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Recent Blog Posts
Will Milwaukee Patrol Officers Have Body Cameras by the End of 2016?
The past several years have seen a rise in tension between police officers and the communities in which they work, especially African American communities. Since the death of Michael Brown and the unrest in Ferguson, calls have grown louder in Wisconsin and around the country for reform. One particular reform that is being implemented in major cities throughout the country is the use of body cameras on police officers. Similar calls have been made here in Wisconsin, with differing success to date. A Tale of Two Cities There is good news on the horizon for Milwaukee residents who have been the victim of police brutality in the past. By the end of 2016, the entire Milwaukee police department may be outfitted with body cameras, much sooner than police officers in many other big cities throughout the United States. This is what the mayor of Milwaukee has proposed, and it will cost $880,000 to implement in the 2016 budget. This comes on the heels of many tense moments between police and citizens in the past year, as well as a White House task force that reported that body cameras reduce officers’ use of force and complaints about excessive force. At the same time Milwaukee is poised to lead the nation on this issue, an advisory board in Madison voted four against two in September against a pilot program requiring patrol officers to be outfitted with body cameras. A petition has been started, however, by concerned citizens to also require Madison officers to be equipped with body cameras, based on a high number of excessive force complaints. What to Do in the Meantime The budget for body cameras in Milwaukee has still not been approved, and there are no plans on the horizon for Madison officers to be outfitted with body cameras. The rest of Wisconsin lags behind the major metropolitan areas. In the interim, we continue to hear stories of citizens who feel their rights were violated by the police when they were arrested. Of course, many police officers are overwhelmingly decent and law-abiding citizens, who protect the rest of us at great personal risk to their own safety. However, there are cases in Wisconsin and throughout the nation where people’s rights are violated by overzealous police officer or in other situations where tempers flare. Do You Think Your Rights Have Been Violated by the Police?
Motorcycle Accidents Are More Severe than Car Accidents
Motorcycle accidents result in far more severe bodily injuries to the rider than car accidents, as the impact of a vehicle overwhelms the protective gear worn on a motorcycle. Even though many enthusiasts love their motorcycles, either for thrill riding or commuting, serious injuries and even death result with regularity in accidents between motorcycles and cars or trucks or other motor vehicles. As the number of registered motorcycles increases in Wisconsin, so do the number of serious accidents involving motorcycles.
You Are Likely to Be More Severely Injured on a Motorcycle than in a Car
As the rider of a motorcycle, you are exposed, and your motorcycle does not have safety features you find in a car, such as air bags and over-the-shoulder seat belts. The faster the motorcycle, the smaller and more lightweight it is, which means a collision with a passenger vehicle or another object can have critical and even fatal results. If you have been injured in a motorcycle accident, it is very important to work with experienced motorcycle attorneys from the outset.
What Types of Injuries Are Most Often Sustained in Motorcycle Accidents?
No two accidents are alike, and every accident involving a motorcycle will need to be carefully investigated to determine the cause. A common finding in most motorcycle accidents, however, is serious injury to the rider. If the motorcycle rider is not wearing a helmet or other appropriate protective clothing and gear, then the injuries sustained are often disastrous.
It is very common for motorcycle accident victims to experience head trauma, as well as broken bones, paralysis, concussions, road rash, and in the worst cases, death. Unfortunately, long-term care is often required as a result of permanent injuries or paralysis.
Additionally, the cost to repair a motorcycle after an accident is often steep, not to mention all of the out of pocket expenses and missed work time as a result of an accident. Expenses can pile up very quickly after a motorcycle accident, which is why it is important to speak to an attorney about filing a claim as soon as possible.
Your Insurance Company Should Not Add to Your Problems
After a motorcycle accident, the last thing you need is to have any trouble working with your insurance company. Although insurance companies are supposed to act in good faith and pay damages for injuries sustained by people who purchase their policies, upon occasion they fail to do so. Sometimes insurance companies will try to undercompensate you for the damages you suffered, or worse, deny your claim altogether. In any case, if you have been in a motorcycle accident, it is important to have experienced insurance coverage attorneys on your side if your motorcycle accident has led to problems with your insurance company.
The experienced personal injury lawyers at our firm are ready to act quickly if you have been in a motorcycle accident. Our attorneys are standing by to thoroughly investigate the cause of your motorcycle accident, and to passionately seek the relief you are entitled to. We will gladly hold your insurance company accountable for payment under their insurance policies if they are resisting their obligations. Call or email the experienced Milwaukee motorcycle injury attorneys at our firm today and let us see how we can help you.
Boating Accidents in Wisconsin
Accidents don’t just happen on land, especially in places like Wisconsin, where there is an abundance of waterfront property and watercraft for travel and recreation. There are over 600,000 boats registered in Wisconsin alone, and during the summer, there are hundreds of thousands of additional boats that navigate Wisconsin waters from neighboring Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. There are multiple fatalities and even more injuries every year as a result of boating accidents, and in many boating accident cases, the operator of the boat at fault may not have taken any safety courses.
