Gordon Thompson
4/25/16 In a recent Division Two case, the Court of Appeals upheld the trial court’s preclusion of a defense alibi witness because the defendant’s disclosure of the witness’s existence was too close to trial. In State v. Ramos, the defendant was charged in October 2013 with drug prescription forgery offenses. On July 22, 2014, the…
4/25/16 Friday the Maricopa County Attorney’s office submitted a motion to dismiss, without prejudice, the charges against accused Freeway shooter Leslie Merritt, Jr. Today that order was granted, and all charges dismissed. Arizona law provides that when a case is ordered dismissed without prejudice, the case can then be refiled at a later date. A…
4/22/16 Phoenix explores alternatives to Maricopa County Jail The City of Phoenix has paid an average of about ten million dollars per year for the last fifteen years in jail costs to the Maricopa County Jail, and Phoenix cases account for more than thirty percent of bookings into the Jail. Those costs are set…
4/22/16 In a recent Arizona Court of Appeals Division One case the defendant was charged with and convicted for multiple Aggravated DUI charges, including being convicted of Aggravated DUI for Driving Under the Influence while his license was Revoked and separately, While Required to have an Ignition Interlock Device (IID). The court of appeals reversed…
4/21/16 We are supposed to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures, and searches of a person, their body, and their property, without a warrant and without exigent circumstances are unconstitutional. However, a number of states (which does not include Arizona, thankfully) have made it a criminal offense to refuse to submit to blood or…
4/19/16 Arizona law requires people in many professions to have a valid fingerprint clearance card issued by the Fingerprint Division of the Arizona Department of Public Safety. An arrest or conviction for DUI results in a restriction being placed on the card so that the cardholder is precluded from driving any vehicle to transport employees…
4/18/16 A recent posting by the Maricopa County Superior and Justice Courts warns of possible bogus phone calls or emails regarding failure to pay court fines or fees. The public is advised not to give out any sensitive information over the phone and, if needed, to call the court/county number back to verify whether…
4/18/16 Arizona law now mandates that all persons convicted of DUI must install and maintain an Ignition Interlock Device for at least one year. The only exception to this requirement is if the person is convicted of DUI Drugs only because they had a Controlled Substance in their Body without a Valid Prescription, and had…
4/18/16 In Arizona crime victims have rights secured by both the Arizona constitution and state law. Those rights include the right to be represented by private counsel and to be heard and present evidence at a restitution hearing. In the 2015 case of Lindsay R. v. Cohen, 343 P.3d 435, a victim sought to…