May 2012 - Domestic Batttery - Mr. Hampton was charged after his girlfriend alleged he had struck her and caused injuries to her arms. He denied the charge. We were able to convince the prosecutor to dismiss the charge completely.
May 2012 - Domestic Battery - Michel Thomas was charged after she allegedly battered another female. Despite the victim repeatedly appearing in court we were able to obtain a full dismissal of the charge.
May 2012 - Cannaabis Trafficking - Mr. Mulliorn was arrested after his RV was stopped for allegedly crossing the white fog line. A K9 was summoned who positively reacted to the rear of his RV. The problem is that there was no cannabis in his RV. 67.5 pounds of cannabis was discovered in a car on a trailer being towed by the RV. The K9 did not react to the car. We negotiated probation on a reduced charge and recovered his property. He had previously served a long federal sentence for another drug charge previously. He was arrested by the Illinois State Police.
May 2012 - Property recovery - The Madison County States Attorney had begun property forfeiture against my client's gang related property. The statute is dissimilar from the regular drug forfeiture procedures. We were able to negotiate full return of his property.
April 2012 - Bond County Agg. Methamphetamine Manufacturing - my client was charged with this very serious methamphetamine related charge after the vehicle she owned was stopped for a traffic violation. We analyzed the video surrounding the arrest and concentrated upon the K9 search. It seemed obvious to us that the K9 did not react positively in any manner. We retained an ex Dept of Def expert trainer to testify in our motion to suppress. Before our hearing the State called us and resolved the case to my client's satisfaction.
April 2012 - St. Clair County DUI - My client was arrested for DUI while at a gas station. The problem for the State was that the client was never seen nor admitted to driving upon a highway. That resulted in a rescission of the SSS. Oddly enough we were retained by another client who had the exact same issue come into play in her DUI. We once again negotiated a rescission of her SSS.
April 2012 - Mr. Pansa was charged with Unlawful Use of Weapons after having left a 9 mm on the bartop counter at a local tavern. We negotiated the charge so it will result in a misdemeanor after he completes probation.
April 2012 - Madison County - Mr. Stevens was stopped by the Illinois State Police for a minor traffic violation. He alleges he was not committing the traffic violation as claimed by the police officer. We were able to convince the State to agree to reduce his charge from a mandatory 12-30 year sentence to a First Offender probation due to the shaky initial stop by the police. He will obtain a full dismissal of the charge upon completion of his probation term. He had 50 pounds of cannabis.
April 2012 - Madison County - Mr. Wise was charged with Sexual Assault of a Minor. We negotiated a dispostion where he will complete probation and the charge will be reduced to a misdemeanor non-sex offense charge upon completion.
March 2012 - Madison County - Numerous Domestic Battery charges dismissed on the jury week. I obtained full dismissals for 9 of my clients charged with Domestic Battery by various law enforcement agencies. I am also assisting them with the expungement process.
March 2012 - Two clients were stopped by the Illinois State Police for minor traffic violations while driving with out of state plates. Both stops were deficient. I was able to reduce their bonds substantially from $350,000 to $10,000 cash. I anticipate very good outcomes on both cases. They are charged with cannabis trafficking.
March 2012 - Mr. Mountain was stopped while driving a vehicle with out of state plates and allegedly having committed a minor traffic violation. We reviewed the stop videos and it was apparent that he didn't violate the law as the officer stated. Further, he was detained a very long time after the officer gave him the traffic citation so the K9 could appear and conduct a sniff search. We filed a motion to suppress evidence and the State agreed to First Offender probation for a period of 2 years. After he completes probation his case will be fully dismissed.
March 2012 - Madison County - Illinois State Police - Ms. Schaeffer was a passenger in a vehicle stopped for a minor traffic violation. We have reviewed all dash cam evidence and have concluded the detention of the car she was in exceeded the reasonable time period allowed by case precedent. I have filed a motion to suppress and anticipate a full dismissal by the State. She was arrested by the Illinois State Police for cannnabis trafficking.
February 2012 - DUI Madison County - My client was arrested by the Madison County Sheriff's Department after flipping his truck in a ditch. The evidence looked sufficient on paper. However, when I began cross examination of the two arresting deputies it was evident that their memories were sorely deficient. We convinced the State to dismiss the charge. It was the second DUI charge my client was charged with.
