Criminal Defense

Even After the Fines and License Suspension, You’re Not Done Paying In the past we have discussed the different penalties (both criminal penalties and the driver’s license suspension) for a DWI conviction. There are four distinct levels or “degrees” to a DWI charge in Minnesota which you can read about at the links below: Fourth Degree DWI Penalties in...

St. Paul DUI & DWI Defense Attorney With the holiday season upon us, there are two things we can count on: parties where drinks will be flowing freely, and increased DWI enforcement.  If you find yourself pulled over after having a few drinks and are arrested for DWI, talk to the St. Paul attorneys at Arechigo & Stokka in a free...

Vehicle Searches Incident to Arrest As previously discussed, police officers need a search warrant anytime they want to search a motor vehicle. Warrantless vehicle searches in Minnesota are presumed to be unconstitutional. However, there are several exceptions to this rule. One exception is known as the search incident to arrest exception. In 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court Established a...

Wondering About a DWI on an Electric Scooter? Vodka tonic with a lime….scooter?  If you live or work in downtown Minneapolis or St. Paul, you’ve likely seen the Lime scooters or Bird scooters. They started popping up a couple of months ago.  The Lime and Bird scooters have become popular offering quick, easy mobility throughout downtown. Easily accessed by...

In order to lawfully stop a motor vehicle in Minnesota, a police officer must have reasonable suspicion that a crime has been or is being committed. This rule of law is taken from the Minnesota Supreme Court’s decision in State v. Pike. The police officer must be able to point to and articulate specific facts that support a reasonable suspicion...

The Court of Appeals just declared the Minnesota DWI Refusal law unconstitutional. In State v. Trahan, the Court explained that charging a motorist with refusing to submit to a blood draw for purposes of testing alcohol concentration is unconstitutional if the police did not have a search warrant.  This issue had sort of been addressed by the Court in recent years,...

Are Public Tweets Free Speech Protected By The First Amendment? This is the issue that we will take up in front of the Minnesota Supreme Court later this year. Our client has been charged and convicted of the criminal offenses of Stalking and Harassment for posting a series of public tweets mentioning another Twitter user.  We previously argued the charges...

Minnesota Supreme Court Finally Answers Questions Whether Police Can Force You to Unlock Your Phone with Fingerprint We’ve previously addressed this issue here. The Minnesota Supreme Court has finally chimed in and appears to have settled the debate. In State v. Diamond, the Minnesota Supreme Court sided with the State and held that police can force a suspect to provide a fingerprint...

A person convicted of First Degree Manslaughter in Minneapolis faces up to 15 years in prison. Several different circumstances can lead to a charge of First Degree Manslaughter. Probably the most common set of circumstances that will result in a First Degree Manslaughter charge is what’s known as the “heat of passion” killing. This occurs when one person causes the...

The Duluth police officer who assaulted a man in a wheelchair at a detox center has been released from the police force.  Former officer Richard Jouppi has also been charged with one count of Fifth Degree Assault and one count of Disorderly Conduct.  Both charges are misdemeanors and carry a maximum possible punishment of up to 90 days in...