6 things about Minnesota’s Collateral Consequences Law You Should Really Know

6 things about Minnesota’s Collateral Consequences Law You Should Really Know

When making a big decision, obviously the more you know, the better. That’s especially true about a plea agreement for conduct within the reach of the state’s criminal code. Well, there are more things to consider than the statutory penalty for the criminal act — things that might affect your life for years to come. Read on for six things you should know about collateral consequences under Minn. Stat. 245C Subd. 14 & 15. Rehabilitation in Minnesota is Decades Old. In 1974, the Minnesota legislature announced the state’s policy to “encourage and contribute to rehabilitation” pathways that help criminal offenders return to roles as responsible citizens. The state introduced a series of laws that had two goals: First, rehabilitate criminal ex-offenders and the second, to protect the state’s citizens by keeping ex-offenders away from certain jobs where they were likely to hurt vulnerable people or destroy property. Forty-three years later, citizens continue to deal with the difficulty inherent in rehabilitation as a goal. What are collateral consequences? Remember, the Minnesota legislature passed laws whose secondary goal was to protect its citizenry from ex-offenders who might harm them. Current law requires that the Department of Human Services (DHS) carry-out criminal background checks on persons who apply for employment where they will have “direct contact or access” to persons receiving services in DHS facilities. DHS uses the criminal background check information to disqualify applicants on the basis of prior criminal offenses. For example, Section 245C, subsection 14, prohibits direct contact by ex-offenders who have committed felonies, gross misdemeanors, or misdemeanors. This is true whether the incarceration was through conviction, admission, or an Alford plea (that’s a guilty plea with a protest of innocence often used to plea to a lesser charge when the prosecution has enough evidence to convict on the original greater charge). The disqualification also can result from an investigation that results in an administrative finding of an offense under Section 245C.15. DHS in certain circumstances can set aside the disqualification or the license holder can issue a variance. What types of crimes are we talking about as disqualifying crimes? We are talking about permanent disqualification for persons who violate laws under Section 245C.15, such as the predatory offender registration laws, murder (first, second, and third degree), manslaughter (first and second degree), assault, domestic assault, spousal or child abuse/neglect, drug distribution that causes great bodily harm, aggravated robbery, kidnapping, murder of unborn child (first, second, and third degree). There are more but this list is illustrative. 15-year disqualification for lesser felonies. The law provides a 15-year disqualification period for crimes of a lesser nature, if the offense occurred less than 15 years ago and the offense was a felony, such as wrongfully obtaining assistance, false representation, food stamp fraud, arson (second or third degree), possessing burglary tools, insurance fraud, indecent exposure, and others. The law also imposes 10-year disqualification for gross misdemeanors where the sentence discharged less than 10 years ago and 7-year disqualification for misdemeanors where the sentence discharged less than 7 years ago. Is there an appeal… Read more {+}

Steps to Take after Being Released for Minnesota DWI

You went out for the night and got caught drinking and driving. You have been arrested and released with a driving while intoxicated. So, now what should you do? Here are the first steps that you need to take after being released for a DWI. First you need to hire a lawyer. You want a lawyer who is specialized in DWI cases to help you through this whole process. It is important that you don’t miss a single step or you will be more likely to serve time. A great lawyer is worth it because they are skilled at what they do and will ensure that you have a favorable outcome (or as best as you can expect)! Then, you need a chemical dependency evaluation. A chemical dependency evaluation, required by the court system, is used to determine whether or not you have a dependency on drugs or alcohol. The agency who runs the test will talk to you about your past use of drugs and alcohol, if you have ever been treated for dependency on drugs and alcohol, and if you have ever had any trouble with the law. The information from your arrest will also go into consideration. You may need to submit an urine sample. You must follow the recommendations from your chemical dependency evaluation. When your assessment is done, you will get a written copy. In it, you will see your results and diagnosis. If there is any sign of abuse or dependence, you may have to go to an Alcohol Drug Information School or a DUI Victim Impact Panel. Just make sure that you do whatever is required of you as soon as you can. You will have to attend a Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Impact Panel. The goal at the panel is to prevent repeat DWI offenders. They do this by holding conferences where you can learn how many people are affected by drunk drivers. You are going to hear from family members who have lost people that they love because of someone’s bad decisions. You may also hear from people who are seriously injured due to drunk drivers. If you are allowed to drive, you will need an Ignition Interlock. This is a device that prevents your car from starting if you are drinking. You have to breathe into it like a breathalyzer before you get behind the wheel of your car. Once you take the test, your vehicle will start as long as you haven’t had anything to drink. If you have been drinking, you will have to take the test again before your car will start. You must remember that if you have an Ignition Interlock, the results will be stored and given to the court. If you are continuing to drink and try to get behind the wheel, the courts are going to find out. For this reason, you need to get your drinking under control. If your alcohol limit was .16 or more, you are going to have… Read more {+}

