A Maryland DWI Blog | Jimeno & Gray P.A.

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On Thursday, April 8, Greg Jimeno and Frank Gray will be the featured presenters at "Common Pitfalls, Current Law and Practical Advise for DUI Cases." This program is sponsored by the Anne Arundel County Bar Association and is designed to assist those in attendance gain a better understanding of how to defend driving under the influence cases. Below is a link to the Anne Arundel County Bar Association website for more information.

http://www.aabar.org/calendar.html

Most of the State of Maryland, including courts in the Baltimore area, was shut down last week due to two blizzards which hit the area within days of each other. Last week was certainly historic in many ways for the entire region with schools being closed, businesses forced to shut down and people not being able to leave their houses because their streets were not plowed.

The Maryland State Police have announced that they have opened a new laboratory to analyze blood samples taken from drivers suspected of driving under the influence of drugs. Prior to the opening of the new lab, all blood testing for the presence of drugs in a detained driver had to be sent out of state for analysis.



Requiring all blood tests to be sent out of state for analysis posed a substantial burden on prosecutors to attempt to introduce the results of those tests. Under Maryland law, upon request of the Defendant, the State must produce the person who analyzed the blood as a witness. If the witness was out of state, the State would typically not have the means or opportunity to make the test technician appear for trial. As a result, the results of the blood test would not have been admissible at trial.



With the new testing procedures in place, the State has created an easier path to conviction. The Maryland State Police laboratory will be located in Pikesville, making it more convenient for the test technicians to appear at trial. That being said, the availability of a chemist to appear at trial is only one of the many obstacles facing the State in drugged driving cases. The State still must produce an opinion from a police Drug Recognition Expert that the Defendant was under the influence of a drug at the time he or she was driving a motor vehicle. In addition, the State must also find the nurse who took the Defendant's blood and call the nurse as a witness.

Finally, there have been some significant recent developments in the United States Supreme Court as well as in the Court of Appeals of Maryland with respect to a Defendant's right of confrontation under the Constitution. Some evidence that the State would have relied upon to prove its case by way of documents now must be proven with live witnesses. The outer boundaries of the State's responsibilities to ensure a Defendant's right of confrontation have yet to be determined in driving under the influence cases, although the attorneys in our firm continue to take the position at trial in these cases that the State must produce witnesses at trial, such as the State Toxicologist to prove that the equipment used in blood cases were properly certified for use, as is required under Maryland law.

Click on the following link to read the press release from the Maryland State Police regarding the new blood test laboratory: http://www.mdsp.org/media/press_release_details.asp?identifier=881

Above and beyond a simple possession charge, possession with intent to distribute is considered a much more serious crime for which you could be facing thousands of dollars in fines and serious prison time. Depending on the circumstances surrounding your arrest, a qualified criminal defense attorney like those at Jimeno & Gray with experience in drug related cases can help you to make sure your rights are protected.

When determining whether a person possessed drugs with the intent to distribute the court will look at a number of factors, including the amount of drugs, how they were packaged. In addition, the court will take into consideration if other items such as baggies, scales and large amounts of money were found at the same location as the defendant.

How Jimeno & Gray Can Help
In drug cases, there are a number of things which could be litigated, including:

• Improper search and seizure of evidence
• Failure to document the chain of custody for evidence
• Keeping statements given to the police from being introduced as evidence

If you’ve been charged with Possession with intent to distribute and you live in Maryland, please contact the law offices of Jimeno & Gray Maryland Criminal Defense Attorneys today and we can listen to the details of your case and advise you of your best defense.

After being charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS), the immediate future can become very uncertain and scary. What you need more than anything else is the support of an experienced criminal defense attorney such as those at Jimeno & Gray. An experienced attorney will be able to walk you through the process of preparing for court, take you through the courtroom process, and also give you accurate advice on what you can expect so that you can plan your future accordingly.

What Happens if I’m Convicted?

Depending on your prior record to the nature of the current charge you may be given probation, ordered to pay fines, attend treatment and or be sentenced to jail time. A good attorney can help look for defenses to the case and to minimize the sentence, if convicted.

If you live in Maryland and have been charged with drug possession, the skills of an experienced criminal defense attorney can help minimize the lasting effect that these charges have on your life.

Please contact the law offices of Maryland criminal defense attorneys at Jimeno & Gray, and we will schedule a confidential consultation to hear the details of your case.

A new Maryland law went into effect on October 1, 2009 which makes in more difficult to obtain a second probation before judgment for an alcohol related offense. Prior to October 1, a person could be eligible for a probation before judgment if at least five years had passed between offenses. The new law expands the time from five to ten years.

Since this is a new law, we must wait a period of time to determine how much impact it will have on Maryland drivers. Even prior to the passage of this new law, many judges were not granting a second probation before judgment if the offenses occurred within ten years of each other. On the rare occasion, a judge might have reward someone with a second probation before judgment who had anywhere from eight to ten years between offenses if the person had taken extensive remedial measures prior to going to court or while on probation, such as attending an inpatient alcohol program. On the other hand there are some judges who will never grant a second probation before judgment, so this new law will have little impact on them.