Lawyer Mark Matney of Matney Law PLLC - Newport News Virginia - DUI and Traffic Court Lawyer

Mark Matney

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5 Steps to Succeed With Your New Year's Resolutions

Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com
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Did you set financial goals for the New Year? As we approach the end of the first quarter of 2020 are you on track? Many people use the change of year to start something new. Unfortunately, few follow through. Think of all the new gym memberships and budgets that end up unused as January rolls into February. Here are 5 steps to success:
1. Choose Reasonable Goals: The best first step to accomplishing a new goal is to set a target you can reach within a reasonable period of time. If you are in debt, tackle the smallest one first. If you are starting or building your retirement savings, then set a monthly goal. Setting up an automatic investment plan is a worry-free way to keep you on track.

2. Write Your Goals Down: When you write down what you want to accomplish, you are 200% more likely to achieve it. When it is just a thought, then it is only a wish. Working with a financial coach will help you identify how much money is needed to reach your goals. A good coach will make sure you account for inflation and estimated rates of return.

3. Don’t Judge Yourself Too Severely. There will be ups and downs as you work toward your goal, don’t be discouraged. Maybe you had to use all of your emergency fund savings. Be excited that you had the money available and recommit to your original plan.

4. Focus On How You Will Feel When You Succeed. How will you feel when you become debt free, fully fund your emergency savings, or save enough to have the option to stop working? Imagine crossing the finish line! It will be 100 times better than you think!

5. Reward Yourself Along The Way. Did you pay off your first debt, finish building your emergency account, achieve a milestone in your retirement savings? Congratulate yourself and share with others what you achieved. You will be amazed how you can encourage others.

Mark Matney is a financial and legal services professional who helps families and businesses throughout Hampton Roads to get their money working for them so they can worry less about money and enjoy their lives more. Call him for a free consultation at (757) 703-4556.

DUI Attorney Mark Matney - Attorney Mark Matney - Holcomb Law, PC - Newport News - Williamsburg

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Thanksgiving Preparations

Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com
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Attorney Mark Matney of Newport News, Virginia focus on traffic cases on the Peninsula from Hampton and Newport News to New Kent. During the week before Thanksgiving we were busy helping clients with the following matters:

Speeding 64/45 in York County – amended to defective equipment
Reckless Driving 79/55 in Charles City County – amended to speeding
Reckless Driving in Work Zone in New Kent – amended to speeding
Improper Passing in Williamsburg – dismissed
Speeding 38/25 in Williamsburg – dismissed
DUI with 5 other charges in New Kent – 3 misdemeanors and a traffic infraction dismissed + drug charge reduced + minimum sentence for the DUI
Restricted License petition in Newport News – granted
Fail to Obey Traffic Signal with Accident in Newport News – dismissed
2nd DUI in Hampton – Minimum sentence for DUI, first offender program with ultimate dismissal for drug charge, 3 misdemeanors dismissed: Refusal 2nd, Driving with suspended license, Failure to appear.
There were also two accident cases in Newport News that were appealed to the Circuit Court for new trials.

Matney Law PLLC - DUI - DWI Lawyer - Traffic Court Attorney - Williamsburg - Newport News - Hampton Roads Virginia

Abigail Hockett

Associate Attorney at Matney Law PLLC
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Reckless Driving in the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court

Reckless Driving
Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News, VA
www.matneylawpllc.com
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Two recent cases demonstrate that extra preparation by minors can have an extraordinary impact on their cases. The two clients, both age 17 when they were stopped, were charged with reckless driving at speeds over 100 mph. I have seen Circuit Court judges on the Peninsula sentence minors to active jail time at these speeds. However, both of these clients had their cases dismissed. No reporting to DMV, no demerit points, no misdemeanor convictions, no insurance rate adjustments, no suspended licenses, no jail. The charges were outright dismissed.

For the first case, the young lady was placed on house arrest with an ankle bracelet pending the trial date. She was only permitted to leave her home to go to school and work and was not permitted to drive for most of the pretrial period. In addition to all of these complications, she volunteered many hours of community service before her court date. After court she had to avoid any new violations pending a review date. The second client, a young man, completed two driver improvement classes and volunteered before court. After the court hearing the judge required a significant number of additional community service hours and the avoidance of any new charges before his review date.

These clients helped me and my associate attorney, Abigail Hockett, to achieve the best possible results by following our preparation instructions and then exceeding the judge’s expectations before their review dates.

