Colin Christopher Murphy
PRO

Colin Christopher Murphy's Legal Cases (183)

West Des Moines, IA

Drug Crime Lawyer at West Des Moines, IA

Practice Areas: Drug Crime, DUI & DWI

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DUI and DWI

State v. M.W., Iowa District Court for Cerro Gordo County No. OWOM005702

Dec 23, 2011

OUTCOME: OWI Amended to Public Intoxication

On December 23, 2011 the district court accepted the State's amendment from OWI to Public Intoxication following an order suppressing a DataMaster DMT breath test based on a questionable traffic stop. ... I was able to create sufficient "mistake of fact" question regarding whether the license plate lamps on the vehicle were in proper working order at the time of the traffic stop. The arresting officer's in-dash camera recording showed dim but operating lamps. Because the officer was mistaken about whether the lamps were, in fact, operating properly at the time of the stop, the stop was arguably illegal. The State amended the charge to simple misdemeanor Public Intoxication. The suppression order allowed us to petition to the DOT to reinstate my client's driving privileges and remove the administrative revocation from his certified driving record.

DUI and DWI

State v. M.W., Iowa District Court for Crawford County No. OWCR065037

Nov 16, 2011

OUTCOME: OWI Amended to Public Intoxication

On November 16, 2011 the court accepted a plea to the amended charge of public intoxication following the withdrawal of my motion to suppress challenging whether the State could prove that my client wa ... s "operating" a motor vehicle from the passenger seat. There was sufficient evidence in dispute regarding whether the vehicle was on at the time the officer drove past or whether my client was even behind the wheel. In most cases, operation is not a disputed issue. But in those cases where it is a disputed fact, you need to draw in every fact that demonstrates that the alleged driver was not in "actual, immediate physical control" of a running vehicle.

DUI and DWI

State v. S.T., Iowa District Court for Floyd County No. OWCR022513

Oct 19, 2011

OUTCOME: Not Guilty Verdict - OWI Third Offense

The jury returned a well deserved verdict of not guilty following trial on the charge of third offense OWI. This case involved a test refusal with no traffic stop video. Although the arresting office ... r alleged poor driving, failed roadside agility tests, admission of drinking, I was able to successfully rebut each allegation before the jury. Highlights included cross examining the officer about new revelations about poor driving made for the first time at trial (not a good thing for law enforcement because it raises questions about why the allegations didn't appear in the initial report) and optikinetic nystagmus, an eye reflex that can be induced by flashing emergency lights that is indistinguishable from the nystagmus the officer claims results from alcohol. A third offense OWI is sentenced as a class D felony with a mandatory 30-days in jail or up to five years in prison, a minimum fine of $3,125 and a 6-year license revocation, all of which were negated by the verdict in our favor.

DUI and DWI

State v. D.J., Iowa District Court for Cerro Gordo County No. OWOM005652

Oct 04, 2011

OUTCOME: OWI (Marijuana) Charge Dismissed

On October 4, 2011 the district court granted the State's Application and Order for Dismissal of the charge of driving under the influence of marijuana as a result of a revelation made by the trooper d ... uring the suppression hearing. I challenged whether the officer had reasonable grounds to request a urine test following observations made once the vehicle was stopped for a registration violation. During the hearing, the trooper admitted to placing my client under arrest for OWI on the date of the stop, which is not common practice in cases where blood or urine samples are requested. Because of the delay occasioned by urine testing at the DCI laboratory, the State did not file the trial information for a few months. After the trooper admitted the arrest, I asked for a brief recess during which time I moved to amend the motion to suppress to include a motion to dismiss for the late filing. The State had no choice but to concede the issue and dismiss the charge.

Drug Crime

State v. M.S., Iowa District Court for Wright County No. FECR009784

Sep 30, 2011

OUTCOME: Felony Drug Possession Charge Dismissed

On September 30, 2011 the district court granted my Motion to Dismiss under Iowa, Rule of Criminal Procedure 2.33(2)(c) for failing to bring the charge of Possesion of Marijuana with Intent to Deliver, ... a class D felony, to trial within a year of arraignment.

