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Faraji A. Rosenthall has been educating the public and clients alike through online articles about common legal topics and through the distribution of free educational downloads.

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How Much Alcohol Is Too Much

Jul 3, 2013

Are You OK To Drive? Check these tips to see how much alcohol is too much before getting behind the wheel The Commonwealth of Virginia has some tough drunk driving laws. To help keep yourself out of trouble, take a moment to familiarize yourself with local rules and regulations. Police in Virginia determine whether to charge a driver with DUI after performing a series of tests. Among these are the field sobriety tests, including the walk-and-turn, the one-legged stand, and following a flashlight beam with your eyes. These tests are all subjective, and how well you perform is based entirely on the officer’s judgment. The blood alcohol content test, however, is more scientific. If performed correctly, the BAC will show how much alcohol you had in your system at the time you were pulled over. The allowable limit is less than 0.08 percent. Once your BAC level reaches 0.08 percent, you can be arrested and charged with Driving Under the Influence. However, if you are driving a commercial vehicle, the limit is only 0.04 percent, and if you are under 21, it is 0.02 percent. In some states, lawyers advise their clients not to submit to a BAC test, thereby avoiding the possibility that something could go wrong, or that it could be proven you were driving drunk. But refusing to take this test is illegal in Virginia, and the penalty is having your license suspended for a year. So why do restaurants and bars even serve alcohol if people are not supposed to drink and drive? That’s a good question, and one that, as lawyers, we are not... read more

Elementary School Principal Charged With DUI

Jul 1, 2013

An improper U-turn can cost a person a lot more than we may imagine. This thought comes from a recent event that took place on the night of May 13th. Lynchburg police officer stopped a sports utility vehicle after it took a u-turn which the officer thought was improper. The car was allegedly being driven by David M. LeFevre Sr., a 52-year-old Chesapeake resident and the principal of Holland Elementary School in Virginia Beach. The breach was not as grave until the police officer sought a breath or blood test to check for any sort of intoxication which Mr. LeFevre refused to do. He has, reportedly, resigned from the office of principal on account of ‘personal reasons’ after being slapped with charges of making an improper U-turn, driving while intoxicated and refusing to take a blood or breath test.  As per Lynchburg district court records, he is due for an arraignment hearing on July 18th. Under the laws of Virginia, first offense DUI might entail administrative license suspension for 7 days; up to 12 months in jail, a minimum fine of $250, up to a maximum fine of $2500; license revocation for 1 year; possible ignition interlock device; possible restricted driver’s license; any court-ordered restitution; possible Alcohol Safety Action Program... read more

Charged in May Pursuit, Kearneysville Woman Arrested Again After Another Hi-speed Chase

Jul 1, 2013

30-year old Michelle Lynn Warnick has a penchant for creating trouble which usually seems to end in hi-speed chases.  Not content with being arrested on May 5 after a police pursuit. Warnick allegedly put up a repeat performance on June 22. However, unlike the earlier episode that landed two other people apart from Warnick in the hospital, this one was a mild incident. It all started on Saturday afternoon, June 22, around 2 o’clock when the staff at the Best Buy on Retail Commons Parkway, Martinsburg, spotted Warnick shoplifting a cellphone case. They allege that they tried to detain her and two employees escorted her to an office until the authorities arrived. Warnick, however, managed to shove them aside, running out of the store on foot and later escaping in a red Jeep Liberty. The policemen who arrived at the retail outlet in response to the complaint, chased down Warnick who was not just speeding but negotiating turns recklessly and travelling left off center, according to a police report. She was finally cornered on Apple Harvest Drive where she abandoned the Jeep and hid in a barn where the police finally discovered her. They also recovered a small purse a few feet away from her containing heroin, syringes, and drug related paraphernalia. A second purse in the jeep had a bottle with over two dozen Oxycodone pills – a prescription drug. Michelle Lynn Warnick was arraigned the following day (Sunday, June 23) on felony charges of possession with intent to distribute heroin and Oxycodone and fleeing in a vehicle with reckless indifference. In addition, misdemeanor charges of driving on... read more