 

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Widespread Problems With Breath Tests

Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com
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Post by Attorney Mark Matney - Holcomb Law, PC, Newport News, Virginia...  Great article about breath testing.  Raises good issues regarding Virginia's presumption of reliability of the machines.  I participated in a breath science class led by John Fusco, who is quoted in this article.  New York times " We investigated widespread problems with breath tests for suspected drunk driving - and found that the closely guarded machines have helped convict thousands of Americans of a crime they may not have committed.  Here's what we found."

By Stacy Cowley and Jessica Silver-Greenberg

A million Americans a year are arrested for drunken driving, and most stops begin the same way: flashing blue lights in the rearview mirror, then a battery of tests that might include standing on one foot or reciting the alphabet.

What matters most, though, happens next. By the side of the road or at the police station, the drivers blow into a miniature science lab that estimates the concentration of alcohol in their blood. If the level is 0.08 or higher, they are all but certain to be convicted of a crime.

But those tests — a bedrock of the criminal justice system — are often unreliable, a New York Times investigation found. The devices, found in virtually every police station in America, generate skewed results with alarming frequency, even though they are marketed as precise to the third decimal place.

Judges in Massachusetts and New Jersey have thrown out more than 30,000 breath tests in the past 12 months alone, largely because of human errors and lax governmental oversight. Across the country, thousands of other tests also have been invalidated in recent years.

The machines are sensitive scientific instruments, and in many cases they haven’t been properly calibrated, yielding results that were at times 40 percent too high. Maintaining machines is up to police departments that sometimes have shoddy standards and lack expertise. In some cities, lab officials have used stale or home-brewed chemical solutions that warped results. In Massachusetts, officers used a machine with rats nesting inside.

Attorney Mark Matney - DUI Lawyers - Traffic Court Attorneys - Williamsburg, Newport News, Hampton, Yorktown

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Trial in Absence

Blog - Trial in Absence
Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com

Often people contact me who do not live locally and they ask whether they need to appear for court. For traffic infractions that do not involve an accident, I can usually appear on behalf of my clients. However, for misdemeanors and accident situations we have to look at each individual case to evaluate whether the judge would permit the client’s absence and whether we would be likely to obtain the best result in the client’s absence.

I had three recent cases in which I appeared on behalf of clients in their absence.
10/07/19: Speeding 76/60, amended to defective speedometer, which carries no demerit points.
10/10/19: Reckless driving by speed, 85 / 65, amended to improper driving, avoiding the misdemeanor and reducing the demerit points and the length of time the charge will be reported by DMV.
10/15/19: Speeding, 64/45, amended to defective equipment with no demerit points.

Lawyer Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC - Newport News Virginia - DUI and Traffic Court Lawyer

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Guilty of Reckless Driving

Reckless Driving
Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com

Mark, why are you writing about someone who was found guilty of reckless driving? To warn you not to make matters worse when you see police lights!

My client was charged with reckless driving by speed at a speed where judges will often amend the charge from reckless driving to speeding. However, instead of stopping immediately for the state trooper, my client just kept driving. The trooper testified that he activated his lights for ¾ mile but my client kept driving, that he then activated his siren, but my client kept driving, that she stopped for a red light, but took off again when the light turned green, and that she then continued driving despite lights and sirens. Finally, my client stopped suddenly in the left lane. The trooper graciously refrained from charging my client with evading / eluding police or from arresting her at the scene and instead issued her a summons for Reckless Driving by speed. However, the judge was not impressed when my client had no explanation for the failure to respond to the trooper’s emergency equipment and refused to amend the charge from reckless driving.

If you see police lights, then you are required to yield. Move promptly to the right lane or shoulder to permit the police to pass you. If you realize the police lights are for you, then pull off of the road as soon as possible. You may proceed to a safe place to pull over if there is no shoulder or no light, but do it quickly and do not pass reasonable places to pull over.

Lawyer Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC - Newport News Virginia - DUI and Traffic Court Lawyer

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Reductions & Dismissals, and Some Great Deals !!