February 2012 - DUI - My client was arrested on suspicion for DUI while under the influence of alcohol AND prescription medication. The officer arrested her on 10/24/11. He obtained a blood sample and sent it off for analysis. He immediately issued her notice of Statutory Summary Suspension. The problem is that he did not have the results back on her blood sample prior to him issuing the notice. The law requires he not send notice until such time as the results have been received by him. Therefore, we brought this issue to the attention of the court. The court issued an Order rescinding my client's suspension.
February 2012 - DUI - Macoupin County - After having initially stopped my client for the offense of Speeding the officer wrote a DUI. The officer was running radar within 100 feet of the speed zone change from 55 down to 30. We were able to obtain a full dismissal of the DUI AND rescission of the Statutory Summary Suspension.
February 2012 - DUI - St. Clair County - My client was charged with a DUI after a minor fender bender. He wisely refused to submit to any field sobriety tests and didn't give a breath sample. We were able to negotiate a dismissal of the DUI for lack of evidence.
February 2012 - Methamphetamine Possession Class 1 felony - Jury Trial - My client was charged with methamphetamine possession after a routine traffic stop that quickly escalated into a full search of his brother's van. A shaker bottle was found inside with methamphetamine in liquid form. The jury acquitted him after only a 30 minute deliberation. They discussed the case afterwards and a couple stated that didn't believe the State should have filed the case to begin with. I was able to effectively cross-examine the officer in charge. Edwardsville Police Department. My client has an offer of five (5) years in the Department of Corrections going into the trial. My client was on probation at the time of trial so we decided it to be in his best interests not to testify. Needless to say my client is very pleased with out trial services.
February 2012 - Battery - After having physically attacked another person who is purportedly a heroin dealer my client hired us. We were able to get the case dismissed.
February 2012 - Bond Reduction - One of my client's was charged with Burglary to a Vehicle, a class 2 felony. We were able to get him out on a recognizance bond. Partly this was due to the fact that he has no criminal history.
January 2012 - My client was arrested for DUI. The odd thing about this case is that he had gone to sleep and had no recollection of drinking, having contact with the police, or being arrested for DUI. He had recently been prescribed Ambien a sleep prescription medicine with bizarre side effects. The FDA label clearly states the drug can cause "sleep driving". We successfully attacked his Statutory Summary Suspension.
January 2012 - Quite a busy month for Domestic Battery clients. We were able to successfully obtain full dismissal for five of our clients this week. Many times the facts underlying these cases are extremely weak. In one such case my client, a female, was battered by her husband and her friend. She slapped him in an attempt to get him to stop. She was charged despite overwhelming evidence against the "victim".
January 2012 - My felony client was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Deliver. We conducted a motion to suppress evidence following her arrest by MEGSI. We won the hearing which caused all evidence to be suppressed. The State had no choice but to dismiss her charge.
January 2012 - The new year has kept us very busy defending clients charged with DUI. I have conducted four hearings in two weeks. I won half of those for my clients. One client was arrested by the Madison County Sheriff's Department after rolling his car in Godfrey. It was his second DUI. We were able to effectively cross examine the arresting officers and put enough doubt in the judge's mind about their credibility that he ruled in my client's favor. The judge rescinded the SSS due to lack of probable cause to arrest for the offense of DUI. Another client we prevailed on the SSS had been arrested by the Highland PD for allegedly disobeying a traffic control device. We forced the State to turn over all the dashcam and booking room evidence. After reviewing the video it was apparent the officer had embellished his report regarding physical indicators of intoxication displayed by my client. She had her SSS rescinded as well. Lastly, my client had been arrested by Edwardsville PD for touching the fog line. We reviewed the dashcam, booking room, and sally port videos and learned that my client had actually passed all the field sobriety tests, did not display any physical indicators of intoxication and maintained himself well throughout the remainder of the proceedings. All charges and the SSS were thrown out.
January 2012 - Montgomery County - My clients were arrested for felony Possession of a Stolen Vehicle and other lesser charges. I was able to convince the State to dismiss the felony charges.
December 2011 - Two clients were arrested for Domestic Battery involving their spouses. We were able to obtain full dismissals of the charges against them after persuading the State that the clients were in fact the victims not the aggressors.
