A person who is allowed to drive in Minnesota (as a licensed driver from Minnesota or as a driver licensed from another state) can lose their privilege to drive in the state of Minnesota in various ways for committing various offenses. Minnesota can take three actions on a driver’s privilege to drive—suspension, revocation, or cancellation. A suspension is the least...
In 2006, in response to several high-profile cases where various victims were abducted and murdered, the US Congress passed a law requiring states to maintain databases of offenders convicted of various offenses. The federal law is entitled the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). Originally these state databases were referred to as “sex-offender registries” but as the laws changed...
In Minnesota, persons convicted of a Felony “Crime of Violence” are subject to a lifetime firearms prohibition. A gross misdemeanor, misdemeanor, or stay of adjudication is not sufficient to trigger the prohibition. There must be a felony conviction. This includes a stay of imposition where the conviction is a felony conviction while on probation and then converts to a misdemeanor...
An arrest warrant can be issued for a number of reasons, including new criminal charges, a probation violation allegation, or for a failure to appear in court. Whatever the reason, the warrant must be dealt with or else you could end up being arrested and taken to jail under very inconvenient circumstances, to say the least. Contact an attorney immediately...
So, you’ve been pulled over and the officer is approaching your car. What can you do now? Under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution, every person has the right to not answer questions by a government agent (e.g. have you been drinking? Where are you coming from? Where are you going?), and that is a right you should always exercise...
Depending on what city you live in, there are ordinances that prohibit allowing your dog to “run at large.” This varies depending on the city, but they all say generally the same thing. In short, a Dog at Large ordinance imposes a duty upon owners of dogs to refrain from allowing their dog to “run at large” within the city...
Yes, any obstruction in your windshield area or rear-view mirror area is a violation of Minnesota Statute § 169.71.1(a)(2). The exact language says, “a person shall not drive or operate any motor vehicle with any objects suspended between the driver and windshield.” The statute also prohibits cracks in a windshield which limit or obstruct proper vision, and any signs or...
So you’re going to be a cop for Halloween? Just don’t go too far when getting into character! In Minnesota, if you falsely impersonate a cop with the intent to mislead another that you’re actually a cop, you could face a misdemeanor charge. And if you take it a step farther and either gain access to a government facility not...
When it comes to these types of searches, the first question is whether the person has a “legitimate expectation of privacy” in the thing to be searched. The second questions is under what circumstances can the police search. A person has a legitimate expectation of privacy if: (1) the person has shown that they want privacy, and (2) society has...
Generally, under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, law enforcement officers need a search warrant to enter or search a person’s home, possessions, or vehicle. This is because the United States Supreme Court, in Arizona v. Gant, ruled that warrantless searches are presumed to be unreasonable except for a few “well-delineated exceptions,” to the warrant requirement. Those exceptions...
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