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Ohio Probation: a Disjointed, “Ineffective” Mess?

dave — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:22:50 +0000

Ohio, unlike most states, has a county-centered probation system. Most states manage their probation system from the state level. Here, however, the counties are in charge of everything from funding to terms and conditions, making the system disjointed, or as a recent Associated Press story says, “a jumble of overlapping and fragmented agencies without common rules.”

A study, released last month by the Council of State Governments Justice Center, says that Ohio is sending many people through the prison system at an enormous cost for fairly short sentences. Whether someone serves 9 months or 9 years, the cost to process them is the same, meaning short sentences are racking up a continuous bill.

With a disjointed probation system and a prison system that keeps low level offenders cycling through at a rate that can’t possibly rehabilitate, what’s the answer? Well, this piece seems to suggest that the minimum sentence for a felony could be elevated to 1 year as it is in most states rather than the 6 months it is here.

By having felonies carry a minimum of one year, prisons wouldn’t be tasked with the very short sentences, instead that burden would fall on the county jails, who can process short timers at a much cheaper rate.

Another option—a centralized probation system. Without a state backed probation system, counties are left to make all the decisions themselves. While this may be beneficial in some counties, others suffer for it, and so does the state.

“We don’t really know how many people are on probation” says one Chief Probation Officer. Lack of a centralized system means no hard data on the probation departments across the state and no way to track or improve upon their effectiveness.

Low level crimes like drug possession or theft are better penalized with probation than with jail or even prison time. On probation, an offender can maintain employment and still provide for their family. They are less likely to become institutionalized and more likely to participate in beneficial programs like alcohol treatment and mental health counseling. But, the system to provide these resources varies drastically across county lines.

Most criminal defendants hope for probation when they go before a judge. They don’t want to go to prison or jail. Although in some counties, probation is seen as a more difficult option with frequent P.O. visits and many rules, it’s far better than being cut off from the world.

If you are facing charges, whether a misdemeanor or a felony, and you want to know more information about the probation system in your area, even if your case might qualify for probation, please contact our law offices today for a consultation on your case and some valuable legal advice.

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Dying Ohio Girl Swindled by Own Uncle?

dave — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:07:35 +0000

A 14 year old Ohio girl found out last year that she only had a short time to live. Her final wish—a home for her family. Now, the girl is gone and her uncle is facing charges of grand theft—theft of the home she so badly wanted.

Cleveland showed support for the girl and her family last year when her story was made public. Schools, friends, and kind hearted people raised $120,000 for the girl’s family home. She never had a chance to see that home, though, before she passed away in June from a brain tumor.

The girl’s 35 year old uncle is alleged to have used the money to purchase a home. But, the home was leased to another family so he could collect rent. He is now facing three charges of grand theft over the incident and looking to potentially spend some time in prison.

In addition to purchasing a home for his own benefit, the uncle is said to have bought a BMW, a pool, and another property as well. According to Fox8, he did return $30,000 of the money, a mere drop in the bucket to the girl’s mother.

Although he is charged with theft, this case has some similarities to many identity fraud cases in that one person who was trusted used the vulnerability of another to their own benefit. This happens quite often when it comes to the elderly and people who they trust, whether as family members, caretakers, or friends.

This child was vulnerable and her own uncle is accused of taking advantage of that.

The charge he faces, “grand theft”, applies when theft is in the amount of $5,000 to $100,000. Because he faces three counts, it’s likely that the money he took was in increments on three different occasions.

Each charge of grand theft is a 4^th degree felony and carries with it 6-18 months in prison and fines reaching $5,000. These fines don’t include any possible restitution he may be forced to pay to the mother of the victim.

It can be particularly difficult to overcome a criminal charge when the victim is a child or in some other way vulnerable. Especially at sentencing time, once guilt has been established, the particulars of your case including the victim can be taken into consideration.

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City of Toledo Pleas For Help In Arson Investigations

dave — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 20:06:18 +0000

Thirty-one vacant house fires in the last two months have the city of Toledo on edge. So much so that the Mayor announced the reward for valuable information has been boosted to $25,000 in hopes of solving some of the yet-unsolved blazes in the area. Of the six most populous cities in the state, Toledo has had the most arson cases per capita in the past year.

