7/13/10 Update. More AquaPalooza = more arrests...

Reading the arrest results for this weekend's so-called AquaPalooza , it occurred to me to mention a couple of things that some folks don't know...

First there IS such a thing as boating while intoxicated. I've had people laugh like I'm telling a joke on a couple of occasions that I've mentioned it in a casual setting. But no, I'm serious folks. Furthermore, drinking and boating is actually riskier than DWI from a criminal liability perspective because the police do NOT need a reason to stop a boat. That's right, whenyou're in a boat, the police can demand you stop, board the boat, and conduct an inspection justbecause they feel like it.

APD has announced that this weekend will be no-refusal beginning at 9 p.m. tomorrow, Saturday July 3 and continuing to Sunday July 4 at 5 a.m. During this time, if you are pulled over and investigated for Driving While Intoxicated, if you refuse to take the breath test, the police will get a warrant to have your blood tested.

Take a cab, folks. It's a hell of a lot cheaper than fighting a DWI conviction, even if you ultimately win.

CBS has a new legal drama about criminal defense attorneys coming this fall that looks good. It probably won't last but I'm looking forward to catching a few episodes while it does.

Travis County Assistant District Attorney Stephanie McFarland withheld information showing that a key state witness lied during a 2006 aggravated assault trial. As a result, the conviction that she obtained in the case has been vacated.

This is the second time in 15 months that McFarland has been found to have engaged in this type of prosecutorial misconduct. I'm sure I'm not the only one who will be watching closely to see what District Attorney Rosemary Lemberg does with Ms. McFarland.

Officer:  Officer Joe Chavez.
Agency:  Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission.
AllegedMisconduct:  Sexual assault of a 16 year old, online solicitation of a minor, abuse of official capacity, official oppression.
Disciplinary Action: Unknown.
Other Information:  Indicted by a Bastrop County grand jury.
Source:  AG press release dated 6/1/10.

Officer:  William Deal .
Agency:  Austin Police Department.
Alleged Misconduct:  Theft of an electric razor from HEB.
Disciplinary Action:  Unknown (APD internal investigation ongoing).
Other Information: Deal was arrested in Williamson County on 2/18/10 and released the next day on $1,000 bond.
Source:  This Statesman article.

FROM AUSTIN MUNICIPAL COURT:

Law enforcement agencies from more than 250 agencies across Texas will begin making arrests Saturday, March 6, as part of the Great Texas Warrant Roundup. This major, multi-jurisdictional push kicked off Feb. 19 with the mailing of thousands of notices warning people with outstanding warrants of the impending arrest effort. The last day to clear warrants is Friday, March 5, before the concentrated effort to make arrests begins.

For more information, including online payment instructions, see this Statesman article.

Also worthy of note is that Austin Municipal Court's policy is to not arrest people with active warrants who go there to take care of business.

Criminal defense attorneys and other government watchdog types who use open records requests to obtain information suffered a recent setback. In City of Dallas v. Abbott, the Texas Supreme Court addressed the government's deadline for complying with such requests and gave the government a new loophole.

In the past, the government had a strict 10-day deadline for complying with open records requests. If the request was vague or overly broad, the government could seek clarification but the clock stopped running only until the clarification was provided. Now, however, the government's deadline will be extend by 10 days.

That may not seem like such a big deal but the concern is that government officials may use the loophole to improperlydelay the release of information in time-sensitive situations in order to avoid accountability. Such concerns seem well-founded in light of the government's history in this arena, which is what led to the legislature to impose the strict deadline in the first place.

Lawyer Bill Christian, who has represented the Austin American-Statesman on open records matters, has the following suggestions for avoiding improper delays with open records requests:

• Be as specific as possible so there are no grounds for seeking clarification. Don't ask for "all documents" or "all records" unless it's for a narrow, well-defined category.

• Make specific, narrow and numbered requests so that it's more difficult for the agency to claim that the requests are vague.

• If you know what you are asking for, identify that document specifically as one of the numbered list.

• When a government agency seeks clarification, reply as quickly as possible with a narrowing or clarifying explanation.

Officer:  Sgt. Nedith Torres.
Agency:  Austin Police Department.
Alleged Misconduct:  Sgt. Torres assaulted his wife then lied about it during the subsequent investigation.
Disciplinary Action:  Sgt. Torres was fired in August 2008. He appealed and the arbitrator reversed the firing, despitefinding that the allegations were true. APD filed a lawsuit last Friday to challenge the decision.
Other Information:  As a result of the incident, Sgt. Torres was originally arrested for Assault Family Violence, a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine not to exceed $4,000. He ultimately pled guilty to a reduced charge of Class C Assault, presumably as part of a plea bargain agreement.
Source:  This Statesman article.

APD has announced "No Refusal" Mardi Gras here in Austin this Saturday (2/13/10) and Tuesday (2/16/10) from 9 p.m. on each day to 5 a.m. the following morning. That means that the police will seek blood warrants for people who are stopped and investigated for DWI and refuse to submit to a breath test. For more information see this Statesman article.

2/15/10 Update. 21 people were arrested in the first leg of No-Refusal Mardi Gras. Of those, 7 consented to breath tests and 14 were subjected to blood warrant testing. See this Statesman article for more.  Remember, the second leg is coming up this Tuesday evening.

2/19/10 Update.  20 people were arrested during the Fat Tuesday portion of No-Refusal Mardi Gras. That figure includes 4 voluntary breath tests and 16 blood warrants. See this Statesman article for more.