Criminal Defense Case Results in Rutherford, TN

Charge

Evading Arrest in a Motor Vehicle

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Bennett

Allegations

After a family dispute, officers were called and later tried to stop the client while driving. The client reported only noticing the lights late and continued while looking for a safe place to pull over due to hazardous road conditions, then went home. Days later, police arrested him and questioned him without Miranda warnings, leading to an admission. We challenged the state on driver identification, demanded the video evidence, and prepared to litigate suppression and a preliminary hearing. Facing these issues, the prosecution dismissed the case.

Charge

Unlawful Use of Drug Paraphernalia

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Bennett

Allegations

The client was approached in a parked vehicle during a welfare check in a private lot. Additional officers arrived, claimed to smell alcohol or marijuana, ordered the client out, and searched the car. They reported finding a small item they labeled as drug paraphernalia. We pulled the bodycam and reports, pinpointing the absence of clear consent and the thin basis for expanding a welfare check into a search. After we pressed those suppression issues and signaled we were prepared to litigate, the state dismissed the paraphernalia charge.

Charge

DUI - First Offense

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Bennett

Allegations

Police approached our client while parked in a private lot for a welfare check, then claimed an odor of alcohol and turned it into a DUI investigation. The officer pressed for a vehicle search even though consent was unclear. The client declined field sobriety tests and a breath test, and a blood draw was obtained hours later by warrant. We obtained the videos, reports, and toxicology, and challenged the escalation, the search basis, and the delay before the draw. Faced with those issues, the prosecution reduced the charge and accepted straight probation.

Charge

Possession or Distribution of Alcohol by a Person Under 21

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Bennett

Allegations

The case stemmed from a traffic stop where officers questioned our client about alcohol in the vehicle. He acknowledged purchasing it earlier, the officers poured it out and released him. The next day a separate charge was filed alleging possession or distribution of alcohol by a person under 21. We moved quickly, obtained the police report, and focused on the lack of preserved evidence and any proof he furnished alcohol to anyone. After pressing these issues with the prosecutor and preparing to litigate them, the state dismissed the case.

Charge

DUI - First Offense

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Hall McFarlin III

Allegations

Stopped after driving on a blown tire from a minor collision, our client was arrested for DUI. They admitted to drinking, completed field sobriety tests, and consented to a blood draw, with no other substances reported. We secured the body and dash camera footage and the lab records, and handled bond compliance by arranging alcohol monitoring while the vehicle was in the shop. Armed with the evidence and mitigation showing immediate sobriety efforts and full compliance, we pressed the prosecution in negotiations. The state reduced the charge and the client received straight probation.

Charge

Driving Under the Influence (DUI)

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Hall McFarlin III

Allegations

After a late-night traffic stop for alleged lane maintenance, campus police arrested our client for DUI following roadside tests and a later blood draw. We zeroed in on how the field tests were instructed and performed and questioned the basis for the stop. We also scrutinized whether consent for the draw was valid and the effect of the delay between driving and testing. With those evidentiary issues on the table and no prior record, we pressed negotiations. The state agreed to reduce the charge and the client received straight probation.

Charge

Driving Under the Influence

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Hall McFarlin III

Allegations

After a traffic stop for alleged lane drift, the client declined roadside sobriety tests and was taken to a station where a blood draw was performed. We immediately demanded the lab report and all dash and body camera footage to scrutinize the basis for the stop and whether proper consent warnings were given. The blood result came back elevated, but the documented measurement uncertainty put it near an enhancement threshold. We leveraged the consent advisement issue and testing margins in negotiations. The DUI was reduced to a lesser charge with straight probation.

Charge

Driving on Roadways Laned for Traffic

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Hall McFarlin III

Allegations

A traffic unit stopped our client after alleging the vehicle failed to maintain a single lane. The citation was filed as Driving on Roadways Laned for Traffic alongside a related investigation. We examined the report language and the officer's description of any lane drift against what the statute actually requires. We pressed the state on whether the brief deviation described created a safety risk and whether the stop observations were consistent. With those weaknesses on the table and our readiness to litigate, the prosecutor agreed to reduce the charge.

Charge

Assault - Misdemeanor

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Chancellor Howard Wilson

Allegations

At a loading dock, a man yanked open our client’s truck door, shouted threats, and was struck when the client reflexively pushed the door. Police responded but did not arrest, and the charge was filed later by the complainant. We stepped in close to trial, secured a continuance, reviewed reports and photos showing a linear injury consistent with a door strike, visited the site, and used an investigator to track down former employees. We pressed these issues with the prosecution. Weighing trial risks, the client accepted probation with monthly check-ins.

Charge

Driving Under the Influence

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Ben Bennett

Allegations

Police arrested our client for DUI after a two-car collision, administering roadside tests and later securing a warrant for a hospital blood draw. From day one we documented the client's account that wet roads, a damaged tire, and fatigue played a major role in the crash. We demanded the body camera footage, the warrant and medical records, and full lab data. We challenged the reliability of the field testing and insisted on strict proof of the blood's handling and analysis. Facing those evidentiary issues and without definitive lab results, the state dismissed the case.

Charge

DUI

Location

Rutherford County, Judge Lisa Eischeid

Allegations

After a late-night single-vehicle rollover on a wet road, a bystander called police. Medics transported the client, so no field sobriety tests were done at the scene. A hospital blood sample was taken, then a later police blood draw followed, using different testing methods. We pressed for the bodycam and full lab packets and challenged the blood evidence, citing plasma versus whole-blood testing, the absence of roadside tests, and the client’s coerced-consent concern at the ER. As a contested hearing approached and those problems persisted, the prosecution dismissed the case.

Charge

Aggravated Assault (Class C Felony)

Location

Rutherford County, SMYRNA JUSTICE CENTER

Allegations

Police were called during a domestic mental health episode. Officers alleged aggravated assault after a knife was thrown and later found lodged in a door, though the client maintained it was not directed at anyone. We obtained the reports and documented that no one was injured and the complaining witness stated he did not feel threatened and did not wish to pursue the case. We highlighted the mental health context and the conflicting accounts in the record. Confronted with these problems, the prosecution dismissed the charge.