter.com/byebyedwi

Link to Article on CYB3RCRIM3: Juror Emails Defense Attorney

Below is a link to Professor Susan Brenner's blog regarding the appellate reversal last week in the case of United States v. Villar:

CYB3RCRIM3: Juror Emails Defense Attorney

Have a great day,

Mark Stevens

LAW OFFICES OF MARK STEVENS
5 Manor Parkway
Salem, NH 03079
603-893-0074

http://www.ByeByeDWI.com

http://www.ByeByeDUI.com

http://www.ByeByeOUI.com

http://www.twitter.com/byebyedwi

Federal Appeals Court Reverses and Remands Bank Robbery Case-November 10, 2009- by Mark Stevens 603-893-0074

On November 10, 2009 the First Circuit Court of Appeals reversed and remanded the federal bank robbery case of United States v. Villar. A link to the Court of Appeals opinion is below:

http://www.ca1.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/getopn.pl?OPINION=08-1154P.01A

Have a great day,

Mark Stevens

LAW OFFICES OF MARK STEVENS
5 Manor Parkway
Salem, NH 03079
603-893-0074

http://www.ByeByeDWI.com

http://www.ByeByeDUI.com

http://www.ByeByeOUI.com

http://www.twitter.com/byebyedwi

OUI CLE Litigation Course - November 5, 2009- 1 to 5 p.m. - Burlington, MA - Attorney Mark Stevens 603-893-0074

I am on the faculty panel for tomorrow's continuing legal education course Handling OUI Cases presented by Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education (MCLE), in Burlington, Massachusetts. Tomorrow's topics will include boating while intoxicated, field sobriety testing, drunk driving case law updates, application of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts to Massachusetts OUI cases, and other hot topics in drunk-driving litigation. Here is a link to the program brochure:

http://www.mcle.org/program-calendar/program-catalog.cfm?product_code=2100020P01

My topic will be boating while intoxicated cases. This CLE will be held at the Burlington Hilton Garden Inn tomorrow (11/5/09) from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. in Burlington, Massachusetts.

The address is:

Hilton Garden Inn
5 Wheeler Road
Burlington, MA

This should be a great CLE. Please stop by if you can and attend.

Mark Stevens

LAW OFFICES OF MARK STEVENS
5 Manor Parkway
Salem, NH 03079
603-893-0074

http://www.ByeByeDWI.com

http://www.ByeByeDUI.com

http://www.ByeByeOUI.com

http://www.twitter.com/byebyedwi

Would a Fake Cola Be OK? by Attorney Mark Stevens 603-893-0074

The internet is a funny place. We search for information, products, places and people every day. Some people search for a New Hampshire DWI lawyer when they have been arrested for driving or boating under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Some people search for a specific New Hampshire DWI lawyer. Some of those searches are for me, Mark Stevens, and I appreciate your search for my profile, case examples, website and blog from the bottom of my heart. Every case result on my website is 100% verifiable by going to the court in which the victory happened.

Because of the number and type of case victories I have been blessed with over the past few years, others try to profit from searches for me specifically. They pay to advertise when some one searches for my name on the major search engines. You can tell that some one is paying to appear under a search term, like "Attorney Mark Stevens in Salem NH", for example, when their link is one of the three shaded ones at the top of the page or one of the shaded boxes on the right hand side of the page. So they pay to be there when you are looking for me. I guess their theory is that you might search for me, click on them by accident, and that you are not smart enough to not know the difference. I know you are smarter than that.

If you are looking for my website the links are below. Thank you for visiting and reading. If you have been charged with Aggravated DWI, DWI or boating while intoxicated in New Hamphire, please feel free to call to arrange a free initial consultation at 603-893-0074. It's what we do.

Have a safe night.

Mark Stevens

LAW OFFICES OF MARK STEVENS
5 Manor Parkway
Salem, NH 03079
603-893-0074

http://www.ByeByeDWI.com

http://www.ByeByeDUI.com

http://www.ByeByeOUI.com

http://www.twitter.com/byebyedwi