Whether you go out for a night on the town with friends or you have a dinner function to attend, situations involving alcohol consumption are often a part of life. You’re not mentally calculating your blood alcohol content (BAC) with each sip thinking that your drive home could end in disaster. You may not even realize that your faculties are compromised before getting behind the wheel. Then you hit someone. Or perhaps you were never behind [...]
Whether you were involved in a car accident or you’ve been hurt at work, injuries to the head are a common occurrence under many circumstances involving negligent behavior. Your entire world can be tossed upside down with even a minor hit to the head as it can cause a traumatic brain injury (TBI). The unpredictability of this condition can leave you with a lot of uncertainty about your future quality of life. Post-concussion syndrome (PCS) is [...]
Distracted driving can lead to serious injuries. Today, T. Scott Jones talks about distracted driving, and what you need to know. What is included in Tennessee’s distracted driving laws? Distracted driving law in Tennessee is something that has recently come about, particularly through legislative action in order to deter folks from using electronic devices while operating a motor vehicle. It's extraordinarily important that you pay attention to the road and your surroundings, because you're operating [...]
The criminal justice system in the United States utilizes two types of juries – trial juries and grand juries. Many people are familiar with trial juries, either through their own participation or from the depiction on popular TV programs. A grand jury and a trial jury consist of randomly selected U.S. citizens, given the great responsibility to hear and consider evidence and arrive at a binding legal decision. However, there are certain distinct differences between the [...]
Remote working, also called telecommuting, has exploded in popularity in recent years. Many companies – large and small – are allowing their employees to work remotely from home, either full-time or part-time. Workers’ compensation laws in Tennessee cover employees who work remotely and suffer an injury on-the-job. If you have sustained an injury as a telecommuter, you are likely eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. However, as a remote employee, you must be able to prove the [...]
What exactly is an arraignment? An arraignment is generally the first step in the criminal process. Sometimes you'll hear it referred to as an initial appearance. It is where you're brought before a neutral, detached magistrate and apprised of your Constitutional rights. That is the right to remain silent and the right to have counsel of your choice, and/or counsel appointed for you. When we talk about counsel, we're talking about folks like me, T. [...]
The dangerous effects of e-cigs have been underreported and misjudged until recently. However, this is starting to change. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recently published information indicating that the use of these devices resulted in more than 2,000 hospitalizations associated with burn and explosion injuries from 2015 to 2017. In 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration published a consumer warning about the extreme dangers of exploding vape pens, although these occurrences are rare. The [...]
Traditionally, law enforcement officials were the only individuals who had access to breathalyzer devices that are supposed to measure a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC). However, these devices are now available to anyone. Although some degree of accuracy may be achieved with these DIY breathalyzers, there also serious questions as to the reliability of the readings they can produce. In addition, there are other potential negative consequences of relying on these devices to keep you out [...]
Texting or distracted driving can lead to accidents. It can also to lead to liability, in particular if you're using any type of a mobile device – you can call it texting, you can call it Facebook, you can call it Snapchat, Instagram – however you use that device, if it distracts your ability to maintain a lookout in the direction in which you are driving then you're likely going to have a problem. Also [...]
So your 18-year-old son got a simple possession of marijuana charge. It's anything but simple. Marijuana in the state of Tennessee is illegal. We're not the "just say no" police; we're the reality folks that help you in this time of need. A marijuana charge has ramifications outside of the criminal system, including but not limited to an effect on an ability to get student loans, and to qualify for financial aid packages in the [...]