December 2011 - Madison County - My client was arrested for a DUI. Not especially serious in and of itself. However it was his eighth DUI. We fought hard to have all but two of his priors excluded from evidence on legal technicalities. The State offered him 8 years in prison initially. He was sentenced by agreement to two years of probation. Our suppression work on his case resulted in him doing no time.
December 2011 - Madison County - My client was charged with multiple counts of Battery after having been involved in an altercation with some acquaintances. He steadfastly denied any culpability for the crimes. We demanded jury trials for all charges. Ultimately the State gave up and dismissed all charges against him.
December 2011 - Madison County - My client was arrested and charged with Theft Over $10,000. He had allegedly embezzled over $13,000 from his employer. The State produced extensive videotaped evidence from the employer's security cameras and statements from everyone he worked with. It seemed they had an airtight case. We eventually resolved the case for a plea to an amended misdemeanor theft charge.
December 2011 - Madison County - My client was arrested for Battery (multiple) after getting into an altercation with some acquaintances. He steadfastly denied any culpability for the offenses. We made it clear to the State that we would try the cases before a jury if they did not agree to dismiss the charges. Ultimately the charges were dismissed.
November 2011 - Madison County - Mr. Baxter Grace was arrested by Edwardsville Police for DUI after the officer claimed to have witnessed his commit a lane violation at 3:00 a.m. Upon review of the dash cam video, it was apparent that Mr. Grace most likely did not commit a lane violation. Further he performed all field sobriety tests in a successful manner. We filed a petition to rescind the Statutory Summary Suspension and argued it before the Court. The Court agreed with us and rescinded the SSS. The next day we obtained a full dismissal of all charges against him.
November 2011 - Madison County - Mr. Sanchez was a commercial driver who was bringing a load through Illinois on his way back down to Texas. He was stopped by an Illinois State Police Trooper who requested a download of his entire cargo. He agreed and a bale of cannabis was discovered inside one of the pallets. He was charged with a class X felony Cannabis Trafficking charge and was placed in jail until he could post $10,000 cash. We were able to obtain a full dismissal of his charges
November 2011 - Madison County - Mr. Beatty was arrested by Collinsville Police for DUI. We filed all the necessary pleadings for him and set the matter for hearing on his Petition to Rescind the Statutory Summary Suspension. Before beginning the hearing he entered into an agreement whereby the DUI was dismissed.
November 2011- Madison County - Domestic Battery - The Edwardsville Police Department had arrested my client on allegations made by his family that he had struck his son at the family residence. The actual facts revealed that his son was acting very disruptively at the house and my client had attempted to subdue him. The charges were dismissed through negotiations with the State.
October 2011 - Macoupin County - Battery - A client of mine was charged with Battery after he was wrongfully accused by a friend of committing same. We were able to convince the State that he had committed no such crime. His charges were fully dismissed against him.
October 2011 - Macoupin County - Delivery of a Controlled Substance - My client was at a tavern and was approached by an undercover police officer who requested the client "set him up" to purchase some cocaine. My client took the undercover officer to a location to meet his supplier. He was given a small $100.00 bag of cocaine which he then handed to the undercover officer. He was immediately arrested and charged with the Unlawful Delivery of a Controlled Substance. We were able to obtain a reduction of his charge and a sentence for First Offender Probation wherein the charge will be dismissed upon his successful completion of probation.
October 2011 - Madison County - Felony Sexual Assault - My client was charged with a very serious sexual assault crime. She consistently denied any unlawful contact with the minor. The Madison County Sheriff's Department investigated and kept pursuing the charges against her. We were able to negotiate a full dismissal of the felony charges against her.
October 2011- Madison County - Felony Home Repair Fraud - My client had done some work for a relative (who was over 60 years of age) and believed he had completed all the work she requested. He was paid and shortly thereafter was contacted by the police. He had been accused of not performing the work that he already had completed. He was charged with Aggravated Home Repair Fraud. He had a long list of prior felony convictions which made resolving the case very difficult. We were able to dispose of the case for a straight conviction and restitution.
