In this Dane County case, the client was stopped by the Wisconsin State Patrol for speeding. He was clearly disoriented but had several visible injuries, including a head wound. After being arrested for OWI, the client agreed to take a blood test, which resulted in a reported value of 0.125 alcohol concentration. By all appearances, it seemed the client had been physically assaulted prior to the OWI. Our office obtained medical records that documented the fact that the client suffered from a traumatic brain injury. Our firm's licensed private investigator also gathered physical evidence to support the belief that he had been assaulted within the hours before he drove his vehicle. After nearly one year of negotiations, Attorney Tim Verhoff was able to convince the District Attorney's Office that the case should be dismissed because the client never intended to drive while impaired, but was suffering from the impact of an assault when he decided to drive. The prosecutor agreed to dismiss the case prior to jury trial in the interest of justice.
DV Case Dismissed, Dane County
This case is yet another example of why hiring a lawyer before you get charged is so valuable. Our client for was arrested after an argument with his girlfriend in which she claimed he yelled at her in a threatening manner, shoved her, took her phone and threw it across the room. After he was arrested for domestic disorderly conduct and intimidation of a victim, but before a criminal charge was filed, the client hired our office. Although the client admitted to yelling, he denied pushing his girlfriend. Attorney Verhoff contacted the prosecutor assigned to review the case. Our lawyer provided the prosecutor with significant information about the client's background, as well as our client's version of events. This was information not contained in the police reports. Based on this conversation, the District Attorney's Office agreed not to file a criminal charge. Instead, a non-criminal ordinance violation was filed against our client. We also contested that citation. And the District Attorney's Office ultimately dismissed the case before trial. Another great outcome for a Chirafisi & Verhoff client.
OWI-Restricted Controlled Substance, Amended to Reckless Driving (Dane County)
This case involved a client initially stopped for speeding. That speeding stop then turned into much more. THC was found on her person and in the vehicle. The client also admitted to smoking THC approximately 1 hour prior to the stop and her blood did contain Delta-9, the active ingredient in THC. Our approach initially involved filing motions challenging probable cause for the arrest for OWI, based upon the client passing all of the field sobriety tests. The real problem was the fact that the client admitted to recently smoking THC and the fact it was present in her blood.We litigated the case in municipal court, winning the restricted controlled substance charge, which was huge for the case. We lost the OWI, but knew that on appeal, the prosecution would never be able to prove that charge. As the matter got closer to trial, the prosecutor offered to dismiss all the other tickets still remaining and amend the OWI to a charge of reckless driving. The client was shocked a little, but realized how great of the result this was for her.
Injunction Petition Denied, Dane County
In this case, a female colleague of our client sought an injunction against him after she alleged he engaged in inappropriate behavior with her during a business trip. The client hired Attorney Tim Verhoff on the advice of another, local lawyer. At the injunction hearing, the petitioner testified. She stated that she suspected our client drugged her before escorting her to her hotel room and kissing her against her will. She also claimed he contacted her multiple times after the incident. The client denied the accusations. Our lawyer cross examined the petitioner and got her to admit under oath that she consumed more than a half-dozen mixed drinks and a significant amount of wine during the evening. She agreed she was extremely intoxicated and did not fully recall what happened in the room. She also admitted she had no reason to believe our client actually assaulted her. Before Attorney Verhoff could even finish his cross examination of the petitioner, the judge intervened. The judge concluded that she had heard enough and denied the petitioners request for an injunction.
Negligent Handling of a Firearm (Dane County) DISMISSED
Case #3: This case involved a successful business women who was really attempting to do the right thing and was charged with a crime. Our client was at her apartment when there was a disturbance outside. One of the people at her apartment went outside and, without her knowledge, obtained a handgun because they feared the person causing the disturbance would cause them harm. After the incident calmed down, the firearm was brought into our client's residence. She became very upset that a gun was in her home and picked the gun up to remove it from her home and place it outside. The gun discharged in the residence and the police were called. Once we got involved, we pointed out the facts mentioned above, including the fact the government had incorrectly charged the case, and could not meet their burden of proof. The government agreed and dismissed the case
OWI/PAC .10 to Reckless (Dane County)
Case #2 - OWI/PAC .10 (Dane County)
This case came to us from another lawyer in town. As normal practice, we did the Administrative Review hearing and got the information we needed for a motion to challenge the test result. We have said over and over again that the administrative review hearing is a great way to learn information about your case. That was true here. We were able to challenge the stop of the vehicle as well as the basis to conduct field sobriety tests. Once the prosecutor saw the motions, he made a decision to offer a reckless driving. Client never lost her license and never had to explain to her employer about her case.
