Portage County Ohio Law Blog

Ohio woman allegedly had a BAC of .32% when she crashed

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC posted in drunk driving on Tuesday, September 10, 2019.

Police in Ohio say that a 54-year-old woman had a blood alcohol concentration of .32% when she was involved in a minor traffic accident on Aug. 26. That is four times the state's .08% legal driving limit. The accident took place near the intersection of Columbia Road and Center Ridge Road in Westlake. The woman was taken into custody at the scene and has been charged with operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.

According to a Westlake Police Department report, the woman's vehicle struck the rear of a car as it approached the intersection. The other driver involved told arriving officers that he noticed the woman appeared to be impaired and took her car keys to prevent her from leaving the scene. Officers say that the woman seemed incoherent and did not even realize that she had been involved in a collision until they pointed out the damage on her vehicle and the car she struck.

Tricks spouses use to conceal marital assets during divorce

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC posted in divorce on Thursday, August 29, 2019.

Ohio residents who are going through a divorce or who have gone through a divorce may realize that a spouse trying to hide assets. The idea of the spouse trying to hide the assets being the husband is an antiquated one; in many marriages, the wife makes as much, if not more, money than the husband. In a good portion of marriages, the wife is the one who is responsible for financial decisions, including monitoring accounts and investments.

People need to be aware of behavior that could indicate their spouse is trying to hide assets in the time that leads up to a divorce. There are a number of ways money can be hidden. A common but often overlooked way is by overpaying creditors. A spouse may overpay the IRS or overpay a credit card company. After the divorce, they can then go back to their creditor and request a refund. The creditor becomes a safe haven for the money until the divorce is done.

Why checkpoint announcements have to be made public

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC posted in drunk driving on Wednesday, August 14, 2019.

Authorities in Ohio and throughout the country are allowed to conduct sobriety checkpoints. However, the Supreme Court ruled in 1990 that the checkpoints must be publicized ahead of time, and failing to do so would be a violation of a person's Fourth Amendment rights. Authorities also say that the point of checkpoints is to educate drivers about the dangers of impaired driving. In 2018, there were 13,364 crashes in Ohio that were caused by drunk or impaired drivers.

Those crashes led to 402 deaths, which was roughly the same number of people killed in impaired driving crashes in the state in 2017. However, the number of accidents involving impaired drivers dropped by 8% in 2018 when compared to 2017. Checkpoints tend to be located where this type of activity tends to be the most prevalent. In 2018, drunk driving crashes were most likely to occur in Montgomery and Hamilton counties.

Key aspects of Ohio's transfer laws

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC on Tuesday, August 6, 2019.

All people make mistakes when they are young. Unfortunately, some of those mistakes can cause harm to or endanger others, leading to grave consequences.

In the case of certain criminal offenses, a child may face a transfer to adult court under the transfer laws. There are a few important aspects to understand about these specific laws.

Navigating social media during a divorce

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC posted in divorce on Friday, August 2, 2019.

Social media is an everyday part of life for many people. Ohio residents might not give their behavior a second thought when sharing a status on Facebook, linking to a funny video or posting pictures of a vacation on Instagram. However, taking a little extra time to be mindful about what gets shared online can be helpful when going through a divorce.

Any frustrations a person has with a spouse or a relationship are better left offline. This applies no matter what stage a marriage is in. There are better ways to vent or get things off one's chest that do not leave a virtual trail that could be used in a divorce. One could talk to friends or family members in person or get support and privacy from a counselor.

Certain court policies may unfairly punish the poor

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC posted in criminal defense on Wednesday, July 17, 2019.

Some legislators in Ohio and other states avoid raising taxes by increasing court-related fines and fees. According to some advocacy groups and concerned lawmakers, such actions are unintentionally punishing indigent offenders who can't afford such payments. In some instances, poor defendants unable to pay end up in local jails for lengthy stays before having their day in court. Others are placed on probation for long periods until their court debts can be paid.

Several legal groups and nonprofit organizations continue to challenge what they believe are unfair court policies that do more harm than good for indigent offenders. This is in spite of the fact that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 1983 declared it unconstitutional to detain individuals unable to pay fines. One group founded in 2016 has litigated twenty-plus lawsuits in an effort to challenge what they refer to as "user-funded justice."

Tracking child expenses when requesting child support

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC posted in family law on Tuesday, July 2, 2019.

When Ohio parents are going through a divorce, one of the most important things they will need to determine is how they will handle child support. In some cases, the parent who is responsible for paying child support may feel as though the other parent is getting a free paycheck, but the reality is that children are expensive; those expenses range from food, clothing and shelter to activities and school supplies.

For those who are seeking child support, they should take care to monitor what they spend on the child. This includes food, clothing and school-related costs. Additionally, healthcare, dental costs and general costs of living should be tracked. One of the most overlooked expenses include the sign-up fees for after-school activities and the costs of the children's hobbies. On top of this, parents should track how much time the child is spending with each parent.

Settlement plan for opioid crisis proposed

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC posted in drug charges on Tuesday, June 18, 2019.

Attorneys representing thousands of local governments across the U.S. recently announced a plan intended to settle lawsuits linked to the national opioid epidemic. Documents outlining the plan were filed in an Ohio federal court on June 14.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, America's opioid addiction crisis has claimed the lives of more than 200,000 people and cost the country billions of dollars. All the while, drug companies have raked in billions in profits. To address the problem, thousands of drug-ravaged communities have filed over 1,800 lawsuits against drug manufacturers, drug distributors and pharmacies seeking billions of dollars in compensation.

Underage drunk driving laws in Ohio

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC on Friday, June 7, 2019.

Underage drunk driving is a serious problem. Teen alcohol consumption results in approximately 4,300 fatalities every year. To prevent minors from operating a vehicle while drunk, it is unlawful for minors to consume alcohol, except in the following situations:

For religious ceremonies
On private premises with the permission of a legal guardian
For medical purposes

However, even if a minor lawfully consumes alcohol in these settings, it is always illegal to operate a vehicle while under the influence.

Considerations for dividing a business in divorce

On behalf of Mike Noble of Lentz, Noble & Heavner, LLC posted in divorce on Tuesday, June 4, 2019.

Ohio business owners who get a divorce may face a number of complicated issues related to the business. Depending on the size of the business and how it is run, it can be difficult sometimes to separate business finances from personal finances. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 has potentially provided some additional guidance in this area because it has identified two different classifications of income. However, this is still a complex area, and business owners may want to work with a financial professional on these and other issues.

It is important to separate business and personal finances both for the process of dividing property and for determining child and spousal support. Some methods of determining business income and valuing the business may be more advantageous to the business owner than others. If the company is considered a marital asset, the business owner may need to buy out the spouse. If the owner lacks the liquidity to do this, another option is a promissory note. Both the business owner and the spouse should consider any tax effects of this process.

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