False Science in Sexual Conduct Prosecution

Sexual conduct is a complicated criminal matter. The stakes are high. Illegal sexual behavior cases often carry a harsh punishment of many years in prison. There is the possibility of having to register in the sexual offender registry, which has serious consequences for the offender’s entire life. Most of the time, sexual offenses occur without witnesses and do not occur in public areas. Many accusations are made without witnesses. Evidence presented in the trial often depend on analysis of tissue samples, more or less scientific measurement like hair and fiber comparison or handwriting analysis, as well as the word of the defendant and the alleged victim. Conviction in sexual cases often depends on the testimony of the victim or a minor child in support of the victim. These convictions may be relatively easy to get in sexual cases in front of a sympathetic jury, because even being accused of a sex crime has such a strong popular stigma. The horror of the crime may be enough to sway even a judge on the word of a sympathetic victim, even if very little real evidence is presented in court. Statistics show that there may be as one in four of all reported sexual attacks that will be proven false on real investigation. Defendants in sex crime cases can often be convinced to accept a plea bargain to avoid the high risk of a severe sentence, even with little real evidence against them. The plea bargain may reduce or eliminate jail time, but the consequences of even the reduced sentence can be disastrous in the life of any convicted person. The first line of evidence for the defense in a sexual conduct case is the profession of innocence. The defendant may admit to the physical acts in the case, but disavow the claim that is was sexual assault because the act was consensual. Defendants can present alibies that they were not present at the alleged crime scene, and support the alibi with documents like hotel receipts, or travel documents. Defendants may claim that they were misidentified by the victim. Because of the special nature of prosecution in sexual conduct cases, often the lack of witnesses, the way juries and judges view sexual crimes and, often, the vagueness of the nature of evidence, false science and pseudoscientific theories are often a factor in sexual conduct trials.  False memories elicited in the testimony of witnesses and attempts to “recover memory” using methods like hypnosis have resulted in miscarriage of justice in many sexual abuse cases, according to a recent book published by the British False Memory Society. Many hundreds of people are convinced by (perhaps) well-meaning therapists that their psychological problems are due to repressed memories of sexual abuse. Those so convinced go in search of likely perpetrators and use their recovered memories as evidence in court. Juries and those in the criminal justice system may rely on “common sense” in considering issues relating to memory. The British False Memory Society has filed several thousand case histories, of which 672 are known… Read more {+}

