Birmingham Criminal Defense Blog : Birmingham DUI & Criminal Defense Lawyer & Attorney : Eversole Law Firm : Criminal and DUI Defense : Serving Birmingham, Montgomery, Alabama

Times are tough and it's not surprising that some people are resorting to pretty crimes to make ends meet. As an Alabama criminal defense attorney, I have the skills to represent individuals caught in the legal system as a result of alleged illegal activities. Whether you live in Montgomery, Tuscaloosa, Decatur, Gadsden, or Opelika, local law enforcement has little tolerance for crimes of all types.

From speeding tickets and minor vandalism to sex crimes and felonious assault, courts from Huntsville to Mobile are seeing more and more criminal cases. The number of persons going before criminal court judges will likely increase in the future thanks to new legislation being pushed by local politicians.

According to reports, Alabama officials are looking to increase the penalties for gang-related crimes, such as graffiti painting. Although not as serious as other crimes, such as grand larceny, child pornography and criminal sexual behavior, graffiti painting has become a highly visible act that authorities apparently want to wipe out.

Reportedly, local legislators are working on a bill that will provide specific penalties for gang-related activities, including harsher punishment for so-called vandals who paint graffiti.

At the time of the news article, Alabama Senator Roger Bedford of Russellville and Representative Johnny Mack Morrow of Red Bay, were poised to introduce the Alabama Streetgang Act, brought about due to the frequent instances of graffiti painting in Russellville, AL.

Alabama does not have specific penalties related to gang activity. The proposed law would deem it a criminal offense to participate in an organized group of criminals or assist such groups. The law is supposed to boost the punishment for graffiti, which gangs reportedly use to mark their territory, according to law enforcement agencies.

Over the last several months, groups identified as the "South Side 13," "Latin Kings," "18th Street" and "13th Street" have spray-painted various structures around the city, including sports parks, business establishments and billboards.

In one instance, police arrested four juveniles found coming out of an alley on Washington Street near a graffiti painted hardware store. According to Russellville police, the four were carrying bags containing spray-paint cans and also had paint on their hands and clothing.

Although the four youths allegedly admitted having painted graffiti on the local business, news reports indicate that police officials remain frustration that current laws would not allow them to made examples out of those four kids.

Based on news articles, the proposed law would recognize four new punishable offenses:

1) Graffiti damage of more than $2,500 would be a Class B felony
2) Graffiti damage between $500 and $2,500 would be a Class C felony
3) Graffiti damage less than $500 would be a misdemeanor
4) Possession and distribution of graffiti tools would be a Class A misdemeanor

Officials want stiffer graffiti punishment, TimesDaily.com, January 23, 2010

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As a Birmingham criminal defense lawyer, I know that a percentage of people arrested for various non-violent crimes were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. In the eyes of law enforcement, however, there is no justification for breaking any Alabama law. But as a defense lawyer for individuals who have been accused of crimes, I know that a person’s motivations and actions can often fall into a gray area. This is why we have trials that allow defendants a chance to explain themselves.

Regardless of where you live or work -- Montgomery, Tuscaloosa, Auburn or Prichard, or anywhere across the state for that matter -- illegal gambling can and does lure many otherwise law abiding folks, which then makes a possible arrest and conviction something that can adversely impact a person’s life. Not long ago, Alabama’s Department of Public Safety (DPS) announced a number of raids on and continuing investigations of gambling dens in Macon and Houston counties.

According to reports, DPS and the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board took part in law enforcement operations at VictoryLand and Country Crossing, and has ongoing operations in these areas.

Part of the Governor's Task Force on Illegal Gambling, DPS officials say that the conducting of these raids on other law enforcement operations are usually held without notice, which is standard protocol. Usually police and other agencies will perform early-morning raids of suspected illicit gambling locations, catching the operators and their clients in the act.

The element of surprise is particularly important, according to police, because any evidence found as a result can contribute to the prosecution of other more serious crimes, such as theft, fraud, financial and tax crimes, not to mention public corruption.

Editorial: Ala. Dept of Public Safety & Gaming Raids, WSFA.com, February 02, 2010

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Local police and other Alabama law enforcement agencies are active on a daily basis pursuing individuals from Huntsville, Mobile, Bessemer and Tuscaloosa (among other cities) who are accused or suspected of criminal sexually behavior. Sex-based crimes are one of the more heavily prosecuted areas of criminal justice in Alabama and around the country.

As a Birmingham criminal defense lawyer, my goal is to provide an aggressive defense for each of my clients, many of whom profess their innocence outwardly. Fortunately, our system of laws provides every individual the opportunity to confront his or her accusers and to be considered innocent until proven guilty by a jury of their peers. This is applies to every kind of alleged crime, be it drug possession, grand larceny, sexual abuse or white collar criminal behavior.

