Today’s smartphones, GPS systems and other technology have certainly made it easier to find information and communicate while on the go. However, these gadgets have also added greatly to the growing epidemic of distracted driving, one of the leading causes of auto accidents in this country. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), a U.S. federal agency that investigates and reports on air and vehicle accidents, is making several efforts to curb inattentive driving, including recommending a complete federal ban on cell phone use while driving. The board is also hosting a one-day, open-to-the-public attentive driving forum titled, Attentive Driving: Countermeasures for Distraction, on March 27, 2012 in Washington, D.C.

The forum will cover a wide range of distracted driving, including:

• The wide range of distractions drivers face on the road
• The attitudes and behaviors behind inattentive driving
• Current and proposed distracting driving laws and enforcement
• Counteracting inattentive driving with technology and design

Expert panelists will include safety advocacy groups, auto makers, law enforcement, government and the research community. The forum will also feature American Idol winner Jordin Sparks and professional car driver Andy Pilgrim, both vocal advocates for distracted driving reform. For more information, The NTSB has posted a complete event agenda on its website.

Starting at 8:30 a.m. EST, the forum will take place at the NTSB Conference Center in Washington, D.C. and will be streamed live via webcast. The webcast will be available on the NTSB website for viewing a few days after the forum.

The personal injury attorneys of Skousen, Gulbrandsen & Patience are here to help if you or your loved ones have been injured in an auto accident. For a free legal consultation, please contact us.

Disclaimer: The materials available at this website are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. Use and access to this website or any of the links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship. The opinions expressed at or through this site are the opinions of the individual author and may not reflect the opinions of the firm or any individual attorney.

For Arizona residents, a conviction for driving under the influence (DUI) means mandatory jail time. Whether it’s your first offense or you’ve been charged with DUI before, your best defense is to hire an experienced Arizona DUI attorney. Are you not convinced that you really need a lawyer to represent you? Consider the reasons that it’s very important to have a DUI attorney at your side:

• Your DUI case is likely to have a better outcome with an attorney representing you

Dealing with an Arizona DUI charge is a more complicated process than you might imagine, and the penalties for a conviction can be severe. In addition to paying sizable fines, you will be facing suspension of your driver’s license and jail time. Hiring an attorney who knows the law and how it’s enforced increases the chances of winning your case or reducing the severity of the charges. Don’t let courtroom inexperience hurt you. Hire a professional to represent you instead.

• Previous DUI charges make your defense even more difficult and complicated

Are you a repeat DUI offender? If you have been charged in the past with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, you definitely need a DUI attorney. Having a previous DUI conviction on your record can affect your current case. Let an experienced DUI attorney defend you.

• Fighting for dismissal or acquittal of a mistaken DUI charge requires legal expertise

Did you know that something as innocent as rinsing your mouth with Listerine can affect your measure blood alcohol content? What if the officer who cited you for DUI did not rightfully disclose your BAC to you? A DUI attorney can defend your rights when you’ve been falsely charged.

So you know you need a good DUI defense attorney, but where do you start? How do you know you’re getting the best representation for your case? The experienced legal professionals at Skousen, Gulbrandsen & Patience, PLC will fight to reduce or dismiss even the most serious DUI charges. To schedule a consultation, call 800-722-0765.

If you or a family member ever become the unfortunate victim of a violent crime, you’ll want to see the person or persons who committed the crime suffer the consequences of their actions. While the law entitles the accused to be represented by a competent criminal defense lawyer, you’ll be hoping that the prosecuting attorney will get justice on behalf of you or your loved one. But even if the perpetrator of a violent crime is sentenced to a lengthy jail term, the victim often has practical needs that are not adequately addressed by the criminal justice system.

As a violent crime victim, you might incur large medical bills for treatment of injuries inflicted by your assailant. You might be unable to work and earn income for a period of time, or perhaps even be disabled permanently by the violent actions of the perpetrator. Or you could even lose a family member – and their vital financial contribution to your household – to a homicide. Fortunately, a personal injury lawyer may be able to help you win compensation for your expenses and lost income, and even for the pain and suffering you experienced at the hands of a violent criminal. An attorney can even help you file a wrongful death lawsuit against someone who committed murder or manslaughter against one of your parents or children.