DUI and DWI

State v. B.E., Iowa District Court for Wright County No. OWCR009805

Sep 30, 2011

OUTCOME: OWI Amended to Public Intoxication

On September 30, 2011 the district court accepted a plea to the amended charge of public intoxication and sentenced my client to no jail and a minimal fine in a case involving a single car rollover acc ... ident. I was able to raise doubt regarding a rising blood alcohol defense after discovery revealed more than a two-hour delay in drawing blood. I also showed that significantly less than the normal 10 ml of blood was drawn, which raised issues of the "salting out" effect of the sodium fluoride preservative used in grey-top test tubes.

DUI and DWI

State v. R.M., Iowa District Court for Worth County No. OWCR008543

Sep 12, 2011

OUTCOME: OWI Amended to Public Intoxication

On September 12, 2011 the district court granted the State's application to amend the charge of OWI to public intoxication after I was able to successfully explain the disconnect between my client's ve ... ry good performance on field sobriety tests and a DataMaster breath test result more than twice the legal limit. I established through expert testimony that my client's medically documented diagnosis of GERD was more likely than not the culprit. Refluxing causes mouth alcohol. The breath test was performed on the older DataMaster cdm, which unlike the newer DMT model, does not produce a graphic breath alcohol profile to rule out the presence of mouth alcohol. I was able to establish the beer that my client purchased at the casino after he arrived plus the confirmed GERD diagnosis made the resulting breath test scientifically unreliable.

DUI and DWI

State v. S.M., Iowa District Court for Cerro Gordo County No. OWOM005507

Aug 29, 2011

OUTCOME: OWI 2nd Offense Charge Dismissed

On August 29, 2011 the district court granted the State's application to dismiss the charge of OWI - 2nd offense following a favorable ruling that suppressed a breath test from evidence at trial. I wa ... s able to show that the calibration of the particular PBT unit had not been checked for several months in 2011, which rendered the results suspect. I was also able to establish that the driver was not properly arrested for purposes of implied consent. Because these were the only two grounds upon which the officer relied to request a breath sample for testing on the DataMaster DMT, the test result was suppressed. The suppression ruling also allowed me to petition the Iowa DOT to rescind the test result revocation from the driver's certified driving record and reinstate the driving privileges.

DUI and DWI

State v. B.M., Iowa District Court for Story County No. OWCR045377

Aug 10, 2011

OUTCOME: OWI Second Offense Charge Dismissed

On August 10, 2011 the district court granted my motion to dismiss the charge of OWI on the grounds of a speedy indictment violation. The question facing the court was whether a person in my client's ... position would have believed he was under arrest for OWI on the date of the stop. We argued, and the district court found that a person who was involved in a hit-and-run automobile accident, stopped by a police officer who made inquiries about his drinking and drug usage, then taken to the ground and handcuffed, told he was being taken in for investigation of possible operating while intoxicated, who was transported to the hospital in handcuffs by a second officer, then read an implied consent advisory, was handcuffed to a hospital bed and held down by at least two law enforcement officers, was catheterized and had blood and urine withdrawn for the express purpose of testing the specimens for drug and alcohol content, and who was later the same evening involuntarily committed,transported by police officers and detained at a hospital as a person incapacitated by drugs or alcohol, would reasonably believe he was under arrest for operating while intoxicated. Because there was no waiver of the 45-day time period for filing a trial information, the court had little choice under the current state of the law but to dismiss. We also had equally compelling reasons to suppress both the blood and urine tests. However, the court needn't reach those issues because of the speedy indictment violation.

DUI and DWI

State v. B.P., Iowa District Court for Mitchell County No. OWCR023915

Aug 02, 2011

OUTCOME: OWI Charge Dismissed

On August 2, 2011 the district court granted the State's request to dismiss the charge of OWI following a favorable suppression ruling in June. The district court agreed that the 15-minute deprivation ... period required for preliminary breath tests was not met here. Therefore, the PBT result could not be used to invoke implied consent. Because there were no other grounds upon which the officer relied, the DataMaster DMT breath test was deemed inadmissible. This case shows the importance of constructing a precise timeline in every OWI case. I was able to establish that the stop occurred at 1:30 a.m. and the PBT was administered around 1:44 a.m., clearly less than the 15-minute period required under the administrative rules and case law to preclude the possibility of mouth alcohol affecting the test results. What a difference a minute makes! The suppression ruling also enabled us to have the license revocation and CDL disqualification rescinded and removed from the DOT's certified driving record.

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