The fact that so many people are maneuvering large vessels in limited spaces, often times without proper training or safety classes, means that boating accidents happen with regularity. This often leads to civil litigation in order to recover compensation for any serious injuries suffered in the accident on the water.
Common Boating Injuries
There are many potential legal claims that arise from boating-related incidents, including property damage claims. Personal injuries claims arise most often, however, and in a number of different ways. Often there is a collision between recreational watercraft, like jet skis, or a collision between one recreational watercraft and one boat. Many boating personal injury claims arise from accidents, illness or death sustained as a result of improper safety measures on a cruise ship. No matter what the circumstances were that gave rise to your personal injury claim for a boating-related injury, it is guaranteed to be extremely complex, as maritime law comes with many additional considerations not present in land based actions.
Special Concerns When Bringing Boating Claims
When accidents occur that involve maritime law, there are often complex and unique legal issues. Some legal actions will involve only Wisconsin law, if they occur entirely within the borders of the state and in Wisconsin waters. However, sometimes accidents occur outside of Wisconsin’s borders, or in between Wisconsin and bordering state, and in these situations, other state laws and even federal laws can be implicated in a subsequent lawsuit. Finally, if your boating accident occurred out at sea, there may even be international legal implication.
We Can Help You Today
For all of the reasons set forth above, personal injury claims that arise as a result of boating accidents are more complex than ordinary personal injury claims, and it is critical that you contact an experienced Milwaukee personal injury attorney who can traverse not only Wisconsin law, but other state’s maritime laws and even federal laws when necessary. Call us at 414-271-1440 or send us an e-mail today for a consultation.
Why You Should Request an Administrative Hearing If Arrested for OWI
Everybody makes mistakes from time to time, and when there is alcohol involved, mistakes are more likely. One major mistake that Wisconsin residents often make leads to an OWI charge (operating while intoxicated). If you have been arrested for OWI, it is very important to act quickly and retain an experienced OWI lawyer to help you avoid serious consequences. An important early step in this process is to request an administrative hearing after your arrest.
Notice of Intent to Suspend Operating Privileges
If you are arrested for OWI in Wisconsin, you will receive a pink notice, which is titled Notice of Intent to Suspend Operating Privilege. That notice shows your test results from a breathalyzer test or chemical test, and is a temporary (30 day) driver’s license. Accompanying the notice is a yellow form titled Administrative Review Request. This is how you receive notice of your right to request an administrative hearing.
What Is an Administrative Hearing?
If a breathalyzer test is administered at the scene of your arrest, then your Notice of Intent to Suspend will be provided to you at the police station. That means you have only 10 days to submit your Administrative Review Request and request an administrative hearing. If, however, you are given chemical tests at the time of your OWI, it may take two to three weeks for the results to be returned. Once the results are returned to the police, you will be mailed your Notice of Intent to Suspend, and you will have 13 days from when it is mailed to request an administrative hearing. It is very important you request an administrative hearing; if you do not do so, you might lose your license before your court date for OWI has arrived.
What Will Happen at the Administrative Hearing?
Once the Administrative Review Request is submitted, the DMV will contact you or your attorney to schedule the review within 30 days. Your hearing will be held at the DMV that is closest to the scene of your arrest, and an employee of the DMV serves as prosecutor, judge, and jury over your case.
The DMV employee will look at all of the evidence presented, including whether the traffic stop was legal, if there was a reasonable belief that you were intoxicated and probable cause to arrest you, whether all tests were properly administered, whether you were driving a commercial vehicle or private vehicle at the time of your arrest, and whether you have a valid THC prescription (or a valid prescription for any other drug for which you tested positive on a chemical test). This is just a sample of what is looked at, and if there is any other evidence relevant to the hearing, your lawyer will submit it at that time.
What Happens If You Lose the Hearing?
Losing the hearing means losing your license. Even if you later win at trial, or the charges are later dismissed, you will lose your driving privileges if you lose your administrative hearing. All hope is not totally lost if you do not prevail at this hearing, as another hearing can be requested to challenge the outcome. Not requesting the administrative hearing guarantees you lose your license until your trial.
What Happens If You Win the Hearing?
Winning the administrative hearing might be temporary, but if you win, you get to keep your license for now. This is important, as it allows you to keep driving to work, school, or wherever your responsibilities require, and minimizes disruption to your routine and the routine of your loved ones until it is absolutely necessary. Of course, there is always a possibility that your charges are dismissed, lowered, or you prevail at trial, which means that by winning the administrative hearing, you will never face the daily disruption of license suspension. If you are later convicted at trial, you will lose your license for the statutory period, but at least in the interim, you get to keep driving as long as possible if you prevail in your administrative hearing.
If you are facing OWI charges, don’t hesitate to contact our skilled Milwaukee criminal defense attorneys today. We will aggressively advocate on your behalf.
Concealed Weapon Law in Wisconsin
Wisconsin passed Act 35, a concealed weapon statute, in 2011. The statute makes provisions for Wisconsin residents to carry concealed weapons under certain circumstances. If you are not eligible to do so and are caught with a concealed weapon, you face serious criminal penalties and fines, so it is important to be familiar with the provisions of Act 35.