September 2011 - Madison County - DUI - My client was arrested for a DUI. He was originally arrested by Edwardsville Police for possession a knife. He was arrested at gunpoint then taken to the police station where he was processed on a DUI arrest. We argued that the original arrest was invalid and unconstitutional due to the fact it is not unlawful to possess a knife in your vehicle. The State agreed and the Statutory Summary Suspension was rescinded. The weapons charge was dismissed too.
September 2011- Madison County - DUI - My client was arrested by Alton Police for Improper Lane Useage. My client was not witnessed inside the vehicle however and the police officer arrived some time after he had allegedly been driving. We were able to convince the State to dismiss the DUI charge.
September 2011 - Madison County - My client was arrested for DUI after striking the outer wall of a tavern while parking. He claimed that he was not driving but that a female passenger who had a revoked license actually was operating. The Madison County Sheriff's Department officer arrested him nonetheless. We were able to negotiate a dismissal of the DUI against him. The DUI was his second arrest.
September 2011 - Madison County - My client was a Colorado resident traveling through Illinois who was stopped by the Illinois State Police for an alleged traffic violation. He was placed inside the squad car and detained well beyond the point where the officer could have issued him citations for the alleged traffic violation. The trooper detained him for an unconstitutionally long period of time. A search of his vehicle revealed a felony amount of Cannabis. We filed a motion to suppress all the evidence and against him. The State had no choice but to dismiss the case as they undoubtedly knew we would prevail in our motion. The felony charges were fully dismissed against him.
August 2011 - Madison County Production of Cannabis Sativa Plants and Unlawful Felony Possession of a Firearm - My client who was on felony probation had a Madison County Sheriff's Deputy enter his home without his permission where a search of his bedroom occurred. The search revealed many cannabis plants and a firearm. Both of course were illegal for him to possess. The State's initial offer was six years in prison. We filed a motion to suppress based upon the unlawful entry by the officer. Prior to the motion being heard the State moved to amend the charge to misdemeanor possession of cannabis. My client received court supervision and a fine. The charge will be dismissed per supervision.
August 2011 - Cannabis Trafficking - My client was stopped by Collinsville police and his car searched. The search revealed 50 pounds of cannabis. He was charged with a class x felony that would require he serve up to 30 years in prison had he been convicted. I was able to obtain a reduced charge and he was sentenced to two years probation.
August 2011 - Cannabis Possession with Intent to Deliver - My client was driving a car with his friend that was stopped by the Illinois State Police for an alleged traffic violation. We were able to obtain a dismissal for his friend of all charges. My client plead guilty to a reduced charge and was sentenced to First Offender Probation that will result in a dismissal of all charges upon successful completion of probation.
August 2011- Luring of a Minor - Macoupin County - My client was charged with a felony offense for having drove two minors to a hotel room. He was facing a felony conviction under the statute. We were able to obtain a reduction to a misdemeanor and supervision as a disposition. The charge will actually be dismissed per the negotiations.
August 2011- Expungements - Five separate clients were granted expungements by the Court this week alone. They were for a variety of charges including retail theft, cannabis possession, and battery."
I would like the top two in cannabis trafficking, and the luring in child pornography. The last of course should be placed in expungements.
August 2011 - DUI/SSS - Our client was stopped by the Edwardsville Police for a traffic violation that escalated into a DUI. Although the evidence appeared strong in the State's favor we were able to negotiate an "either or" deal with the State wherein my client was able to choose either a dismissal of the DUI or a rescission of the SSS. My client opted for the first choice.
August 2011 - DUI/SSS - Our client was arrested by the police after having struck a parked car so hard it knocked his own wheel completely off of the car. The arresting officer made some errors in processing our client. We drew that to the attention of the prosecution and were able to negotiate a rescission of the SSS. This was important to my client as he holds a CDL. The rescission also caused the suspension of his CDL to be rescinded.
August 2011 - Felony Drug Possession with Intent - Our client was staying a friend's house in Alton. A package was delivered to the house by Fed Ex. Her friend had requested her to bring the package to her workplace immediately. My client believed the unopened box was a gift for her birthday so she walked to her car to drive to Godfrey. Undercover police agents swarmed upon her. She was handcuffed, her car searched, cell phone taken, car seized, and she was not Mirandized. The police claimed the box contained a pound of marijuana. We filed a motion to suppress based upon a variety of constitutional violations. The judge ruled in our favor and suppressed all evidence against her.
