First-time convicted impaired drivers who used to face a license suspension of 12 months, may soon be back on the road in three months.  However, to be eligible for the shortened suspension, they must first plead guilty.

They must also agree to install an ignition interlock or breath alcohol ignition interlock device in their vehicle for nine months. The breath-testing devices require the driver to provide a breath sample. The vehicle will not start if the driver’s blood alcohol concentration is over .02.

While Ottawa criminal defence lawyers support the reduction of the penalty for first time offenders and support the law’s focus on rehabilitation, we are concerned that providing a legislated incentive for a guilty plea will encourage innocent people to plead rather than face the risk of a trial.

The new regulation does not actually come into effect until early August, but first-time impaired drivers already in the criminal system are able to plead guilty and defer sentencing and the finding of guilt until after August 3.

After November 1 of this year, anyone facing charges of impaired driving will have to plead within 90 days of the charge in order to avail themselves of the new incentive.

According to a Crown memorandum, there will likely be large number of people who opt to employ the new provision because 80 per cent of individuals charged with drunk driving are first-time offenders

Have you been charged with impaired driving? Criminal defence lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth can give you the legal advice you need and effectively represent you. Do not plead guilty to impaired driving, or over 80, without getting legal advice first. Contact a criminal defence lawyer at Auger Hollingsworth at 613-233-4529 or at info@ottawalawfirm.ca Visit us online at: www.criminaldefenceottawa.ca

The police can seize a vehicle under the following circumstances:

• When an arrest is made under s. 217(4) of the Highway Traffic Act;
• When the vehicle is abandoned;
• When the vehicle is unplated;
• When the driver has received a license suspension;
• Where the driver has been driving with a suspended license; or
• Where the vehicle is blocking traffic or snow.

In some cases, if your vehicle has been seized you will need to bring an application to court to have the vehicle released.  An Ontario criminal defence lawyer can assist you with this process.

In Canada, a police officer has the power to arrest a person if the police officer has reasonable grounds to believe that the person has committed a criminal offence.   The arresting police officer may or may not place handcuffs on the person under arrest.

Suspicious circumstances alone are not reasonable grounds to arrest a person. The officer must have enough facts or evidence available that a reasonable person would  believe that the suspect has committed or is about to commit an offence.

A reasonable person placed in the position of the officer must be able to conclude that there were indeed reasonable and probable grounds for the arrest.  However, at the same time, the police do not need to show a strong case that would result in a conviction in order to effect an arrest.

Take Note:

A person placed under arrest by the police should not challenge the grounds for the arrest. A person who challenges or resists arrest may face further criminal offences.  Whether or not the arrest was lawful should be discussed with an experienced criminal defence lawyer after the fact when mounting a defence.  You are very unlikely to talk the police out of arresting you.  However, there is a high probability that you will make matters worse.

Not all persons charged with criminal offences are physically arrested by the police. For example, the police may simply serve the accused person with an Appearance Notice.  This does not require an arrest or a trip to the police station.

Section 501 of the Criminal Code provides that an Appearance Notice must state: the name of the accused, the criminal charge and the time, date and place where the accused must attend court.

In addition, the Appearance Notice can require the accused to attend a location on a certain date for fingerprinting. The accused must attend on such a date for fingerprinting and failure to do so can result in additional criminal charges.

If the accused does not attend the court appearance, the court can issue a warrant for arrest and the police may then arrest the person and bring them to court in custody.

If you have been arrested, or if you have received an Appearance Notice, you should immediately take steps to retain an experienced criminal defence lawyer.  The propriety of your arrest is one of the areas the lawyer will explore in advancing your defence to the criminal charges against you.

In our Ontario criminal defence practice often even if the case is not “white collar” itself, our client will be  white collar in background.   A relatively minor domestic assault or drug charge, for example, brought against a physician or dentist might be as life-altering to his/her reputation and practice as tax evasion charges would be.  Quite frankly, many professionals face the possibility of losing their professional licenses if convicted of certain criminal offences. Other business people face the prospect of failing background checks.  In any of these cases, a full time, experienced criminal defence lawyer is required to achieve the best result.

