General

Posted in Drug Possession, General on January 12, 2015

For those that don’t know, DARE stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education and was an anti-drug program created in the 1980’s under the Reagan Administration’s War on Drugs. The program has been taught to elementary and high school students by law enforcement officers since then. You can imagine that the police would seek volunteers from… view more

Posted in DUI, General on January 12, 2015

A Pittsburgh area police officer recently stopped a vehicle after smelling marijuana coming from the car. Imagine the officer’s surprise when he discovered that two of the three occupants in the car were Pittsburgh Steelers running backs. I am sure that the officer would have preferred to see the Steelers star players at Heinz Field… view more

Posted in Felony Drug Delivery / Possession with Intent to Deliver, General on January 12, 2015

I do believe that honesty is the best policy, but there are often situations in the criminal process in which it is better for a person to remain silent, or forgo answering questions, instead of being honest.  A man was recently stopped in Florida after he allegedly cut off an unmarked police car. The man… view more

Posted in Furnishing Alcohol to Minors, General on January 12, 2015

College campuses across Pennsylvania and across the United States are full of underage drinkers and underage drinking parties. While the partying activity is widespread, it is still illegal and not ignored by most police departments. In a recent York County, Pennsylvania incident, a few York College students decided to host a party and possibly make… view more

Posted in False Identification, General on January 12, 2015

By Jason Dunkle on G+ When mentioning False Identification to Law Enforcement, I am not meaning the routine situation in Centre County involving an underage person possessing a fake ID that is being used to buy alcohol. While such offenses are routinely filed by  the State College police as Penn State students and their friends… view more

Posted in General on January 12, 2015

By Jason Dunkle on G+ Both chambers of the Pennsylvania legislature recently passed a proposal to increase the maximum fine permitted for Underage Drinking and Public Drunkenness charges to $1,000.00.  For those that happen to remember the 1980’s  School House Rocks series, the proposal is now a bill that is awaiting the signature of the… view more

Posted in General on January 12, 2015

By Jason Dunkle on G+ As a State College criminal defense attorney, I am frequently asked by friends, family, and DUI clients, whether or not a person suspected of driving under the influence should attempt to perform field sobriety tests. Actually, the first question is whether or not a person is required to perform field… view more

Posted in General on January 12, 2015

By Jason Dunkle on G+ According to an online newspaper article, someone threw a keg from the balcony of a downtown State College 7th floor apartment. Luckily no people were injured, but at least one vehicle was severely damaged. The keg was tossed around  12:55 a.m. on a Saturday morning, and, although most people are in… view more

Posted in General, Recklessly Endangering Another Person on January 12, 2015

By Jason Dunkle on G+ A recent Pennsylvania Superior Court decision considered whether sufficient evidence was presented to support a mechanic’s convictions of Recklessly Endangering Another Person and Involuntary Manslaughter after the mechanic allegedly failed to fix brakes on a van. In the case, captioned Commonwealth v.  Fabian, the mechanic worked for a company that… view more

Posted in General on January 12, 2015

A 46 year old Utah soccer referee recently died after being assaulted by a 17 year old player in a recreational soccer league. The 17 year old disagreed with the referee’s issuance of a yellow car and showed his displeasure by punching  the ref one time in the head. The ref initially complained of being… view more