There is one simple rule to remember when questioned by the police: say nothing without legal counsel present.  No matter what a detective or patrolman tells a suspect, the Fifth Amendment is in place to protect criminal defendants from having to testify if doing so might incriminate them.  It also covers those interviews leading up […]

In Minnesota, a criminal proceeding usually has three phases: the arraignment, omnibus/pretrial, and trial phases. I’ve written about the first two phases, so here is a brief summary of how a criminal action, such as a DWI, assault, theft, or drug charge, might resolve if the parties cannot reach a plea agreement or if the […]