How to get an accuser’s prior acts or mental illness into evidence

Being accused of a crime is a frightening, life-changing experience. One woman, a witness, who was falsely accused of the murder of her best friend, described it this way, “…a gunman stormed into the room and opened fire. I was kidnapped. The shooter had me leave with them and forced me to a house nearby. They held me against my will. I thought, ‘This is where I’m going to die….”After a number of hours, a SWAT team rescued [her] and she was taken into custody….”The next thing you know, I’m being charged with first-degree murder.” After six days behind bars, the charges were dropped and she was freed. But the woman’s life got worse after her release. She hid from society for a month. “People on social media were very ugly. People called me a murderer, a whore, a crackhead, worthless piece of scum.” When someone is accused of a serious crime and brought to trial, the state becomes the accuser. The prosecutor, employed by the state represents the accuser. In the trial, testimony is taken to support the case for guilt by people who have evidence supporting the conviction, as well as witness who support the innocence of the defendant. In many states, if the defense council has evidence that the prosecutor is biased or that the trial cannot be fair because of a clear bias, a prosecutor can be dismissed by the judge and a new prosecutor assigned. Otherwise, the defense attorney is faced with counteracting the evidence given by witness for the state. Witnesses for the prosecution can be countered as unreliable witnesses and testimony can be discounted on the basis of personal qualities like mental instability, criminal history. According to the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, “in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right… to be confronted by the witnesses against him.” In open trial, the testimony given by witnesses can be impeached with evidence of bias, if the witness can be proven to gain materially from a conviction. The witnesses testimony can be dismissed with evidence that he or she is not a witness who can be relied upon to make accurate observations. The witness must be confronted with the evidence before his or her testimony is dismissed. If the witness denies the disqualifying evidence, it can still be introduced in cross-examination, but only if the evidence is extrinsic and can be delivered in the form of documents or sworn testimony. Cross-examination of witnesses is an absolute right for accused people in court. There are usually two kinds of cross-examination, Those intended to enter new facts and details. Those intended to raise questions about the credibility of witnesses. A witness’ credibility may be attacked or supported by testimony about the witness’ reputation regarding untruthfulness. Witnesses can defend themselves but only after their truthful character is attacked. In a criminal trial, extrinsic evidence (which consists of external documents that have to be interpreted or which themselves can be questioned) can be brought… Read more {+}

Warrant Requirements and Exceptions in Minnesota

Under the Fourth Amendment, we have the right to be sure that our person, house, vehicle, and other property are protected from unreasonable search and seizure. However, while there are numerous exceptions that are able to bypass this right, the State and its police officers must obtain a valid warrant to perform a lawful search, otherwise the contents discovered on that search are not valid in a court of law. By knowing the requirements of a search warrant in Minnesota was well as some of the acceptable exemptions, you can evaluate if the case against you is indeed within the realms of the Fourth Amendment. Search Warrant Requirements in Minnesota The search warrant can be issued by any court in the jurisdiction of where the person or property is to be searched. The only exception is that probate court cannot issue a warrant for searches. A search warrant can be granted if any of the following were true: The property or items in question were stolen or embezzled, the property or items were used in the process of committing a crime, the possession of the property or items constitutes as a crime, or the property or items were delivered in the act of concealing a crime or preventing them from being discovered. A valid search warrant can only be issued by the court of probable cause. This needs to be supported by an affidavit that names or describes the person, property, or object to be seized and detail needs to be given when describing the place that can be searched. If the court is satisfied with the facts given by the affidavit that probable cause exists, the judge must sign the warrant, naming their judicial office, and then hand it over to an officer that can be inside or outside of the jurisdiction. The warrant will also sport the names of those presenting the affidavit and the grounds for its issuance. The execution of a search warrant can only be done by one or more of the officers mentioned in the warrants directions and by no other person except other officers requested by aid of one of the officers on the search warrant. In standard cases, a search warrant can only be served between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. However, warrants can be served at night, but only with court approval if the facts stated in the affidavit merit a night-time search to prevent the loss, destruction, or removal of the objects of the search. A search warrant is void if not served within 10 days of its issuing. However, once issued, it is easy for officers to renew it when needed. When the officer stated in the warrant conducts a search, they must give you a copy of the warrant and, if property or items are removed, a receipt for them to the owner as well as to the court. When Do Officers Not Need a Warrant? There are four major exemptions to search warrants where… Read more {+}