A resident of Whistler, Alabama, who was convicted of attempting to have sex with a nine-year-old boy, successfully persuaded an appeals court recently to throw out two of three charges against him. According to reports, although the appeals court threw out two of the charges, that fact will not significantly reduce the man’s life prison sentence.

News reports indicate that Michael Ryan South was sentenced in 2008 to life in prison plus 10 years by a U.S. District Court judge. To make things worse for South, there is no parole in the federal system.

The recent appeal of South’s conviction resulted in the court throwing out his conviction on the second count of the indictment -- a charge of traveling with the intent to engage in a sexual act with a juvenile -- on grounds that it was same offense alleged in the first count, namely traveling with intent to engage in aggravated sexual abuse.

According to reports, the appellate judges in the recent appeals case allowed the man’s conviction on the first count to stand. The appeals court rejected a constitutional challenge to the conviction in which the man’s attorney argued that a life-without-parole sentence amounted to "cruel and unusual punishment."

Federal Court Digest: Sex offender sees 2 charges dropped, AL,com, February 15, 2010

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Due apparently to a lack of information sharing between Alabama and federal law enforcement authorities, hundreds if not thousands of people who are barred by law from buying hand guns, rifles and shotguns may have done so with scarcely a problem. According to a recent news report, Alabama failed to report thousands of individuals who are barred from firearms possession to the federal government. This situation could have allowed persons living in cities such as Montgomery, Tuscaloosa, Decatur and Prattville to buy firearms contrary to that allowed by law.

As a Birmingham criminal defense lawyer, I help many people across Alabama who have been accused of a crime. Not all of these individuals are guilty, and all are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. This latest news article points up the confusion that is sometimes caused by the lack of communication between state and federal agencies.

According to reports, Federal authorities and gun control advocates believe that literally  thousands of potentially unstable mental patients who have been released from state institutions now have easy access to guns because of Alabama's narrowly defined reporting law.

In one instance, a former West Point graduate who served 18 years in the U.S. Army walked into a local Bass Pro Shop and bought a shotgun, pistol and rifle. Police reports indicate that the instant background check run by store personnel in Spanish Fort failed to flag the customer as a person barred from buying a gun. The reason for this, say law enforcement authorities, is due to the fact that Alabama reports just a small fraction of mental health commitments to a national database.

The 42-year-old military veteran, David Otto Gluth, Jr., was previously treated for post-traumatic stress disorder at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Additionally, a psychiatrist who treated him at the AltaPointe Health System in Mobile, AL, stated that Gluth might also suffer from bipolar disorder with psychotic features and other problems. In 2008, he was reportedly involuntarily committed to Searcy Hospital in Mount Vernon, which made him ineligible under federal law to buy or own a gun.

Police were made aware of the potentially mentally unstable individual after he allegedly got into an argument with another customer in the store, talking about his needing a steady hand to shoot someone. A spokesman for the tore said he was confident that the company followed the law.

According to gun control advocates, if a store employee observes strange and threatening behavior from a customer it is a good indication that the gun should not be sold. This was apparently borne when Fairhope police responded to complaints of an armed man walking around the Rock Creek subdivision. They arrested Gluth and booked him on a disorderly conduct charge.

Gun loophole: Alabama fails to report thousands who are barred from firearms possession, AL.com, January 17, 2010

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As a Birmingham criminal defense attorney, I have seen a wide of criminal indictments for crimes ranging from drug manufacturing and computer fraud to assault and murder. If there is one thing I am certain of, that is every citizen’s right to a fair criminal trail and to be considered innocent until proven guilty.

Just last month, two men from Lauderdale County, AL, were charged with extorting money from individuals in northern Alabama. According to news articles, the two posed on numerous occasions as private investigators using their false personas as a way to get money from their alleged victims.

The two men are reportedly both from Florence, Alabama. According to reports, 44-year-old Mark Douglas Wilson and 47-year-old Gregory Jones Harrison were charged with second-degree extortion by law enforcement authorities -- this is a Class C felony and punishable by up to 10 years in prison following a conviction. The recent arrests came following allegations against the two and a subsequent probe by the Alabama Bureau of Investigation.

Officials at the ABI allege that Harrison and Wilson presented themselves as private investigators working under contract with the ABI to conduct investigations into criminal activities. The two men are accused of attempting to extort large sums of money from the various individuals they had targeted.

According to information provided by the ABI, the suspects apparently explained to the victims that their names were included on a list of persons involved in criminal activity and that they would be arrested in an upcoming roundup by law enforcement. The extortion came in the form of promises to remove those person’s names from the fictitious list in exchange for certain payments.

Investigation into the alleged extortion arrangement commenced after the ABI was contacted by a local businessman who said he had been approached by Harrison and Wilson. The investigation reportedly lasted a little more than one week. Following the arrest the two suspects were placed in the Lauderdale County Detention Center until they were released on bail of $1,000 each.

Two local men charged with extortion, TimesDaily.com, January 23, 2010

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