August 2011 - Bond Reduction - Aggravated Criminal Sexual Abuse- We were able to obtain a recognizance bond reduction for a client of ours whose bond was previously set at $150,000. Recognizance means the client does not need to post a money bond.
August 2011 - DUI/SSS - Our client was charged with a DUI after having been arrested by the Edwardsville Police for DUI. Although her breath results were in excess of .08 we were able to obtain a rescission of her SSS. This in part was based upon poor quality videotape evidence from the police officer's dash cam.
July 2011 - Our client was arrested by the Sheriff's Department for Aggravated Domestic Battery. His daughter and he had a verbal confrontation. She became upset and called the police. Upon their arrival all witnesses stated that our client had not physically assaulted any person at the scene. The daughter who called tried to tell the officer that she never claimed he had hit her. Despite that our client was taken into custody, charged with the felony and remained in custody for a couple days until he could post bond. On a charge he never committed! We conducted a preliminary hearing and the State agreed to dismiss the charges after hearing testimony from the arresting officer.
July 2011 - Our client was charged with an elaborate fraud charge. The investigation was very sloppy and after we demanded full discovery be produced were able to show the State that he was not the person who was responsible for the fraud. All charges against him were fully dismissed. He was arrested by the Sheriff's Department.
July 2011 - Our client was arrested by police for his second DUI. He had hired another "DUI specialty" firm in Edwardsville who were unable to resolve his case satisfactorily. We took over as counsel and filed a motion to suppress the breath results (.14). We won the motion and ultimately obtained a full dismissal of the DUI and two companion charges.
July 2011 - Our client was beaten and arrested then held for three days by the police for allegedly possession a very small amount of cannabis. He denied ever having possessed any amount of cannabis. We took statements from about a dozen witnesses who all stated the same thing - he did not have any cannabis and was wrongfully beaten by the officers. Despite being interrogated and held for 72 hours he was not charged until six months later. Then a misdemeanor charge was sent to him. We pushed the State's attorneys to either try or drop the case. They chose the latter. His charges were fully dismissed. He anticipates a malicious prosecution, battery and false imprisonment civil lawsuit against all officers involved."
June 2011 - My client was arrested by the police department for the offense of Driving While Under the Influence of alcohol. Although he submitted to a breath test and was well over the legal limit we were able to negotiate a rescission of his statutory summary suspension. The DUI was kept from his driving record also. The reason - a bad arrest for the DUI.
Felony Unlawful Possession of a Controlled Substance June 2011 - Our client was arrested for DUI after wrecking his truck. At the scene a packet of powder cocaine was discovered. We were able to negotiate a full dismissal of the felony drug charge.
June 2011 - Our client was arrested various times for driving while suspended. I was able to obtain a dismissal of all four of his DWLS charges. He did not incur any points on his record either.
June 2011 - Our client was arrested for retail theft and the evidence was overwhelming against him. We were able to negotiate a full dismissal of the charge against him for evidentiary reasons.
June 2011 - Our client was charged with Unlawful Possession of a Controlled Substance. We negotiated a full dismissal of the felony charge.
June 2011 - My client was arrested for a traffic violation of Speeding. We negotiated a full dismissal of the charge against him. He did not incur any points.
May 2011 - Our client was charged with her second DUI. We were able to obtain a rescission of the Statutory Summary Suspension and the DUI. The officer failed to appear for the initial setting on the suspension hearing. That resulted in the rescission. Her DUI charge was dismissed due to a lack of evidence. She did not have to pay a fine or suffer loss of license.
April 2011 - Our client was charged by the Sheriff's Department with Failure to Report an Accident and other traffic charges. He was operating his car at night when his car ran into a construction zone and was significantly damages by exposed rebar. He tried to report the incident but an officer never appeared on site. Despite his attempts he was charged. We were able to convince the prosecutor that the site was not marked and unsafe. That was enough to obtain a full dismissal of the charges against our client.
People v. Spiller - Madison County April 2011 - The Roxana police department arrested Mr. Spiller for Violation of an Order of Protection for allegedly contacting his ex-wife after she obtained an Order of Protection. The problem with the charge was that he was responding to her request that he contact her. We were able to prove this and obtained a dismissal of his charge."