3 More Outstanding Results- 2 OWI charges amended to finish the year
Case #1- OWI/Refusal-Amended to Reckless Driving (Dane County)
When people call us and tell us that their case is "hopeless", most of the time the facts of the case are not as bad as they say. Except here. In this case, most of the facts were against the client. Poor driving, excessive speed, failed field sobriety tests and a refusal to submit to a breath test. Worst of all, our client had a license from a state (IL) where he would be facing a lengthy revocation if he was convicted of the OWI. The great news for the client was, Chirafisi & Verhoff has been extremely successful against this particular prosecutor in multiple cases in the past and there has been a hesitation to litigate issues against us.
We believe that most of the time, the refusal drives the OWI charge, meaning if there is a way around the refusal, the OWI will fall as well.
So, we went after the refusal first. It wasn't that difficult when we started. We questioned whether the information provided to the client on the Informing the Accused form was correct. The prosecutor agreed that a problem existed and quickly agreed to amend the OWI to reckless driving and to dismiss the refusal. The client's license was saved.
Stay tuned for our two other awesome end of 2018 results on Monday!
Not Guilty Verdict in OWI/PAC at 0.14
Our client was traveling home from a wine-pairing dinner party. Unfortunately, the headlights on her vehicle were not on and the Maple Bluff Police Department stopped her. The officer smelled an odor of intoxicants, and the client admitted to consuming wine during each course served at the meal. The officer had her perform field sobriety tests and then arrested her. The client agreed to take a breath test, which resulted in a 0.14 alcohol concentration. One of our previous clients recommended she hire Attorney Tim Verhoff to help. The case proceeded to trial during which Attorney Verhoff cross examined the arresting officer at length. At the conclusion of the trial, Attorney Verhoff argued to the judge that the arresting officer lacked a constitutional basis to request the client perform field sobriety tests, and as a result, all evidence gleaned from the tests should be excluded. The judge agreed and suppressed the evidence. He then found the client not guilty of the OWI and the PAC charges. On an interesting side note, another officer from the police department, who was not associated with the case, came to watch the entire trial. He was the arresting officer in a previous case for which Attorney Verhoff secured an acquittal. The officer told our lawyer he came because he wanted to see him "in action again" and that he learned a lot from the earlier case. He then paid our attorney one of the highest compliments a defense lawyer can receive. As he was consoling his defeated colleague, he said, "At least you now know who to call if you ever get into trouble."
Boating OWI/PAC Dismissed at 0.09
Our client was boating with friends on Lake Mendota during the July 4th holiday. While attending a local fireworks display, authorities stopped him for using an unauthorized sound device. Upon contact, law enforcement smelled the odor of intoxicants coming from our client, who admitted to consuming alcohol over several hours. The client agreed to submit to field sobriety tests. Although law enforcement observed sufficient clues to arrest him, he performed pretty well, particularly on the horizontal gaze nystagmus (eye) test. He then agreed to take a chemical test of his breath, which produced a 0.09 result. In meeting with the prosecution, Attorney Verhoff argued that there was no bad boating operation and the offense for which police made contact with our client was questionable. Our lawyer said the client was acting like any other good American when sounding a horn during the fireworks display. Coupled with the low test result and good performance on the field sobriety tests, our attorney suggested this case might be a hard one for the prosecution to prove at trial. Ultimately, the prosecution agreed with his assessment. Although our client was asked to complete a boater safety course, the District Attorney's Office agreed to dismiss both the boating OWI and PAC citations if the client agreed to be convicted of using an unnecessary boat whistle. He did and was thrilled with the outcome we achieved.
OWI Dismissed in Dane County
This case is an example of the huge difference a lawyer can make. Our client, who is an Illinois resident, was stopped and arrested for an OWI-1st Offense. He refused to take field sobriety tests and refused to take the chemical test of his breath. He was also given a citation for improper refusal. Unfortunately, the client did not realize he had to file a request for a hearing on the refusal within ten days, and he defaulted on that charge before our office got involved.
