According to a recent Springfield News-Leader article, DWI arrests in Springfield have gone down since Uber became operational in Springfield 4 months ago. See the News-Leader article below. (Photo: News-Leader Illustration) When Missouri lawmakers passed a bill this session making it easier for ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft to operate in the state, they lauded […]

Just last week a student at Central High School in Springfield, Missouri was arrested for possessing a firearm on school grounds after a gun was accidentally discharged from his backpack as he was passing it to another student.  Springfield criminal defense attorney Adam Woody was interviewed on the local CBS affiliate, KOLR10, regarding the potential […]

In light of the recent events in Ferguson, Missouri where an unarmed 18 year old man was gunned down by police, it is important that we stop and remember that there are ways to combat excessive force by police. When race is involved, it is obviously a polarizing issue. Media and news outlets from across […]

Back on July 7 I began a 3 post blog series regarding Standard Field Sobriety Testing in DWI cases. In Post 1 I discussed in detail the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus Test, better known as “the eye test”. Today, I hope to provide details and information regarding the field sobriety test that should be administered by […]

Adam Woody was featured on the Springfield, Mo. CBS affiliate KOLR10 to discuss the “castle doctrine”. The “castle doctrine” is essentially the legal right that everyone has in Missouri to defend themselves or another person when someone comes into their home unlawfully.  The use of force in that situation can be deadly force if the person using force […]

Aside from blood alcohol tests, the most important evidence of impairment that police, prosecutors, judges, and juries rely on in driving while intoxicated cases are the results of the field sobriety tests. Most of these tests are difficult for most anyone to pass, whether sober or impaired. The key to successful defense against possible false […]

Last week a flurry of attention was again brought on the accused killer of Hailey Owens, Craig Michael Wood.  This time, it was because his attorneys have now filed a Motion to Suppress his statements to police.  Motions to Suppress are frequently filed and are essentially asking the court not to consider certain pieces of […]

The tragic death of Hailey Owens that has an entire community in mourning took another turn last week when her parents filed a civil wrongful death lawsuit against her accused killer, Craig Michael Wood.  The lawsuit prompts new questions about the case, as well as about the motivation behind filing the lawsuit.  Among those questions […]

All Driving While Intoxicated cases have two separate aspects: the administrative portion of the case and the criminal portion of the case.  As we all know, the breathalyzer result (BAC) can be an important part of DWI cases and can impact both the administrative and criminal aspects.  On the criminal side, state or city prosecutors […]

On January 21, 2014 the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) heard oral arguments in the case Navarette v. California.  In that case an anonymous caller dialed 911 to inform the police that a person was driving recklessly and had almost ran the caller off the road.  The caller provided only a vague description of the vehicle. […]