People v. Barforoush - Madison County April 2011 - Ms. Barforous was charged with retail theft from a local grocery store. Despite videotape evidence depicting the theft, we were able to negotiate a full dismissal of the case. She was arrested by Edwardsville Police.
People v. Dean - Madison County April 2011 - Ms. Dean faced a deceptive practice charge after some serious physical problems created financial problems. We were able to negotiate a dismissal of the charge.
People v. Brandmeyer - Madison County April 2011 - Mr. Brandmeyer faced an assortment of misdemeanor and traffic charges. We obtained a full dismissal of the charges for him. The charges were supplying a minor with alcohol and other traffic charges.
People v. Bray - Madison County April 2011 - Mr. Bray was charged with a weapons violation. We were able to negotiate a dismissal of the charges as the initial stop was unconstitutional.
People v. Austin - Madison County April 2011 - Mr. Austin was charged with multiple misdemeanor offenses including possession of cannabis, possession of drug paraphernalia and various traffic violations. We negotiated full dismissals of all charges.
People v. Harmon (Part IV)- Madison County April 2011 - My client was charged with his 4th DUI. We were able to win both the Statutory Summary Suspension and the DUI based upon an improper initial traffic stop. He did not suffer the three year mandatory Summary Suspension period.
People v. Cinotto - Clinton County April 2011 - Mr. Cinotto was charged with Class X and 1 sexual abuse claims. He faced up to 30 years in prison at 85%. I was able to convince the prosecutor that the State's case against my client was extremely weak. Ultimately Mr. Cinotto was found guilty of misdemeanor Battery and received only a fine and court supervision as his sentence. The felony charges were all dismissed by the State.
People v. Rynearson - St. Clair County April 2011 - Mr. Rynearson was cited for DUI after colliding into the back end of a gas tanker. He was injured and taken directly to the hospital in St. Louis for treatment. The State was unable to produce the blood test results against Mr. Rynearson which ultimately resulted in a full dismissal of the DUI charge against him. He was arrested by the Illinois State Police in Sauget, Illinois.
People v. Fisko - Madison County April 2011 - My client was arrested by Edwardsville Police for Domestic Battery after his intoxicated girlfriend showed at his residence at 1:00 a.m. He tried to get her to leave quietly as he needed to attend work early the next a.m. The State reluctantly dismissed the Domestic Battery charge after we collected many affidavits in support of his innocence. We also convinced a judge in Macoupin County to dismiss the Order of Protection she had filed against him in connection with the incident.
People v. Johnson - Madison County April 2011 - Mr. Johnson was arrested for DUI by the Illinois State Police after a traffic crash occurred. Due to the failure of the arresting officer to properly collect a blood sample from my client his Statutory Summary Suspension was immediately rescinded.
People v. Doe - Madison County 2011 - My client was arrested for Cannabis Trafficking. He allegedly possessed 67 pounds of cannabis that was discovered in a travel container by the Collinsville Police Department. My client's bond was set at $150,000. We were able to convince a judge to reduce his bond to a more manageable bond of $75,000. My client has posted the bond and is back in California awaiting trial in his case.
April 2011 - People v. Higgins - Madison County - Mr. Higgins was arrested and charged with Possession of 4.5 pounds of Cannabis. The State alleged he intended to distribute the cannabis. His bond was set at $100,000. We were able to reduce his bond to personal recognizance so he could travel back to his home state of Indiana.
March 2011 - People v. Mayberry - Macoupin County - Mr. Mayberry was alleged to have committed a new felony while on probation. We argued successfully for a dismissal of the Petition to Revoke his probation. The State withdrew their petition and Mr. Mayberry was discharged from probation.
March 2011- People v. Devlin - Madison County - Ms. Devlin had been charged with Domestic Battery after she attempted to discipline her 15 year old son. She adamantly denied ever physically touching him. The police ignored her statement of facts and arrested her. We obtained a full dismissal of the Domestic Battery charge. She was arrested by the Madison County Sheriff's Department.
March 2011 - People v. Crider - Domestic Battery arrest. My client was falsely accused of battering his ex-girlfriend. We demanded a jury trial in the case. Ultimately we convinced the State that the complaining witness lacked credibility. The charge was dismissed. He was arrested by Wood River Police Department.