Our criminal practice focuses most of its lawyer hours to the defence of major crimes and large criminal cases.  White collar criminal defence is our primary practice area.   How can that be?  Well, the most serious criminal cases– for which the criminally accused has the resources to retain a seriously aggressive criminal defence lawyer—are white collar criminal cases.

Our white collar criminal defence practice focuses primarily on the following criminal charges: tax evasion, accounting fraud, investment fraud, deceptive trade practices, securities violations, insider trading,  business crimes, organized crimes, gambling organizations, internet crimes, computer crime, bank fraud, counterfeiting, forgery, racketeering, land fraud, real estate scams, Nigerian scams, credit card fraud and more.

If you would like to learn more about how we can help you or a loved one following a a serious criminal charge, use our contact us box to request a confidential consultation with Richard Auger.

Ottawa assault lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth defend many clients charged with assault, spousal / domestic assault, assault causing bodily harm, aggravated assault and assault with a weapon.

Call an Ottawa assault lawyer at 613-233-4529 or email info@ottawalawfirm.ca so we can use our experience to help you.

This is Serious!

Here are the maximum sentences that can be imposed if you are convicted of assault:

Assault-  imprisonment up to five years

Assault causing bodily harm- imprisonment up to ten years

Assault with a weapon –imprisonment up to ten years

Aggravated assault – imprisonment up to fourteen years

There is a lot at stake!

If you are convicted, you could have problems crossing the U.S. border, obtaining a professional license (such as a real estate agent or mortgage broker) and have other job problems.

How can an Ottawa Defence Lawyer help?

• An Ottawa defence lawyer will study the Crown brief (the evidence they collect from the police).
• An Ottawa defence lawyer will identify who the Crown witnesses are and investigate their backgrounds.  In many cases we engage private investigators with great success.
• An Ottawa defence lawyer will interview witnesses you suggest or who we uncover who may provide a different perspective on the Crown’s version of events.
• An Ottawa defence lawyer knows how to review the disclosure (the Crown’s evidence, primarily from the police) to detect if your Charter rights were violated during the process leading up to your arrest.
• For example, if you gave a statement to police that the Crown wants to use against you, your Ottawa defence lawyer will scrutinize how that statement was obtained to ensure your rights were not violated.  If your rights were violated, the Crown may not be able to use your statement against you.
• At Auger Hollingsworth, our criminal defence lawyers ae prepared to take an aggressive stand during the pretrial stage to help you avoid the expense and worry of a trial by pressing the Crown to withdraw charges where they have not reasonable prospect of conviction.

What Should You Do NOW?

• DO NOT tell your family and friends the “whole story” leading to your arrest.  Keep the details to yourself and your Ottawa criminal lawyer.
• DO make notes of what happened leading up to your arrest and provide them to your Ottawa defence lawyer.  Make these notes asap after you are released from the police station while the events are still fresh.
• Do follow your Ottawa criminal lawyer’s advice.  If your lawyer wants you to go for anger management, drug or alcohol assessment or other psychological investigations, DO IT.  Your efforts can only help you.
• DO comply with any conditions of release imposed by the police carefully.  Your criminal defence lawyer’s bargaining power with the Crown decreases significantly if you are charged with a breach of your terms of release.
• DO stay clear of the person who you are alleged to have assaulted.  If it is essential that you communicate with the other person, your defence lawyer can take steps to get permission.

If you are looking for a criminal defence lawyer to help you with your charges of assault, contact a Ottawa Criminal Defence Lawyer at 613 233-4529 or by emailing info@ottawalawfirm.ca.

Richard represented a physician charged with sexual assault. He cross-examined the complainant alleging sexual assault, which resulted in the charges being withdrawn at the end of the preliminary hearing. Location: Pembroke, Ontario.

Is possession of marijuana legal?

No. Despite what you may have heard, possession of marijuana and hashish are still offences.

Could I go to jail if convicted of a drug charge?

