Newburgh, New York DWI defense Blog

New York state police recently charged two men with switching cars in an attempt to circumvent a court order in a drunk driving case. The order in question required one of the men, who had previously been convicted of DWI, to have an ignition interlock device on the car.

The men were caught after they went to an ignition interlock office for a in response to a court order requiring a calibration of the interlock device. After the office workers found no device in the car, they alerted the police, who arrested the convicted DWI offender, once his breath tested positive for alcohol on a screening device.

With National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data showing that drowsy driving and fatigued driving are at the root of 100,000 reported crashes across the U.S., a New York traffic official recently highlighted what is at stake for local drivers.

New York State Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Barbara J. Fiala says that fatigue and drowsiness contribute to thousands of New York car accidents every year. She warns drivers to be aware of their fatigue levels and not to drive if they are vulnerable to the distracted driving that fatigue can cause.

The recent tragic death of a 4-year-old and 5-year-old child in the New York area has prompted a more critical look at the problem of "drugged" driving. Investigators are suspicious that prescription drugs may have been a factor in both crashes.

Drugged driving is not as commonly discussed as DWI. But studies have shown that 10.5 million Americans admit to driving while under the influence of prescription or illegal drugs. Also of the 12,055 reported deaths from fatal automobile crashes it has been found that one third of the individuals who lost their lives had prescription or illegal drugs in their system.

In 1996, the state of New York began collecting DNA samples from people convicted of murder or sex crimes. Since then, the database has been expanded to allow state authorities to collect DNA samples from people convicted of all felonies and many misdemeanor crimes contained in the state's penal code. Currently, the database includes DNA samples from over 386,000 people and approximately 38,000 crime scenes, according to The Associated Press (AP).

With the Department of Transportation set to announce new hours of service (HOS) rules near the end of December 2011, the debate about whether the new rules are needed or not continues.

The new rules would restrict the number of hours that commercial drivers could drive per day and require a rest period. Proponents of the changes believe that the new rules are needed to help make America's roadways safer by fighting driver fatigue.

When you are going through a contested divorce, everything that you do or say is closely examined. The other side will be watching your every move to try to get information to use against you. If there is a child custody dispute, the opposition may try to show the court that you are an unfit parent because of the way you spend your time.

Authorities have reported a drop in the number of DWI arrests across New York in the past five years. Police have suggested various explanations for the decline in DWI arrests, but drivers should not assume that police have stopped looking for those driving drunk or that prosecutors will not charge people who were arrested for suspicion of DWI.

A Friday evening in early September 2011 saw New York City reach a sad milestone for the year, the number of fatal bicycle accidents reached double digits. There is good news in the midst of this tragedy; however, the number of fatal bicycle accidents has been decreasing in recent years, even though the number of cyclists on the road has increased.

According to Transportation Alternatives, there were 26 fatal bicycle-accidents in New York City in 2008. And, despite an increased number of riders on the roads, this number fell to 18 in 2010.