March 2011 - People v. Dandridge - Unlawful Use of Weapons - Mr. Dandridge, an armed security officer in Missouri, was arrested while visiting his relative in Madison, Illinois. His brother called the police and stated that he discharged his weapon inside the house. My client vehemently denied doing such. We were able to convince the prosecutor that they would lose the case at trial. The cases were fully dismissed. He was arrested by Madison City police officers.
March 2011 - Madison County - DUI repeat offender - My client was arrested for DUI by Edwardsville Police. I obtained and reviewed all three videotapes relevant to his arrest. It became quickly obvious that there was a three minute gap in the videotaped coverage in the police department. I filed a motion to suppress the breath test evidence. The motion was granted by the Court. This means the breath results will not be used against my client at trial. As a side note we were not the first firm to represent my client. In fact he hired another Edwardsville DUI firm prior to hiring us. The other law firm did not recognize the issue that we used to suppress the breath results.
March 2011 - People v. Jones - Traffic Crash - Mr. Jones was involved in a traffic crash. He did not cause the accident but was cited by the Pontoon Beach Police Department for the violation. We presented photographic proof to the State that he did not cause the accident. The State dismissed the case
Drug Crimes
People v. Gardner - St. Clair County - September 2010 — A client was charged with possession of cannabis. I was able to obtain a complete dismissal of her charges. I was able to accomplish this result by pressing the state for discovery. The state was ultimately unable to comply with my requests and the charge was dismissed.
People v. Head - Madison County - May 2010 — Mr. Head was charged with various felony methamphetamine charges following a traffic stop by the Illinois State Police Methamphetamine Response Team. He was facing up to seven years in the Department of Corrections. He was not a first-time felony offender. We were able to negotiate a disposition whereby the case will be dismissed after two years of probation. Mr. Head did not have to complete any time in jail or prison for this offense.
People v. Pace - Madison County - June 2010 — A client was charged with possessing a controlled substance without a prescription. Through negotiations we were able to dispose of the case as a misdemeanor offense. All felony counts were dismissed per negotiations.
People v. Bargiel - October 2010 — Mr. Bargiel's residence was unlawfully searched by the police. He was charged with possession of a controlled substance. We were able to negotiate a full dismissal of the case. Once again, the state had to reconcile a bad initial entry into his residence and unconstitutional search of his premises.
People v. Banda - October 2010 — Ms. Banda was facing a Class X possession with Intent to Deliver charges for 135 pounds of cannabis. We were able to negotiate a full dismissal of the case. The state had a serious problem with the nature of the initial traffic stop and subsequent search of her vehicle.
People v. Ripley - October 2010 — Mr. Ripley was raided by DEA and local police authorities. His house was searched and over an ounce of cocaine was discovered in his bedroom. The police also discovered $4,000 in a furniture drawer with the substance. He was facing mandatory six to 30 years on the Class X Possession with Intent charges. We were able to negotiate a reduced charge and two years standard probation.
People v. Montecinos - August 2010 — A client was charged after cannabis was discovered along with paraphernalia in her dorm room. Due to difficulties with procuring the evidence, the state was forced to completely dismiss her case.
People v. Harman - August 2010 — Mr. Harman was stopped while driving a vehicle by Troy police. The search was unconstitutional and the charges for drug possession against him were fully dismissed.
2008 People v. Kueker — Two Class X methamphetamine cases were dismissed due to motions to suppress evidence. Had we not won the case completely, the client was facing up to 30 years in prison. The other two co-defendants used other attorneys and both pled guilty and served a lengthy prison sentence. They would have won their cases had they pursued the same motions that I did for my client. The state appealed and our client won on appeal.
2009 - People v. Totty — Class X methamphetamine case won via motion to suppress evidence.
Domestic Battery
People v. Eickmann - Madison County November 2010 — A client was charged with three domestic battery-related charges for two separate instances. I was able to convince the state that the alleged victim, his girlfriend, was fabricating her claims against him. The charges were dismissed completely.