You may ask how it’s possible for the perpetrator of a crime to be punished twice for his or her actions – once by a criminal trial resulting in imprisonment, and then again by a lawsuit requiring monetary compensation to be paid. Isn’t that called “double jeopardy,” which, as we all learned in high-school civics, is unconstitutional? The answer to that question is definitely “no.” In Arizona, as in all states, there are two kinds of law: criminal law and civil law. Criminal law is intended to protect society at large by punishing people who break the law and by deterring others from doing the same. But Arizona civil law, which deals with disputes between citizens, is completely separate. The bottom line is that nothing prevents convicted criminals from being sued under civil law for the loss and suffering they’ve caused.

So separate are criminal law and civil law that even an accused person who is found not guilty of a crime can sometimes be successfully sued in civil court for the consequences of their alleged criminal actions. The most famous example of this in memory is the case of O.J. Simpson, who was acquitted of murder charges but later lost a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the families of the deceased. Although that case occurred in California, and such a sequence of events is by no means common anywhere, theoretically the same thing could occur in Arizona or any other state. The point is that the results of a criminal case have no bearing on a possible subsequent lawsuit based on the same alleged actions and events.

While the reality is that perpetrators of crimes often have little in the way of income or assets with which to pay compensation, crime victims should consult an attorney to explore the possibility of filing a lawsuit to recover damages they’ve suffered. The experienced attorneys at Skousen, Gulbrandsen & Patience, PLC, can handle your personal injury or wrongful death case, whether it arises from criminal action, non-criminal action or negligence on the part of another person. Contact us at (480) 648-0924 for a free consultation about your case.

Driving under the influence, commonly known as DUI, is a serious offense in Arizona. A DUI charge or conviction can cause your license to be suspended and your vehicle to be impounded. Worse than that, DUI can land you in jail and can put you in dire need of an Arizona DUI lawyer.

Many people feel as if a DUI arrest is something that could never happen to them. People often convince themselves that they aren’t that impaired by alcohol, and continue to drive after having one drink too many. Other Arizonans are more conscientious and try to find alternatives to operating their car or truck while intoxicated. That approach sounds sensible and responsible, so you may be shocked to learn that even some “safe” alternatives to drunk driving can lead to a DUI arrest. How? Read on.

Operating other vehicles, motorized, non-motorized – and hay-powered

Again, DUI stands for driving under the influence, and that can mean driving any motorized vehicle or, in some cases, using other modes of transportation that aren’t motorized at all. Crazy as it sounds, people have been charged with DUI for operating lawnmowers and even electric wheelchairs while impaired. In a few cases, people riding bicycles or even horses under the influence have been charged with DUI.

Behind the wheel – and “in control”

If you realize that you’re too impaired to drive, pulling over to the side of the road is the safe thing to do, right? Well, pulling over certainly may save you from causing an accident resulting in the serious injury or death of another driver, or even yourself. But getting off the road might not save you from a DUI charge if you’re still sitting behind the wheel of your vehicle. Arizona criminal lawyers have worked many a DUI case where the arrestee was charged for being under the influence while simply sitting behind the steering wheel of a parked, non-running car. Technically, the police can assert that a person in such a situation is still “in control” of the motor vehicle in violation of the law. And it’s worth pointing out that full Arizona statute actually makes it “unlawful for a person to drive or be in actual physical control of a vehicle” while under the influence (emphasis added). So despite the fact that we use the common shorthand expressions “DUI” and “driving under the influence,” you really don’t even have to be driving to be charged with DUI after all!

As an impaired passenger

Believe it or not, you may even need to think twice before letting a more sober friend or designated driver transport you home after a night of drinking. If you’re under the influence while riding as a passenger in a car that belongs to you, the police may still deem you as being legally “in control” of the vehicle. Granted, being cited for DUI in this situation is rare, and competent criminal DUI lawyers can usually get such a charge dismissed, but it does happen. Experienced Phoenix DUI attorneys have also encountered cases where a drunken passenger has grabbed the steering wheel, caused a crash, and was then booked on a charge of DUI.

The Mesa law firm of Skousen, Gulbrandsen & Patience, PLC has some of the best Arizona criminal DUI lawyers in the Valley. They can help you fight an unfair or particularly harsh DUI charge. We also have some of the best personal injury attorneys and car accident lawyers in the Phoenix metro area. Skousen, Gulbrandsen & Patience has been serving central Arizona for more than 50 years. Give us a call today at 480-833-8800 or 800-501-2782 to consult with one of our knowledgeable attorneys about your case.