What Is a Concealed Weapon?
To understand what a concealed weapon is, you must understand how “concealed” is defined under the law, and even more broadly, what constitutes a “weapon” under Act 35. According to the law, concealed does not necessarily mean 100 percent hidden from view (like a gun inside of a holster inside of a zipped jacket), but it can also refer to weapons that are partially concealed. So, for instance, if you have a knife clipped to your belt loop or a holstered gun in your open jacket, you may be carrying a concealed weapon. The next important term to understand is “weapon”. When you hear the words concealed weapon, most likely what pops into your mind is a handgun. A weapon, however, is not limited to guns in Act 35. Knives, stun guns, and ASPs (batons) all require the holder to have a concealed carry permit. When it comes to the definition of concealed weapon, it is always better to be cautious. If you are unsure, you should contact an experienced Wisconsin criminal defense lawyer who is familiar with the provisions of Act 35. Who Is Authorized to Carry a Concealed Weapon in Wisconsin?Not everybody is eligible under the law to carry a concealed weapon. To be licensed to carry a concealed weapon, you must first submit a license application to the Wisconsin Department of Justice, which is available online. It takes several weeks after submitting an application to be approved, and under no circumstances are you allowed to carry a concealed weapon until the approval process is complete.
Equine Immunity Statute: Suing for Injuries Caused by Equine Activities
Activities involving horses in Wisconsin are referred to as equine activities and the Wisconsin legislature has determined that these are inherently risky activities. As such, in many circumstances, if you are injured while riding a horse or at a horseback riding facility, you may not be able to sue anybody.
What Does “Inherently Risky” Mean?
Inherently risky means there is a danger or condition that is an integral part of equine activities including all of the following:
- The propensity of a horse to behave in a way that may result in injury or death to a person on or near it;
- The unpredictable nature of a horse’s reaction to movement and sound;
- A collision with either an animal or object; and
- The potential for a person who is participating in a horse-related activity to act negligently, to fail to control the horse, or to not act within his or her ability.
Wisconsin Immunity Law and Personal Injury Lawsuits
Generally speaking, when you suffer a personal injury because of the negligence or wrongdoing of another person, tort laws in Wisconsin are there to protect you and provide you with a means to recover for your losses. This means that in most circumstances, you will be compensated for the injuries and damages you have suffered by the negligent party, who will be held responsible under the law for negligent behavior.
In some cases, there are impediments to getting justice and recovering your damages in a court of law. One such circumstance is when an immunity law is used as a shield, and it acts to protect the irresponsible behavior of the wrongdoer and shifts the costs of the damages and injuries that were caused by the wrongdoer over to the innocent victim.
What Are Immunity Laws?
National Estate Planning Awareness Week, October 19-25, 2015
In 2008, Congress passed a resolution proclaiming the third week in October as National Estate Planning Awareness Week. The resolution noted that “Many Americans are unaware that lack of estate planning and financial illiteracy may cause their assets to be disposed of to unintended parties by default through the complex process of probate.” It is estimated that more than 50% of the adult population, roughly 150 million Americans, do not have an up-to-date estate plan to protect themselves, and their families’ assets.
Who Benefits From Estate Planning?
The purpose of estate planning is to develop a strategy that will maintain the financial security of individuals through their lifetime and ensure the intended transfer of their property and assets at death, while taking into consideration the unique circumstances of their families. All too often, we hear:
Internet Sex Crimes
You are most likely familiar with the crimes associated with child pornography and prostitution, just from watching television. What you may not know is that these crimes are sometimes part of a subset of crimes referred to as Internet sex crimes. If you are accused of, or arrested for, an internet sex crime, you are already facing life-altering and permanent damage to your reputation. Your family relationships and employment status can also be negatively affected just from the allegation alone.
Because of the nature of these crimes and the serious repercussions just the accusation brings, it is important to be proactive if you think you might be accused of or arrested for an internet sex crime. Being proactive begins with consulting an experienced, aggressive criminal defense attorney.
What Are the Various Internet Sex Crimes?
The Legal Differences between Assault and Battery
Although you often hear the term assault and battery as one phrase, they are actually very different. Assault is one thing and battery is another. If someone has been battered, they have likely been assaulted as well, although the reverse is not necessarily true. What is true is that there are a variety of different circumstances that can give rise to charges of assault and/or battery, and the potential penalties depend on the facts of each case.
Assault and Battery Defined
In general, assault is defined as something which causes another person to fear imminent bodily harm. No physical contact is necessary for a person to be assaulted. Assault charges are often pursued in civil court, along with battery charges or independently.
In Wisconsin, Battery charges carry varying levels of criminal fines and penalties, and there are many types of battery in Wisconsin. The term battery is generally defined as the use of force against someone with the intent to injure them. There are special provisions governing your case if you are charged with aggravated battery, battery against an unborn child, or battery against a witness, judge, or other public figure. Because the terms assault and battery are used so loosely and interchangeably in the general public, and can mean so many different things even under the law, it is crucial that you have an experienced Milwaukee criminal defense attorney by your side to aggressively defend you.