Traffic Court Reductions & Dismissals
Posted by Lawyer Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC - Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com
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The week, or so, of September 10-19, 2019 was a lot of fun for the clients of Holcomb Law, PC.
9/10: Speeding, 50/35. Amended to defective equipment despite client having two prior speeding tickets on her DMV transcript. No DMV demerit points!
9/11: Speeding, 49/35. Dismissed with only the payment of court costs!
9/12: Driving with Suspended License, 4th offense. Amended to Driving without a license with only a $100 fine. This avoided a mandatory sentence of 10 days of jail and 90 days of license suspension.
9/16: Speeding, 73/55. Amended to defective equipment. No DMV demerit points!
9/17: Reckless Driving by Speed, 85/55. Dismissed without a fine or court costs! Avoided criminal misdemeanor and DMV demerit points.
9/17: Reckless Driving by Speed, 104/65. Jail sentence limited to one weekend despite 39 mph over the limit and over 100 mph. The Peninsula judges start considering jail at 90 mph and at 30 miles over the speed limit regardless of the speed limit.
9/18: Speeding, 63/45. Amended to improper equipment. No DMV demerit points!
9/19: DWI, 1st offense. Amended to Reckless Driving. Avoided the stigma of DWI and the ignition interlock machine and reduced the restricted license period from 12 months to 6 months.
9/19: DWI, 1st offense. Avoided active jail sentence despite an accident with injuries and presence of an illegal substance in client’s system.

Got a Speeding Ticket call Mark Matney at Holcomb Law PC

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You were going how fast?
Reckless Driving & Speeding Charge
Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com
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I traveled out of the local area in September to help someone who was charged with Reckless Driving at 90 in a 55 mph zone – that’s right, 35 mph over the limit. The officer suspected that my client was actually racing another driver. My client could have been more cooperative with the officer, but despite this we were able to avoid any active jail! In fact, he ended up with only a $100 fine to pay and 30 days loss of license. Amazing when you consider that many judges start putting people in jail at 30 mph hour and the maximum license suspension for reckless driving is 6 months!!

Another client in a local court received an amendment of her charge from Reckless Driving, 92 in a 70 mph zone, to Speeding at 10 mph over the limit. This result avoided the criminal misdemeanor conviction and reduced the DMV reporting period from 11 years to 5 years.

DUI Attorney Mark Matney - Attorney Mark Matney - Holcomb Law, PC - Newport News - Williamsburg

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Leniency for Suspended License Cases
Revoked or Suspended License Defense Attorney
Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com
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The new Virginia law making it easier for people to reinstate their driving privileges is resulting in increased leniency for people charged with driving while their license is suspended. This morning as I waited my turn, the judge granted a continuance to every person who requested more time to reinstate his or her license. The benefit of this is that when someone obtains a valid license before the final hearing it is typical for judges to amend the charge to a less serious offense.

For example, a client in one recent case reinstated his license before the initial court date and the judge amended the charge from a Class 1 Misdemeanor, which would have resulted in a mandatory additional license suspension of 90 days, to a Class 2 Misdemeanor with no license suspension and only a $50 fine.

Notably, in a similar case in a different local city, the judge amended the Class 1 Misdemeanor of driving with a suspended license to the traffic infraction of Driving Without a License in Possession. This avoided a misdemeanor conviction and a license suspension.

Lawyer Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC - Newport News Virginia - DUI and Traffic Court Lawyer

Trial in Absence, also known as “Do I have to come to court?

Posted by Mark Matney of Holcomb Law, PC Newport News VA
www.matneylawpllc.com
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Trial in Absence...  I often represent people who do not come to court with me.  Last month, for example, I accomplished the amendment of a charge of Reckless Driving by Speed, 88/60, to Speeding for a Pennsylvania resident.  Attorney Mark Matney - Holcomb Law, PC is a traffic court and DUI defense law firm.  Read our reviews on Avvo...

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Must be present for their court dates?

This works well for people who do not live locally and who are charged with less serious matters.  However, judges generally require a court appearance for the more serious misdemeanors, even if the person resides at a great distance.  Typically, when there is a realistic possibility of a jail sentence, then people must be present for their court dates.

Attorney Mark Matney - Holcomb Law, PC - DUI Attorney - Newport News VA

DUI Attorney Mark Matney - Attorney Mark Matney - Holcomb Law, PC - Newport News - Williamsburg

Reckless Driving to Speeding

Making a special trip for court can be part of the mitigating factors that we present to the judge.  A couple months ago a client charged with Reckless by Speed drove to court from Maryland.  Although his speed was so high that it could have resulted in jail and a suspended license, the judge took note of the client’s travel and amended the charge from Reckless Driving to Speeding.