Marion’s Police Chief Charged with Selling Controlled Substances

Jul 1, 2013

It sounds like a story straight out of the movies. A high-ranking police officer of impeccable reputation, a saga of greed and abuse of power, cryptic code languages, the thrill of sting operations, and the race to blow the lid of a corruption racket. The Federal authorities have brought charges against Michael Dean “Fireball” Roberts for the distribution of illegal substances. A top cop and the pride of Marion since 2000, Roberts, aged 54, was a member of the Smyth County Board of Supervisors from January 1996 through 2009. He is suspected of stealing drugs from the evidence room of the police department. These charges, made in the U.S. District Court in Abingdon, have been supported by affidavits of confidential informants along with audio and video footage captured with the help of hidden microphones and video equipment. In his role as a Police Chief, Roberts was entrusted with the responsibility of destroying drugs seized during raids and as such had access to a wide variety of drugs. Agent Jonathan Tabor of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives mentioned that among the drugs supplied by Roberts were Roxicet, Percocet, Xanax pills, Lortab, marijuana and even cocaine. According to the informant, there were times when Roberts would bring pills that were new and unknown. In order to identify them, they would use a book, described by the informant as the ‘Drug Identification Bible’. Those that were discovered to be narcotics would be kept aside for future use. The non-narcotic pills would be discarded or flushed down the toilet. Video footage also shows Roberts giving a couple of pills (which... read more

Texting and Driving Becomes a Primary Offense in Virginia

Jun 30, 2013

Texting while you are driving became a primary offense on July 1 in Virginia. That means police officers can pull you over solely for texting or emailing while you are behind the wheel. It has been illegal to text and drive in the Commonwealth since 2009 but it was a secondary offense which meant police needed another reason to stop drivers they saw texting such as a defective light or erratic driving. Texting And Driving First Citation Under the new law the first citation for texting at the wheel will be a fine of $125 dollars, with every offense after that carrying a fine of $250 dollars. The new law raises a number of legal questions. It states that a driver cannot “manually enter multiple letters or texts” while driving or “read any email or text message transmitted to the device.” But drivers will still be able to use their hands to make phone calls and receive directions using a smartphone’s Global Positioning System. It may be difficult for a law enforcement officer to differentiate between someone entering in a phone number, which remains legal, and entering in text which isn’t, from the road. Cell Phone & Reckless Driving Using a cell phone or other device while driving could also lead to a more serious offense of reckless driving. The Virginian-Pilot reported an opinion of Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli who said a reckless driving charge would be appropriate if the use of a hand-held communication device led a driver to “seriously endanger others or their property.” The Attorney General gave his response to a request from Del. Scott Surovell,... read more

Once You Are Stopped For Suspicion of Driving While Intoxicated

Jun 26, 2013

Once You Are Stopped For Suspicion of Driving While Intoxicated.  What Happens Next? One of the hard choices a driver often faces when pulled over, no matter what the reason for the stop, is whether to take one or several of the tests for sobriety. It’s a big question and affects a lot of people, since there are almost 1.5 million DWI arrests every year. This also means there’s even more traffic stops just involving suspicion of DWI. Every single state in America has adopted a basic rule, involving a blood alcohol content (or BAC) of 0.08 or higher…that rule is called “illegal per se.” If a driver can be shown to be at that level of drugs in their blood, then they can be more easily convicted of a DWI.  You Need An Experienced DWI Attorney While the goal has been to use these tougher rules to decrease drunk driving, it also has caused more innocent people to face unfair prosecution. These facts make it absolutely imperative for anyone facing a DWI charge to work only with an experienced DWI attorney. Option To Refuse To Give Blood Most states specifically allow a driver to refuse to give blood for a BAC test. The cause for this right goes back to 1966, when a police officer in California chased a fleeing suspect in a drunk driving case, and (over the objection of the driver) forced a blood test on them. At the same time, states also then allowed for what is known as an ‘administrative’ suspension of the license for refusing the test. The issue of refusing to take... read more

Begging For A Ticket?

Jun 24, 2013

There have been a lot of stories about how some people have “talked their way” out of a ticket. In fact, it’s so common to try and find some “other” reason for poor driving that a poll in USA Today found the Top Ten most common reasons for excusing poor driving. In cases involving suspected DWI, the excuses (real or not) have a lot in common. The most popular reasons for not getting a ticket range from “I didn’t know it was broken” (number 3) and “I was lost” (number 2) and “I couldn’t see the sign” (number 1). Whether these excuses become good defenses to a DWI often depend on the driver working with a DWI attorney who can present the true facts. The reality for anyone who is cited for a DWI, however, is that police are supposed to follow very strict rules, excuses or not, for giving a DWI citation. Whether these rules are followed is often decided by being sure an experienced DWI attorney helps the driver. In one Fairfax County case, a woman caused an accident during rush hour. Though she seemed to be intoxicated, the woman insisted on getting medical treatment instead of agreeing to a field sobriety test. The police officer, who had the breathalyzer test ready, watched as the ambulance loaded the woman for the hospital. Hours later, the officer decided not to cite the woman for DWI. The woman may have avoided a DWI citation: but the officer received a disciplinary action for “shirking his duty.” As with the modern reasons for trying to talk an officer out of a... read more

Will A Speeding Ticket Raise Insurance?