Disclaimer: The materials available at this website are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. Use and access to this website or any of the links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship. The opinions expressed at or through this site are the opinions of the individual author and may not reflect the opinions of the firm or any individual attorney.

Every driver dreads seeing flashing police lights in his or her rear-view mirror. A common first reaction, especially for a driver who doesn’t think that he or she has committed any violation of the law, is that the officer must be targeting another vehicle. However, a prompt and proper response is essential if you find yourself being tailed by a police car with its lights blazing. Your initial reaction to the situation could play a big part in determining whether you are let off with a warning, issued a citation or even wind up in trouble serious enough to require the services of a traffic attorney or criminal DUI lawyer.

It’s important to remember that from a police officer’s point of view, every traffic stop has the potential to turn into a deadly situation. No matter how law-abiding you may be, the officer doesn’t know anything about you and must make judgments based solely on your observed behavior and demeanor. Police can be “on edge” during a traffic stop, and every indication of compliance you show puts the officer at ease, which may then positively affect his or her subsequent handling of the encounter.

Starting off a traffic stop right means pulling over promptly, as soon as you see the police lights. Begin by slowing down immediately, below the posted speed limit, and activating your right turn indicator. That way, you’ve acknowledged the officer and literally signaled your intent to comply. The officer will then be assured that you don’t intend to flee.

After signaling, pull off the road completely in the first place in which it’s safe to do so. (In theory, an officer will not activate the red or blue flashing lights unless he or she has already determined that you’re in a spot where pulling over safely is possible.) Besides putting the officer further at ease, pulling over promptly has an advantage for you as well. By being near the spot where the officer may allege that you’ve committed a violation, you have a better chance to assess the allegation and look for such mitigating factors as obstructed views of signs or of other traffic.

Pull off to the right as far as possible. The officer needs room to safely approach the driver’s side of the vehicle and speak to you through the window. A major worry of police officers during traffic stops is being struck by another vehicle, which is a far too common occurrence. One study by the Ford Motor Company showed that such police pedestrian deaths account for 9 percent of officer fatalities.

If you’re driving on a busy road with inadequate room on the shoulder, it’s OK to pull off on the first side street available. Just be sure to go far enough down the street to allow room for the police officer to pull his vehicle in behind you. If you must pull into a parking lot, pull alongside the curb of the lot, rather than pulling into a parking space. To afford themselves maximum safety, officers are trained to park their vehicles in a certain position relative to the vehicles they’re stopping. If you’re in a parking space, chances are that the officer will be forced to park his or her vehicle in a way that will impede traffic flow in the parking lot – again, not a situation that will put the officer in the best mood.

Following these rules will at least set the stage for a more positive encounter with law enforcement. If you do find yourself in need of legal representation as a result of a traffic stop, or if you are involved in a traffic accident, contact The Law Offices of Skousen, Gulbrandsen & Patience PLC at 480-833-8800 or 800-501-2782. We’ll fight for your rights and for the best possible outcome to your case.

Disclaimer:

The materials available at this website are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. Use and access to this website or any of the links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship. The opinions expressed at or through this site are the opinions of the individual author and may not reflect the opinions of the firm or any individual attorney.

Arizona has a reputation for having some of the strictest DUI laws in the country. However, in the last year, the Arizona legislature has reduced some of the penalties for DUI convictions. Here are some of the major recent changes to Arizona drunk driving law:

Ignition-Interlock Devices - In Arizona, DUI convicts are required to install ignition-interlock devices, mechanisms that prevent vehicles from starting if a breath simple indicates intoxication. Recent changes in the the law have reduced the time requirement for these devices from one year to six months if convicts complete an education program and calibrate the device monthly with the Department of Motor Vehicles.

Work Release - While serving their jail sentence, first- and second-time DUI offenders will be able to leave jail for up to 12 hours per day for school or work.

Home Detention - Arizona courts now have more license to sentence those convicted of a DUI to home detention with electronic ankle bracelets rather than jail time.

Jury trials - With this year’s changes, most DUI suspects have lost the right to a jury trial. However, the right will remain in cases involving extreme, super-extreme or aggravated DUIs.

Even with a reduction in penalties, an Arizona DUI conviction can carry very serious legal consequences, including thousands of dollars in fines, alcohol counseling and jail time. A Phoenix DUI lawyer helps defend your rights to keep repercussions to a minimum. If you’ve been arrested for a DUI, contact us at Skousen, Gulbrandsen & Patience.