Since the start of this year, Toledo has seen 80 suspicious fires, up 37% from last year. The Fire Chief states there is reason to believe many of these arsons have been committed by the same people. Evidence at the blaze scenes connect the fires in some way.

Two arrests were recently made in one of the fires as two boys, ages 12 and 13 were seen leaving the scene of a smaller vacant house fire. Despite the magnitude of these offenses, they often begin as a childhood prank.

Arsons are considered very serious crimes. Their potential for damage is huge and likely why they are so serious. A natural occurrence like fire is difficult to control and can spread easily to destroy residences and hurt or even kill the very people fighting to stop it.

While arsons are often portrayed on television and movie screens as being committed by totally deranged individuals, they are often started by kids. Sometimes, what begins as a controlled burning can also quickly get out of hand and appear to be a deliberately set blaze.

Property crimes like this carry serious criminal sentences. With arson, the degree of the criminal charges faced depends on the result of the blaze. You could be looking at a misdemeanor charge with a 6 month jail sentence. If, however, the fire involves an occupied structure, you are looking at 2 to 8 years in prison and a felony record.

The fires in Toledo have served to cause millions of dollars in damage, preventable damage. And whoever is found to be responsible will likely face a court motivated by the city’s collective displeasure.

If you’re facing charges of arson or something as simple as vandalism, you need a defense attorney looking out for your best interests. Please contact us to speak about your case and to get some legal help.

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New Ohio Laws to Reduce Wrongful Convictions

dave — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 21:35:19 +0000

A new set of laws in Ohio will work to keep the criminal process more efficient while simultaneously reducing the change of wrongful convictions and eyewitness identifications. While it may take prosecutors and police some time to adjust, the adjustments will be well worth it and are coming at a very good time—when dozens of states have passed similar legislation.

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, close to 25 states have adopted “open discovery” rules. What this means is prosecutors and defense attorneys will be required to share their information earlier on in the case and they won’t be able to withhold important data like police reports, expert witness reports, and other potentially trial changing information.

In addition the laws will change how eyewitness identifications take place. Interestingly, about 75% of wrongful convictions nationwide have hinged on false eyewitness identification. This new law will seek to minimize this occurrence by adopting a new process for doing photo lineups.

Until now, police would show witnesses a series of photos, altogether, spread out on a table or copied on the same piece of paper. This method has been shown to produce false identification because people are more likely to compare the photos to one another, choosing the one that may look the most like the suspect, even if the suspect isn’t in the lineup.

Now, witnesses will be shown a series of photos, one after the other, in what’s referred to as a “folder shuffle” method. This, University of Cincinnati law professor Mark Godsey says, “forces the person to compare the suspect not to other pictures but to their individual memory” an important distinction.

This package of reforms has been spearheaded by the Ohio Innocence Project. It was approved by lawmakers and is said to have seen immense support by police and prosecutors alike. Despite the adversarial system and common attitude of “we vs. them”, most people within the legal community want to see methods adopted that have less room for error and better protection of the innocent. Nationwide, the Innocence Project has been aggressively working to reform the criminal justice system and exonerate wrongfully convicted individuals.

Laws like these are very important in ensuring the right people are tried for crimes and that they receive a fair trial and fair treatment leading up to the trial. If you’re facing criminal charges, you know just how important this is.

If you are accused of a crime, knowing the laws in place to keep your rights protected is important. You need to know what you’re up against and you need to have someone on your side to assist you. Contact me today. Whether you are facing charges of drug possession or fraud—I can help.

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Ohio Considering More Probation, Less Prison

dave — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 20:36:02 +0000

Budgets across the nation are tight. States spend exorbitant amounts on locking up their citizens. So much that the United States incarcerates people at the highest rate in the world. But balancing a budget might mean slowing down on the locking up as this report from the Dayton Daily News.

The article cites the Center for Economic Policy Research when it states that governments could save 25% if they were “to place half of their non-violent criminals on probation and parole instead of in prisons and jails.” While this number is hard to argue with, not many people are too keen on freeing those people currently locked up.

Ohio’s correction budget stands at $1.78 billion. We incarcerate about 51,000 men and women though our institutions only have the capacity for 38,665. But when lawmakers start discussing the release of inmates or relaxing sentencing policies, they are accused of putting the public at risk.

