Indiana just put a new DUI / OVWI law into effect on July 1, 2021, and it deals exclusively with marijuana. When it comes to controlled substances, the State of Indiana has traditionally made no distinction between active and inactive metabolites for DUI / OVWI...
Attorney Rebecca Berfanger is a part-time journalist, part-time professor, and full-time First Amendment enthusiast. She and Attorney Marc Lopez recently had the chance to speak about the Supreme Court’s decision in Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. and what it...
Independence Day is just around the corner, and plenty of Hoosiers want to know when they’re allowed to set off fireworks. On normal days, State law says that the use of fireworks must be limited to between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Local ordinances can be even more...
In Indiana, domestic battery is a crime that is separate and distinct from any other crime, including plain, old-fashioned battery. At its most basic, domestic battery is a knowing or intentional touching of a family member or household member in a rude,...
When someone’s arrested for a crime, their most immediate concern is naturally: When can I get out of jail? For some offenses, a judge will order them released on their own recognizance. In many cases, however, the court has to set a bail amount. No one wants to be...
In order to determine if delta-8 is legal, we first need to establish what it is. Delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol is very similar to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, which is more commonly known as THC, or the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. When people are talking...
The Ambien defense—or, as medical doctors call it, the zolpidem defense—is a claim that you were not conscious and therefore not aware of what you were doing when you committed a criminal act. Voluntary vs. Involuntary Acts In Indiana, the law says we only want to...
The Second Amendment isn’t the final word on gun rights, but it’s a good place to start. While the U.S. Constitution guarantees our right to bear arms, Hoosiers are also subject to plenty of other rules and regulations. Guns and ammo are as American as apple pie. The...
Self-defense and sudden heat are similar explanations for the killing of another person. The Indiana Supreme Court has held that a self-defense claim requires the fear of death or great bodily harm. The Court has also said that this same fear can be sufficient to...
In one of those Florida stories that tend to make national news, an argument over a donut order escalated pretty quickly. First there were angry words. Then a punch was thrown. A short time later, a man was dead. Here’s the set-up: A 77-year-old man went to the...