People v. Ripley - Madison County November 2010 — A client was accused of severely beating and causing lacerations to the face of his wife. There were three witnesses against the defendant and some of his witnesses claimed that the event happened as told by the defendant. However, we quickly learned that the spouse had made up the tale and was able to convince the other witnesses to lie for her. I was able to secure the witnesses' and wife's cooperation. The client was facing serious prison time. The prosecutor ultimately reduced the charge to misdemeanor battery and he received supervision for the offense. The case will be dismissed completely in one year.
September 2010 - People v. Evans — The state was unable to produce a necessary witness to continue their prosecution for Domestic Battery against Mr. Evans. The witness was cooperating with my office in our attempt to obtain a dismissal of the charge. We obtained a full dismissal.
September 2010 - People v. Smith — Mr. Smith was alleged to have struck his girlfriend. Although he denied having ever struck her he was charged with Domestic Battery. We were able to convince the state that he did not commit the offense. His charge was dismissed.
September 2010 - People v. Moore — Mr. Moore was charged with multiple Domestic Battery offenses against the same woman. He was adamant that he did not strike or injure her. The woman's mother was the catalyst for pursuing charges against my client. We obtained full dismissal of all the charges against him.
People v. Boswell - Madison County July 2010 — Mr. Boswell was charged with a fairly strong charge of Domestic Battery against him for acts perpetrated against his live-in girlfriend. I was able to obtain the cooperation of the alleged victim and ultimately a dismissal was granted on the Domestic Battery charge.
Domestic Battery
People v. Wilkinson — A client was charged with multiple Domestic Battery charges. We were able to negotiate dismissal of the charges. The state's witnesses had serious credibility issues.
People v. Liljenberg — A client was charged with Domestic Battery after a verbal dispute in his residence. We were able to convince the state to dismiss his case.
Other Felonies
People v. Baumgartner — A client was charged with various felony offenses surrounding a school burglary. We were able to obtain a dismissal through supervision on an amended misdemeanor offense. A couple years later we were able to fully expunge the felony arrest and the misdemeanor disposition from his record.
People v. Waltman - May 2010 — A client, from a financial sector profession, was arrested for allegedly committing a sexual assault upon a young child. She vehemently denied the allegations. We fully reviewed the case and decided to announce ready for trial. We scheduled a polygraph (lie detector) test for her and tendered her satisfactory completion of the test to the state. The client was facing up to 30 years if convicted. We submitted a long list of witnesses whom we subpoenaed for trial. The state ultimately dismissed the felony charges against my client. She is now able to continue working in the financial sector.
People v. Obermark - Clinton County May 2010 — Ms. Obermark was convicted of DUI a few years back. She was caught driving while revoked for DUI. If convicted of a felony DWLR she would lose her job. We were able to negotiate a dismissal of the felony DWLR and ultimately resolved the case for a non-moving violation disposition. She was able to keep her job and avoided a permanent felony conviction upon her record.
A client had been charged with Domestic Battery by her husband who had recently stated to her that he had developed another relationship with a mistress. There was plenty of evidence to convict her had the case gone to jury trial. We negotiated a straight dismissal (June 2010).
One client was charged with felony Aggravated Battery. He was arrested by the police with virtually no evidence against him. I gained the cooperation of the alleged victim in the case. We attempted to negotiate the case's dismissal but the prosecutor wouldn't agree. So we set a firm trial date and announced ready. Brian Polinske appeared in court as lead counsel and began to pick the jury. Before jury selection had been completed the state agreed to dismiss the case. The state discovered that we weren't going to "cop a deal" on a case that had no chance of winning at trial.
A client of mine who was a chief of police was falsely accused by his girlfriend of Domestic Battery. We tried the case and won. After acquittal he tried to become employed as a chief in other jurisdictions with no success. It was a mystery why he was not getting called back for interviews. Then we realized that although he was innocent of the charge the arrest still appeared on his background check. After we expunged the arrest he had no problem obtaining the job he sought and holds to this date.
People v. Severs — Criminal Trespass charge was dismissed based upon insufficient evidence. Although the complainants strenuously urged the state to not dismiss the complaint, the charge was dismissed based upon insufficient evidence.
People v. Johnson - Aggravated Assault — A client was charged with Aggravated Assault after having thrown a person out of his own home. He had previously advised the complainant that he was not allowed in his house. The complainant ignored his warnings and tried to gain entry. The client physically removed him from the house. The complainant was injured and the police pressed charges. All charges were dismissed.
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