The client did appear without a lawyer for a court date on the OWI charge. By happenstance, Attorney Verhoff was present at this hearing and overheard the conversation the client was having with a representative from the District Attorney's Office. The person from the DA's Office told the client there was nothing they could do about the OWI and he could either plead to it or have a trial. The client was on the verge of pleading to the OWI when Attorney Verhoff intervened. Our attorney informed the (now) client that entering a plea to the OWI would have catastrophic consequences on his Illinois license. Our attorney advised him to fight the OWI. Taking our advice, the client decided to hire our firm to help. Attorney Verhoff immediately had the case set for trial. In speaking with the prosecutor assigned to the case prior to trial, Attorney Verhoff explained to him the significant consequences for an OWI conviction in Illinois. He argued this was unduly punitive and unnecessary given the conviction that previously occurred in the refusal. He also pointed out some of the proof problems the prosecutor might have in the OWI case. On the day of trial, the prosecutor finally gave up on the OWI case and agreed to dismiss it. Although the client must still deal with the impact of the refusal conviction, he was spared years worth licensing headaches in Illinois due to the OWI dismissal.
Another Felony Stalking Case Reduced
In this Dane County case, the client was charged with stalking a woman with whom he had a previous relationship. Although he never made any threats to her or took any action toward her, he did repeatedly call her, text her, and often came to her residence. But our attorney had a very strong card to play, evidence that the complaining witness sent texts to our client in the weeks leading up to his arrest. Ultimately our attorneys brokered a deal with the prosecution in which the client agreed to plead to a lesser charge of disorderly conduct. He also agreed to be supervised on probation for one year, but he was not required to serve any jail time.
Gun Charge Dismissed At Initial Appearance
A Dane County court commissioner had no choice but to dismiss a criminal charge of going armed while intoxicated against our client at a recent initial appearance. The client, who was pulled over for a traffic violation, was initially charged with a criminal offense for having a firearm in her possession while she was intoxicated. Attorney Verhoff attended the first hearing and received a copy of the charging document called the criminal complaint. He immediately noticed the complaint failed to allege that the firearm was loaded at the time our client possessed it. This is an element of the criminal charge. Our attorney moved to dismiss the complaint and charge based on the prosecution's failure to sufficiently allege all elements of a crime in the charging document. Given the defect in the complaint, the court commissioner dismissed the case.
OWI 1st. .09 accident/hit and run- Dane County
Our client was driving at bar time on a busy street in downtown Madison. He was involved in an accident for sideswiping another vehicle and then leaving the scene. When police made contact with him, he was not very cooperative and was charged with multiple offenses, including OWI/PAC and a criminal charge of Hit and Run.
Chirafisi & Verhoff got involved in the case and started with the Hit and Run charge. We met with the prosecutor prior to the court appearance and were able to convince the prosecutor not to charge the Hit and Run.
Next was the OWI charge. The accident did pose a problem (as it usually does) and being over the legal limit compounded the accident.
As the matter closed in for trial, we found an issue with the manner that the breath test was conducted. We decided to hold this issue back and not disclose it to the other side until we had an opportunity to cross examination the breath test operator. It turns out that we never had the opportunity to do so because the prosecutor called us and agreed to amend the charge to reckless driving. At the end of the day, the hit and run disappeared and so did the OWI.
3 more outstanding results- Felony dismissed at preliminary hearing
The first case is out of Dane County: a felony battery. The client was charged with striking a person on a downtown Madison street. That person fell down, struck their head and lost consciousness. The Dane County DA's office has a policy of not attempting to resolve cases before preliminary hearings. We here at Chirafisi & Verhoff have a policy of not waiving preliminary hearings for no reason.
At the preliminary hearing, the officer testified to our client's version as to what had occurred. The prosecutor never asked the officer about any other version of what had happened. The Court, armed with only the version set forth by our client, found that the state had not established probable cause and the felony was dismissed.
More soon regarding out two other recent outstanding case results...
Felony OWI Reduced to Misdemeanor
Our client was arrested and charged with a felony OWI in Dane County. Upon review of the client's driving abstract, Attorney Verhoff recognized one of the prior convictions upon which the prosecution was relying as a basis for counting prior convictions could not be used in the pending case. This was because the earlier conviction transpired in a municipal court that did not have proper jurisdiction over the case. Based on our lawyer's challenge to the use of the prior conviction from municipal court, prosecutors from the Dane County District Attorney's Office were forced to reduce the pending charge from a felony to a misdemeanor. Spared a felony conviction, the client was thrilled.