Interestingly, 28% of new male inmates in 2009 were sentenced for drug offenses, not violent crimes. And while no one wants drugs in their communities, we simply don’t have the resources to continue locking people up at such alarming rates.

Although being “tough on crime” is popular, the sentiment has driven prison populations through the roof and has done nothing to reduce recidivism. Because the broken and highly expensive system isn’t working, you would think people would be more willing to see it changed.

Typically, probation is reserved for those people who are first time non-violent criminals. Things like minor drug offenses, bad checks, and small theft cases are common in the probation department. As the seriousness of your offense and the length of your criminal history increases, so do your chances of prison time.

While the budget is an important matter, and changing sentencing practices is too, we can’t exactly ask a judge to give you probation to save the taxpayers’ money. However, as your attorney, I could argue that you pose no risk to the community and that your rehabilitation would be far more productive on probation than locked away in prison.

Whether you are facing OVI, drug charges, or something more serious like assault—we can help. Contact our attorneys today to discuss the details of your case. I can help you determine if you might be a good candidate for probation within a short amount of time.

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Ohio Supreme Court Rules Officer Estimate Good Enough for Speeding Ticket

dave — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 21:21:32 +0000

In a 5-1 ruling, the Ohio Supreme Court decided that a trained police officer’s visual estimate of a cars speed is sufficient proof to assess a finding of guilty with a speeding ticket.

According to the Columbus Dispatch, the defense argued unsuccessfully that the court should have more discretion to question the judgement of the officer’s option, depending on the exact facts in the case.

The obvious questions this decision raises, is now that an officer’s opinion is de facto beyond a reasonable doubt evidence of speeding, does that mean that anytime an officer says a car was speeding, any police vehicle stop is legitimate?

When pulling over a car for any reason, a police officer must have articulable suspicion that some law is being broken for stopping the vehicle. This comes up all the time in drunk driving cases and other criminal traffic offenses like driving on a suspended license. If the officer didn’t have a clearly valid reason for stopping the car, then any evidence obtained after the fact: be it an intoxicated driver, or drugs in the car, is inadmissible.

But suddenly that standard can be the officer’s opinion that the car was speeding, with no other supporting evidence. This sounds like a questionable decision that could have significant implications for traffic stops and criminal charges across Ohio.

(Via balloon juice)

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Small Town Ohio Faced with Human Trafficking

dave — Wed, 26 May 2010 17:24:40 +0000

Often when you think of human trafficking you think of big cities and immigrants being conned into servitude. A recent case, crossing state lines from Maryland to small town Ohio, however, proves this isn’t always the case.

Four men are accused of running a prostitution ring and recruiting women and girls as young as 16 in the Chillicothe area. The business was run out of a Maryland apartment, but the men allegedly did their recruiting and drug sales in the area north of Columbus.

The recruits were given promises of partying and a good time and then often held against their will, according to the Columbus Dispatch. The men are accused of getting the women addicted to drugs and then exploiting that addiction, requiring them to prostitute themselves to earn their “fix”.

The case was blown open when one of the women agreed to provide “services” to an undercover officer. Because the case crossed state lines, the men faced several federal charges. Sex and drug offenses at both the federal and state level stood to send these men to prison for lengthy terms.

All four were sentenced after accepting plea agreements. There was a 17.5 year sentence, two for 15 years, and one for 10.

Each of the four men had varying criminal histories, with the ringleader having perhaps the cleanest record. One of the others had 30 misdemeanor arrests and a prior prison sentence, all of which, no doubt, played a role at sentencing.

Whether at the state or federal level, it is not unusual to face a multitude of charges stemming from one event. Multiple charges can lead to multiple sentences and the potential to serve a lot of time.

Plea agreements are used in the majority of criminal cases here in Ohio and across the country. In this case, each many stood to serve a life sentence if convicted on all charges. The plea bargain lessened this potential sentence.

If you are facing criminal drug charges, soliciting a prostitute or related sex offenses, or any other criminal charges and need help about plea agreements or your potential sentence, contact us today.

