The Pennsylvania State Police allege that a Mifflintown was involved in an April 26, 2013, DUI accident in Juniata County. This would be a fairly unremarkable event, but for what happened after the accident. The State Police allege that the defendant tried to flee...
State College Criminal Law Blog
What is a Status Based Aggravated Assault?
In Pennsylvania, assaults are divided into two major categories: aggravated assault and simple assault. Generally, simple assault entails infliction of bodily injury, while aggravated assault entails either inflicting or attempting to inflict serious bodily injury....
Pennsylvania Underage Drinking Laws Need Drastic Overhaul with “Drinking License”
As a criminal defense attorney in State College, PA, I have represented countless students from Penn State, Lock Haven and other schools in underage drinking cases. With underage drinking citations in a college town as widespread as the common cold, I cannot help but...
York County Girl Avoids False Reports to Law Enforcement Charge
A 15 year old girl will avoid being charged with "false reports to law enforcement," despite her fabricated report of an attack by four unknown teenage boys on April 9, 2013, in Manchester, York County. The girl reported to Northeastern Regional Police that these...
Flight from State College Drug Bust Causes Car Accident
Humans have had cars for but a brief fragment of our evolution, and our old hunter-gatherer instincts still control our actions when faced with danger. When Stacy Henry was pulled over by Ferguson Township Police On May 2, 2013, he had three choices from the instinct...
DUI and Traffic Stops: What Passengers Need to Know
Reese Witherspoon's recent arrest for disorderly conduct illustrates the need to properly behave when you are a passenger in a vehicle stopped by the police. Obviously, only the driver can be charged with DUI or a traffic violation, but quite frequently, passengers...
Search and Seizure: Beware of the Enemy Within
It's a simple scenario, which happens more often than people realize. A man and a woman live together and are in love. The man enjoys smoking marijuana or using some other drug. Maybe he even grows his own plants or maybe he sells it too. Of course, the woman partakes...
“Postal Pooper” Case Illustrates Intersection of the Mental Health and Criminal Justice Systems
On two separate occasions this year, a man defecated at the Springettsbury Post Office in York County, PA. The first time he defecated in the lobby, while the second time, he defecated on the sidewalk next to the post office. It goes without saying that such behavior...
DUI Can “Happen” to Anyone
DUI is an offense which is not restricted by socio-economic class, ethnicity, age or gender. It can "happen" to anyone who drinks and miscalculates how much he or she had to drink, or those who know they are drunk, but nevertheless decide to take the risk. Usual...
Collateral Consequences for Convictions are Very Harmful for Education Majors
As a criminal defense attorney representing students from Penn State and other schools, I must always consider collateral consequences for convictions when determining the best course of action in a given case. It is never good to be charged with a crime as a college...