Domestic Assault Dismissed Before Trial
The Madison Police Department arrested our client after a disturbance with her estranged husband. Upon review of the case, the Dane County District Attorney's Office charged our client with domestic battery. The client hired our firm and met with Attorney Verhoff. She described her marital life to him. As a former prosecutor who supervised the domestic violence unit, Attorney Verhoff recognized the client was actually a long-time victim of abuse in the relationship. He contacted local law enforcement and learned the complaining witness had been a suspect in several prior domestic cases against our client. He obtained the reports regarding those cases, and he also obtained a copy of an injunction the client previously filed against her husband. Armed with this information, Attorney Verhoff approached the prosecutor assigned to the case. He informed the prosecutor that if the case went to trial, he planned to put the "victim husband" on trial. Attorney Verhoff suggested the appropriate course of action consistent with the interest of justice was to dismiss the case against our client. Several hours after presenting his argument to the prosecution, the assistant district attorney assigned to the case contacted Attorney Verhoff and informed him the case was being dismissed.
Road Rage With Gun Amended From Criminal Charge
The Dane County District Attorney's Office charged our client with criminal disorderly conduct while armed after he was alleged to have pointed a firearm at another driver during a road rage incident. Upon meeting with the prosecutor, Attorney Verhoff noted a recent change in the law that provides the equivalent of an affirmative defense to displaying a firearm, provided there is no malicious intent. According to the reporting party in this case, our client displayed a firearm during the incident, but he also let the clip drop from the magazine while brandishing the firearm. Attorney Verhoff argued to the prosecutor that this reflected an act that was more akin to self-defense and by dropping the clip the client was showing a lack of malicious intent. The prosecutor, who was not aware of the change in the law, decided to amend the charge to a non-criminal citation that is the legal equivalent to a parking ticket.
EVIDENCE SUPPRESSED, DANE COUNTY OWI DISMISSED
The Dane County District Attorney' Office dismissed an OWI case against our client after Attorney Tim Verhoff successfully argued the evidence was obtained in violation of the United States Constitution. A Dane County deputy sheriff stopped our client for a license plate violation at approximately 3:00 a.m. Upon making contact with the client, the deputy observed a strong odor of intoxicants, and the client admitted to the deputy that she had been drinking shots earlier that night. Based on that information, the deputy requested the client to perform field sobriety tests, and he arrested her for OWI at the conclusion of the tests. Given the lack of bad driving prior to the stop,and the lack of outward indicators of impairment, our lawyers filed a motion challenging deputy's basis to ask our client to perform field sobriety tests. At the hearing, Attorney Verhoff thoroughly cross examined the deputy. He then argued the deputy did not have a sufficient reason to extend the scope of the stop and conduct an OWI investigation. The judge agreed and ruled that all of the evidence obtained after the deputy's initial contact with our client was inadmissible at trial. Without any additional evidence, the prosecution was left with little choice but to dismiss the case against our client.
Sexual Assault Case Dismissed, Felony Declined
The Madison Police Department arrested our client after he attended a local house party and allegedly groped two female attendees. He was also alleged to have punched a party goer, though it was in reaction to being hit by someone else. At the time of the client's arrest, the officer also claimed the client resisted and caused an injury to the officer, which is a felony offense.
Upon advice of a judge, the client's family contacted our office for help. Attorney Verhoff went to work before charges were filed, providing the prosecution background on the client as well as the incident. After speaking with Attorney Verhoff, the prosecution agreed to file no felony charges. However, the client was charged with two counts of misdemeanor sexual assault, misdemeanor battery, and misdemeanor resisting. The case was assigned to a different prosecutor in the office to handle for purposes of trial. Through negotiations, Attorney Verhoff was able to explain the significant impact the arrest and prosecution had on the client. He argued the client was young with no record, and continued prosecution in the justice system was not needed. After listening to Attorney Verhoff's arguments, the prosecutor agreed and dismissed all charges.
Dane County Domestic Case Dismissed Before Initial Appearance
In this case, our client was arrested for a domestic disturbance involving his wife. After reviewing the case, the Dane County District Attorney's Office filed a non-criminal charge called County Disorderly Conduct against him. At the time, the client had a different attorney, who appeared and entered a not guilty plea on the client's behalf. Shortly after the initial appearance, the prosecution contacted the client and informed him the non-criminal charge would be dismissed. Then came the bad news: the prosecutor told our client he would be filing a criminal charge against him.
The client decided to look for new legal representation. Upon advice from a friend, he contact our office. Attorney Verhoff immediately contacted the District Attorney's Office. Although the criminal case had been filed at that time, our client had not yet been to court. Through negotiations, our attorney was able to convince the prosecution to delay the initial appearance. He then was able to get the prosecutor to agree to dismiss the charge before the formal court appearance upon condition the client met certain conditions. As negotiated, on the day of the initial appearance, the case was dismissed. The client may now truthfully answer that he was never charged or convicted of a criminal offense.