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Ohio Sexting Laws Reform

dave — Wed, 19 May 2010 00:48:27 +0000

There was a good editorial in the Journal News about the state legislature’s efforts to reform Ohio’s child pornography laws to account for teen “sexting”. Under existing statutes, a teen possessing a sexually explicit photo of his girlfriend sent to his phone or computer could be charges with felony possession of child pornography and convicted as a sex offender.While teen sexting is not something that should be encouraged or supported, most people understand the distinction between inappropriate (and stupid) teen behavior, and predatory adults taking advantage of children. It simply isn’t the same thing.

In today’s world when every teen has a camera on his or her cell phone, this kind of behavior is bound to happen.

But that doesn’t mean, a young person’s life should be destroyed.

The sexting laws reform effort in Ohio seeks to add a misdemeanor criminal option in these cases, and emphasize education about the consequences of distributing illicit photos of one’s self or others. The felony sex offense law would of course remain on the books, and could still be used to prosecute juveniles if the circumstances warranted the more severe charge.

But it would be a reasonable measure, and a nod to reality to give Ohio prosecutors a less onerous option, to teach kids a lesson, but not destroy their futures for adolescent bad behavior.

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Ohio Woman Convicted and Sentenced for Identity Theft of Sister

dave — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 21:22:36 +0000

A nineteen year old Sidney woman was sentenced to 6 months in the Ohio Reformatory for Women after giving police her sister’s name when being investigated on theft charges. According to the Dayton Daily News, the judge said the woman’s actions were a “slap in the face to the criminal justice system.”

This wasn’t the woman’s first run-in with the Ohio criminal courts. She has apparently had contact with law enforcement since as early as the age of 15. Her crime of choice seemed to be theft offenses as the article details her prior run-ins included bad checks, unauthorized use of property, and theft.

The woman was on probation at the time of the latest offense when police were called to Walmart to investigate a theft. There she allegedly gave the investigating officers her twin sisters name and wasn’t identified until an officer came to the scene who had dealt with her on prior occasions.

A life of crime often starts early and if not stopped can spin out of control. The judge likely felt that confinement would be appropriate and hopefully give the convicted woman the wakeup call needed to turn her life around.

On the other hand, this was part of a plea agreement and she originally faced up to one year in prison for the identity theft charge. This goes to show that even in cases of extensive criminal histories, plea agreements can be reached that are mutually beneficial to both parties.

When you are facing charges, whether they are for identity theft, drugs, or even DUI, there are multiple options available to you—even more so if this is your first encounter with the law.

Contact us today to discuss any charges against you and what your potential outcomes could be. Our aggressive defense attorneys, will work tirelessly to ensure you get the best possible results in court.

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Cincinnati Testing Cop Cameras

dave — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 23:33:59 +0000

Called AXON, Autonomous eXtended on-Officer Network, a system of miniature cameras is being tested by a group of Cincinnati police officers with hopes for the cameras going department-wide by this summer. According to USA Today several departments across the country are conducting trials on these cameras from Taser International.

The cameras are mounted on the head of each police officer with the tiny lens resting near the cheekbone, above the ear. In this way, the camera is said to capture everything the officer sees and hears. The footage is reportedly sent to a hard drive which cannot be deleted or edited by the officers.

Supporters state that the cameras will cut down on allegations of police misconduct and discrepancies between police reports and accounts from citizens about details that occur in a cop’s day to day job. Critics say they could pose a potential privacy issue despite the expectation of privacy being low when the police are present.

In my mind the cameras will bring more transparency to police reporting. Because police often write their reports at times of high stress it is understandable that pieces of the puzzle may be missing. They could also lead to more agreement in what really happened at arrest scenes.

Despite the cameras catching audio and video, they do leave out an important aspect, what happens before the police arrive. Often times the police don’t come on the scene until a situation has calmed down or until the offense has already occurred. While the cameras may keep police action in check, they certainly mean criminal cases are automatically slam dunks for the prosecution.

When you are arrested for an offense like assault, the prosecution should look at the entire sequence of events, including what happened and why. When you are the one facing charges it is normal to feel like your side of the story isn’t getting enough attention.

As your defense lawyer, it is my job to ensure your side is heard. Whether you have been wrongly accused or if you have a legitimate defense, I can help. Contact me today to discuss the details of your case. Even if a camera wasn’t present, together we can get to the bottom of your case and work on a positive resolution.

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