When your criminal defence lawyer meets you,  we will discuss possible outcome of your particular case. All drug offences carry a possible jail sentence. Here are some examples:

Trafficking in marijuana or hashish or possession for the purpose of trafficking (3 kgs. or more)

Life Imprisonment

Trafficking in cocaine or heroin or possession for the purpose of trafficking

Life Imprisonment

Trafficking in amphetamines, LSD, mescaline, or psilocybin or possession for the purpose of trafficking

10 years

Trafficking in barbituates or anabolic steroids or possession for the purpose of trafficking

3 years

Importing, exporting heroin, cocaine, marijuana or hashish

Life Imprisonment

Importing, exporting amphetamines, LSD, mescaline, or psilocybin

10 years

Cultivation of marijuana

7 years

Production of cocaine, heroine, or hashish

Life Imprisonment

Production of amphetamines, LSD, mescaline, or psilocybin

10 years

Production of barbituates or anabolic steroids

3 years

These charges are serious. Get a criminal lawyer who know how to help you.

If I was caught with drugs in my pocket. Could there be a defence?

Your Ottawa criminal defence lawyer from Auger Hollingsworth can help you assess your case.  It is true that physical evidence is normally the most damaging in a drug case, including drugs seized in the arrest, or the results of tests conducted by law enforcement.

Your criminal defence lawyer at  Auger Hollingsworth can defend against your drug charges by challenging the validity of the physical evidence by reviewing how it was found, seized or tested.

Your criminal defence lawyer will investigate all aspects of a drug arrest to determine whether unlawful search and seizure procedures occurred.

Our lawyers believe that illegal search and seizure is a threat not only to our clients but a threat to the liberty and privacy of all Canadians.

A large amount of cash was seized from my home and it was not mine. How to I retrieve it?

Money and property may be seized by the police at the time of arrest.  There are steps your Ottawa criminal defence lawyer can adopt to assist you regain her property.

The police confiscated my money. How do I get it back?

Your criminal defence lawyer at Auger Hollingsworth will fight to ensure that your property is returned to you following any illegal property seizure.

Someone was growing marijuana in my home. It was not me. However, now everyone in the house was arrested. Is there anything I can do?

Your criminal defence lawyer at Auger Hollingsworth will give you specific advice for your case.  When there is any kind of grow operation in a home, it is not unusual for the authorities to charge everyone who lives there.

You should hire an experienced criminal defence lawyer to defend you. In some situations, the lawyer will be able negotiate a withdrawal of this type charge before trial where it is obvious that the client was not involved.

I have a drug problem. Does that make a difference when dealing with my charges?

A qualified criminal defence lawyer can work with the Crown to minimize penalties, reduce charges or try to negotiate a rehabilitation program instead of other penalties.

Where clients are willing and interested, our criminal defence lawyers have successfully had charges withdrawn where our client has received treatment for addiction.
If you need assistance responding to drug charges in Ottawa, Smiths Falls, Brockville, Pembroke, Petawawa, Cornwall, Hawksbury, L’Orignal or other Eastern Ontario cities, contact the criminal defence lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth.  Call 613 233-4539 or email info@ottawalawfirm.ca.

Reports in mid-August suggest that the government is planning to toughen white-collar crime laws.  Apparently, this move is in response to the concerns arising from recent high-profile fraud schemes that left many with significant financial losses.

Possible measures include mandatory sentences for white-collar criminals and to increase the amount of time actually spent in jail when a custodial sentence is imposed.

Given the current political and economic climates, a person charged with, or being investigated for,  fraud, tax evasion and other related so-called “white collar crimes” would be well advised to seek an experienced criminal defence lawyer as early in the process as follows.

During the first four weeks of roadside spot check program in Eastern Ontario, the provincial police stopped more than 111,000 vehicles, charged 39 people for impaired driving (over 0.08 blood alcohol level) and issued 125 12-hour license suspensions for drivers with a 0.05 blood alcohol level.

Click here to learn more about drinking and driving charges by ordering a free copy of “Fighting Drinking and Driving Charges”.

According to an Ottawa Police News release, a 26 year old man was charged on December 23, 2008 with the use of a stolen credit card.  The Ottawa police arrested the man after an investigation for fraud.

The police allege that two men entered a store a used the credit card but attracted attention of the security personnel.  When the card was used a second time, the men were arrested.  However, only one individual was criminally charged.   The charges were:  Use of a stolen Credit Card, Personation, Possession of Stolen Property and Draw Document without Authority.

If you or someone you know was charged with fraud, contact Auger Hollingsworth for a case evaluation.