Blog – Robert J. Shane

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending drug cases in the Twin Cities. If you have been charged with a drug crime, you will need an experienced drug defense attorney to protect your freedom. The majority of my criminal cases have resulted in a either a dismissal or an acquittal. • First Degree Controlled Substance Crime - Dismissed• Fifth Degree Controlled Substance Crime (4 lbs. marijuana) - Stay of Adjudication• Fifth Degree [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota theft charges. If you have been charged with a theft crime, you will need an experienced theft defense attorney to protect your freedom. The majority of my criminal cases have resulted in a either a dismissal or an acquittal. • Misdemeanor Theft - continued for dismissal• Felony Theft over $2,500.00 - continued for dismissalI achieve these results through hard work, people skills, and an [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota vehicle forfeiture cases. If you have been served with Notice of Intent to Forfeit Vehicle, you will need an experienced forfeiture defense attorney to preserve your investment. I have listed below a recent case result from an attempted forfeiture of a vehicle seized in a drug raid in Dakota County: • Mercedes Benz M-Class with Market Value 30K - forfeiture proceeding dismissed for failure [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota probation revocation cases. If you have been served with a notice of probation revocation, you will need an experienced probation revocation defense attorney to protect your freedom. I have listed below a recent case result in the defense of a probation revocation case.• Felony DWI probation revocation petition filed in Anoka County (second violation with a positive UA for ETOH) petition dismissed with no [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota burglary charges. If you have been charged with burglary, you will need an experienced burglary defense attorney to protect your freedom. The majority of my criminal cases have resulted in a either a dismissal or an acquittal. I achieve these results through hard work, people skills, and an ability to locate and exploit the legal loophole. The outcome in any criminal case cannot be [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota probation revocation cases. If you have been served with a notice of probation revocation, you will need an experienced probation revocation defense attorney to protect your freedom. I have listed below a recent case result in the defense of a probation revocation case.• Felony DWI probation revocation petition filed in Anoka County (second violation with a positive UA for ETOH) petition dismissed with no [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota vehicle forfeiture cases. If you have been served with Notice of Intent to Forfeit Vehicle, you will need an experienced forfeiture defense attorney to preserve your investment. I have listed below a recent case result from an attempted forfeiture of a vehicle seized in a drug raid in Dakota County: • Mercedes Benz M-Class with Market Value 30K - forfeiture proceeding dismissed for failure [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota assault charges. If you have been charged with an assault crime, you will need an experienced assault defense attorney to protect your freedom. The majority of my criminal cases have resulted in a either a dismissal or an acquittal. • Third Degree Felony Assault: (victim lost two front teeth) felony charge amended to a gross misdemeanor - 50 hours community service.I achieve these results [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota sexual assault charges. If you have been charged with a sexual assault crime, you will need an experienced sexual assault defense attorney to protect your freedom. The majority of my criminal cases have resulted in a either a dismissal or an acquittal. • First Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct - dismissed• Fourth Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct - acquittalI achieve these results through hard work, people [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending Minnesota theft charges. If you have been charged with a theft crime, you will need an experienced theft defense attorney to protect your freedom. The majority of my criminal cases have resulted in a either a dismissal or an acquittal. • Misdemeanor Theft - continued for dismissal• Felony Theft over $2,500.00 - continued for dismissalI achieve these results through hard work, people skills, and an [...]

I am a private attorney with 28 years of experience in defending drug cases in the Twin Cities. If you have been charged with a drug crime, you will need an experienced drug defense attorney to protect your freedom. The majority of my criminal cases have resulted in a either a dismissal or an acquittal. • First Degree Controlled Substance Crime - Dismissed• Fifth Degree Controlled Substance Crime (4 lbs. marijuana) - Stay of Adjudication• Fifth Degree [...]

If you are arrested in Minnesota without a warrant, you must be brought before a judge without unreasonable delay and not more than 36 hours after your arrest. The 36-hour rule does not include the day of your arrest, Sundays, or legal holidays. For example, if you are arrested on a Saturday, the 36-hour rule does not require a court appearance before a judge until Tuesday at noon. The rule excludes the day of your arrrest, Saturday, [...]

If you are arrested in Minnesota without a warrant you must be brought before a judge within 36 hours.

Is it possible to be discharged early from probation in a Minnesota criminal case? Yes. I recently represented a client who was discharged early by the judge after serving only 2 1/2 years of a 4 year probationary sentence imposed in a 2nd degree DWI case with a .23 BAC. The client was interested obtaining an early discharge from probation in order to enroll in an out of state college. All of the conditions of his probation [...]

The Minnesota Court of Appeals has upheld the use of a GPS tracking device to catch a burglary suspect. In State of Minnesota vs. Sin Santo Bad, the Sherburne County Sheriff's Department obtained permission from the suspect's employer to attach a GPS tracking device to a company pick-up truck. The suspect was hired to deliver scrap metal and garbage to a landfill. Police used the GPS tracking device to monitor the suspect driving the company pick-up into [...]

If you are convicted of a subsequent DWI offense in Minnesota, you could be ordered to serve a mandatory minimum jail sentence. For example, a second DWI conviction within 10 years carries a mandatory minimum jail sentence of 30 days. A third DWI conviction within 10 years carries a 90 day jail sentence. What can be done to avoid a mandatory minimum jail sentence in your Minnesota DWI case? There is a statutory exception to the mandatory [...]

Can a passenger in a motor vehicle be arrested for unconcealed contraband? Yes, police are authorized to arrest a passenger for possession of contraband found in plain view. When a passenger is seated close to contraband found in plain view, it can be infered that the passenger knew about the contraband and had the intent and ability to exercise dominion and control over it. Under Minnesota law, this is know as the doctrine of constructive possession. A [...]

It's a misdemeanor offense in Minnesota for a driver to possess more than 1.4 grams of marijuana in the passenger compartment of a motor vehicle. It's only a petty misdemeanor offense for the same driver to possess 42.5 grams of marijuana or less in the trunk of a motor vehicle. A petty misdemeanor is considered a noncriminal offense in Minnesota subjecting the violator only to a fine not to exceed $300.00. A passenger who possesses 42.5 grams [...]

In Minnesota, a third party can consent to a warrantless police search of your apartment only if the person has the right to mutual use and joint access to the premises. A roomate, for example, would have the authority to consent to a warrantless police search of your apartment.A landlord, on the other hand, does not have the authority to consent to warrantless search of your apartment by the police. This is because a landlord does not [...]

If you are a minor and are suspected of having taken a controlled substance, you have no legal obligation to submit to drug testing at the request of a police officer. The police are only interested in gathering evidence to use against you in a minor consumption criminal case.

If you have been convicted of a misdemeanor or felony offense in Minnesota, a judge will place you on probation for a certain period of time. If the offense was for a first time DWI, probation is typically for one to two years. Felony probation can last much longer. A judge may impose some executed jail time as a part of the sentence and then stay the execution of the balance of the jail sentence on certain [...]

A subpoena is a court order to appear and testify in court. You are obligated to remain in court until such time as you are excused by either the prosecutor or the Court. If you fail to obey a validly served subpoena, you may be subject to penalties for contempt of court. A subpoena can be validly served by hand delivering a copy to the person named in the subpoena or by leaving a copy of the [...]

What should you do if you think a warrant may have been issued in Minnesota for your arrest? The first step is to call the warrant office of the sheriff’s department in the county where the offense occurred and make the necessary inquiries. You will need to provide your full name and date of birth to the warrant officer. If the warrant information cannot be provided to you over the phone, you could have a friend or [...]