Jun 18, 2013

Want to Know How Much Your Reckless Driving, Speeding or Other Virginia Ticket is Going To Increase Your Insurance? Increased insurance premiums should be the only concern most drivers should have when they receive a Reckless driving or other traffic ticket in Virginia.  The fact is, jail time and a loss of license are simply not realistic consequences except for a small percentage of drivers who were either going very fast or have horrible driving records.  However, every single driver is required to carry insurance.  And it is likely that your  insurance company will review your record. The website Insurance.com has created a special calculator which allows a person to get an estimate of how much their insurance will  increase if they are convicted for different types of driving violations.  The calculator is based on a review of nearly 500,000 insurance policies across the United States.  The Law Office of Faraji Rosenthall has no relationship with Insurance.com and has no idea how legitimate their claim is.  However, a quick search indicates that the website has been reviewed by such reputable sites as Forbes.com and Washingtonpost.com. The calculator tells the user how much their insurance will increase based on the user’s location, marital status, whether they own or rent their home, years with the current insurance carrier, age and current premium.  These are all factors most insurance companies consider when determining how much to charge.  The calculator then determines how much a person can expect their premium to increase as a percentage of their current payments. This new tool takes all the guess work out of trying to figure out... read more

Consequences of DUI in Virginia

Jun 10, 2013

Driving under the influence can lead to a slew of devastating consequences. Those who are impaired by alcohol are less-likely to be able to control their vehicle and implement the type of judgment and coordination necessary for safe driving. While there is always the risk of injuring yourself or others in a collision, being arrested in Virginia for driving under the influence or driving while intoxicated can lead to costly punitive sanctions. The best way to avoid legal penalties is to designate a driver or take another form of transportation after you have consumed alcohol. Drivers who fail to take the steps to avoid an arrest will face the following varying consequences. Definition of DUI Driving under the influence in Virginia is defined as operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content (or BAC) is at or exceeding .08%. If there is sufficient evidence that a driver is under the influence of another drug besides alcohol, DUI can be suspected and charged with a BAC of zero. First Offense First time offenders can face up to a $2500 fine, up to 12 months in jail and the revocation of their driver’s license for one year. Those convicted of DUI for the first time will automatically be required to install an interlock ignition device that will make it impossible for a driver who has consumed alcohol to start their vehicle. Second Offense Anyone caught driving under the influence for the second time will face stiffer penalties. Second time convicts of DUI will face a minimum $500 fine, revocation of their driver’s license for three years, and a term to... read more

What is a Breathalyzer and how does it measure Blood Alcohol Content?

Jun 5, 2013

A Breathalyzer is a device that is used for estimating an individual’s blood alcohol content from a breath sample. The Breathalyzer was developed in 1953 from the first practical roadside breath-testing device called the Drunkometer.  That product was invented by Robert Borkenstein, a captain with the Indiana State Police and later a professor at Indiana University at Bloomington. Borkenstein revolutionized the enforcement of drunk driving laws by allowing police officers to measure the proportion of alcohol vapors that are exhaled, which reflects the content of alcohol in the blood. Prior to the Breathalyzer, police officers would look for a car that was weaving across lanes between traffic and conduct some field tests to determine if an individual was intoxicated. The did not have any qualitative data verifying that an individual was intoxicated.  This made it difficult for evidence to hold up in court.  Once put into widespread use the Breathalyzer provided scientific evidence of intoxication. The first place that alcohol is absorbed is within the tissues of the mouth and when fully ingested, it passes from the stomach into the small intestine.  From there it is rapidly absorbed into the blood and then distributed throughout the body. The chemical structure cannot be metabolized and remains unaltered and intact. As blood flows into the lungs, alcohol readily evaporates and is released with carbon dioxide that leaves the lung as oxygen replaces it. The concentration of alcohol in the expelled air is related to the amount of alcohol present in the blood. The Breathalyzer measures breath alcohol concentration using a fuel cell gas sensor that is specific to alcohol molecules. While... read more

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