It's very frightening to be approached by a dangerous dog, knowing that you could be seriously injured. It's also worth noting that dogs are almost always faster than humans, so even running away from the situation isn't going to help you. If anything, that's just going to cause the dog to want t...
When it comes to criminal activity, especially pertaining to juvenile offenders, peer pressure is something that has often been linked to these activities. This can be seen with younger children, but experts note that it is often at its peak when they are young adolescents. In other words, teenag...
Embezzlement is a type of theft or misappropriation of funds. It happens when someone takes funds from a business. That person uses their position within the company to access these funds, so it is not the same as traditional types of theft. Another aspect of embezzlement is often that the indivi...
Even when they eventually use a breath test to measure someone's blood alcohol concentration, the police will often start with a field sobriety test just to determine if they think that driver is impaired. In fact, failure of a field sobriety test is enough to trigger an arrest on drunk driving a...
You often hear people talk about being addicted to their phone, and they may mention how they wish they spent less time on it or they're trying to cut back. There are even people who will download apps to keep them from using their phone so much. But most people don't take this addiction all that...
When you look in your rearview mirror and you see that there is a semi-truck behind you, it can be somewhat unnerving. These vehicles are much taller than passenger cars, so they seem to tower over your vehicle, and they can weigh as much as 80,000 pounds. You have probably never felt as small in...
Recreational marijuana is legal in California, as is medical marijuana. This state has been among the leaders in these movements, although more and more states across the country are adopting similar laws. Examples include places like Illinois, Michigan and Colorado. As a result, people in these ...
Tax mistakes happen. If you do your taxes on your own, it is very possible you could make some errors. Some of them may be minor and may never be detected. But others could be very significant, perhaps drastically impacting how much money you had to pay to the government. Everyone knows that the ...
When you have an encounter with a police officer, you may assume they have to be honest with you. After all, you know that you are expected to be honest about certain things, such as providing proper identification during a traffic stop. Lying about your identity or other details could lead to ch...
Increasingly, people are taking psychedelic drugs (hallucinogens) to help with various mental health issues as well as substance abuse disorders. Among the most common are “magic mushrooms” and ayahuasca. Several cities in Northern California (San Francisco, Oakland and Santa Cruz) have decrimina...
Facing a DUI charge isn't something to take lightly. You might be frustrated or trying to think of all the ways you should have done something differently leading up to your charge. But instead of dwelling on it, it's essential to reflect on what happened and compare it to what should happen at a...
If you are someone who jogs multiple times a week, you likely do it because you want to stay in shape and stay healthy. Unfortunately, there are also some health risks that come with running, especially when you have to do it by traffic. You could be injured in an accident caused by a driver who ...
One of the most dangerous things that people can do when driving is to tailgate the car ahead of them. This means they are not maintaining a proper following distance. In the event of an unexpected change – a driver hitting the brakes, for instance – they may not be able to stop their car in time...
It is fairly common, and certainly not illegal, for two intimate partners to make an explicit recording of themselves, as long as they are both aware of this and consent to the activity. It is illegal to record someone without their knowledge, of course, but many people will do this intentionally...
Cryptocurrencies are under “serious scrutiny,” according to news reports. Only this isn't new information. Regulators have spent years scrambling to identify the potential problems with digital assets. And while government agencies have yet to agree on a legal categorization for DeFi, they contin...
When a driver pulls up to a red light, they may take that opportunity to pull out their cell phone. This driver may not even consider that texting and driving is prohibited, but they do know that it's dangerous. That's why they've waited until they're at the red light. They didn't want to text wh...
Homeowners need to be well aware of the risk of an attractive nuisance. It could mean that they are liable if someone else gets injured on their property. This is especially true in cases involving children. The homeowner may claim that they didn't try to cause an injury and they didn't even beli...
Next time you are sitting in traffic on the way to work, take a look at the drivers around you. Do they all seem bright and alert, or are some looking sleepy or exhausted? It is highly likely that whatever time of day you drive, you will share the road with a few drowsy drivers, and that could pu...
When a truck crashes, the outcome can be far worse than when a smaller vehicle crashes. These powerful vehicles essential to keeping the country stocked with goods have taken or ruined many lives. Because the outcome for people in other vehicles is so grave, they (or their families) may need to c...
There's a common myth about drunk driving charges that says that a person who is too intoxicated to drive just needs to take the time to have a cup of hot black coffee before they get in the car. The idea is that this will sober them up, and then they can drive safely. Similar myths indicate that...
They say dogs are man's best friend. Yet, best friends don't bite each other. You've probably seen news articles where the family pet attacks the child. It's proof that dogs can be unpredictable, and you should always take a certain amount of care, especially around ones you do not know. Can you ...
If you are facing criminal charges, it is important to consider all possible defense arguments. One of the more obscure ones you might not have heard of is called the fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine. Here is how it works: You use it to try and convince a judge to refuse to admit evidence The...
In many cases where a crime is committed, some sort of outside pressure influenced that action. For example, someone who is facing overwhelming debt or a lot of financial pressure may be more likely to embezzle money from work or shoplift from the store. These are not necessarily activities that ...
Crime statistics from 2021 show that while crime in California remains relatively low, certain offenses went up — specifically, crimes of violence. The Public Policy Institute of California reports that violent crime incidents per capita jumped 6 percent from 2020 to 2021. In the latter year, the...
You may know that you have a right to a trial by a jury of your peers when you're accused of a serious crime, but do you also know that you have a right to a “speedy” trial? The right to require the government to bring you to trial without undue delay is guaranteed under the 6th Amendment to the ...