In New York and Florida, FBI officers have conducted raids on homes where they traced downloaded child porn.  However, the officers soon found after investigations that the homeowners were not the ones who had downloaded the images.  Neighbors who managed to gain access to the Wi-Fi routers, downloaded thousands of images of child porn, alerting the FBI.  In most of these cases, the officers were able to investigate and determine that other people had accessed the porn through Wi-Fi routers.

Leaving Wi-Fi routers is a widespread practice in Houston.  Most people who do so believe they are being generous to outsiders who wish to access the Internet by leaving their Wi-Fi routers open.  However, this habit is isn’t without its pitfalls.  Your Wi-Fi router could be used for illegal activities, including downloading child pornography.  According to the Computer Emergency Readiness Team, users can make their networks invisible by disabling a function that announces the presence of wireless access points to others.  If you have an open wireless router, you must know that you will not be able to quickly determine if someone else is accessing your router for illegal activities.

Child pornography charges are some of the most serious crimes that you can be charged with.  These belong to a category of crimes in which persons may be assumed by society to be guilty until they are proved innocent.  Secure your Wi-Fi routers, and protect yourself from unauthorized access to your WI-F networks.

According to the data, in 2010, 494,000 people were stopped by Houston police.  Out of these, blacks comprised approximately 33%.  In comparison, the black population in Houston last year was just 23%, making for a skewed proportion.

According to officials, police do conduct more patrols in predominantly African American neighborhoods, as well as minority neighborhoods in general.  However, not all of the stops lead to an arrest.  In 2010, the Houston Police Department pulled over 175,000 black residents, and 18% of them were released.  Out of the remaining, 40% were ticketed and 17% were given warnings.

According to the Houston Police Department, the increased number of stops in predominantly African-American neighborhoods has to do with the fact that there are more calls from residents in these areas complaining about illegal activity, like drug crimes.  Therefore, Houston police officers deploy more units in these areas, and as a result, residents of these areas feel like they’re pulled over more often.

Being arrested can be a traumatizing experience for any Houstonian.  Persons in a situation like this may feel confused, and anxious.  If you’re been arrested for a crime in Houston, contact the Houston criminal defense attorneys at our firm.

The story revolves around a woman in Los Angeles, who was sexually assaulted by a man she met on the dating website.  The woman filed a lawsuit against the website, to force it to include sex offender checks as part of its screening process.  Within a few days, the operator of the website announced that the website would now begin screening to match usernames with those on the sex offender registry.

There are several reasons why this won’t work.  For instance, there’s nothing forcing a person to post their real name on the website.  There goes any possibility of matching the name with an existing name on a sex offender registry.  Even if the name matches one on a sex offender registry, the addresses would have to match too.  It’s far too easy for a person to provide a post box number for a residential address.

Besides, the federal sex offender registry is notoriously unreliable.  There are several errors made in registries, including some instances where people who were never convicted of any sex offenses found their names on the registry.  Besides, the risks of a convicted sex offender committing sexual assault again are actually quite low.  Most users of dating websites are likely to be assaulted by someone who is not mentioned in the registry, than by a convicted sex offender.

Besides, where does this all end?  There’s nothing preventing a person tomorrow, for asking for DWI screenings, and inclusion of shoplifting, petty theft and other minor convictions on dating websites.

A deadly gas tanker accident on a freeway in Fort Worth, Texas, has been blamed on a wrong way driver who was traveling in the opposite direction on the freeway, under the influence of alcohol.  The man has now been charged with intoxication manslaughter.

The 23-year-old motorist was driving a pickup truck the wrong way in the westbound lanes of Interstate 30 in Fort Worth.  Soon, the pickup truck crashed into a gas tanker, and the tanker exploded in flames.  The tanker driver died at the scene of the accident.  The accident occurred on a bridge, and there was some damage to the structure of the bridge from the heat generated by the explosion.

Investigations into the accident have begun.  The driver has admitted to having had at least 10 beers before he began driving.   Investigators are focusing on where the man consumed that amount of alcohol before the accident.  The Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission has begun an investigation into the business where the man purchased his drinks.  They have identified one establishment where the man might have consumed his drinks, and are specifically investigating whether the business was negligent in over serving the man.

As Houston DWI lawyers and Houston Auto Accident Lawyers, we always encourage bars, taverns, pubs, restaurants and other establishments that serve alcohol, to remember that they have a responsibility to do so safely.  For instance, staff at an establishment must not serve alcohol to a patron they can see is too intoxicated to drive.  Failure to do so can result in criminal charges being pressed against the establishment.  For instance, an establishment may face misdemeanor charges for serving alcohol to an intoxicated patron.  Also, an establishment may face a civil lawsuit for negligently serving a known intoxicated person additional drinks under the Texas Dram Shop Act.

The study is based on data from the Food and Drug Administration’s Adverse Event Reporting System. There are some known culprits on the list like Paxil, the antidepressant which has also been linked to birth defects, as well as one of the most widely used antidepressants Prozac, which has also been linked to a high risk of violence.

Tellingly, most of the drugs on the list are antidepressants. These include Desvenlafaxine sold under the brand name Pristiq, and linked to a 7.9 times higher risk of violent behavior, Venlafaxine sold under the brand name Effexor, and linked to a 8.3 times higher risk of violent behavior, Fluvoxamine sold under the brand name Luvox, and with a 8.5 times higher risk of being involved in violent behavior.

Also on the list are Triazolam, a benzodiazepine which is used to treat insomnia. This medication can be addictive, and can increase the risk of violent behavior by about 8.7 times. Also featuring on the list are two drugs used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder- Atomoxetine with a nine times higher risk of violent crimes and amphetamines with a 9.6 times higher risk of violent behavior.  The antimalarial drug Mefoquine has a 9.5 times higher risk of violent behavior. SSRI antidepressant Paroxetine has a 10.3 times higher risk of violent behavior, while Fluoxetine or Prozac has a 10.9 times higher risk of violent behavior.

The most dangerous drug on the list as far as violent behavior is concerned is undoubtedly the antismoking medication, Chantix. This drug has already been tracked by Houston product liability lawyers has a link with violence that is about 18 times higher than for any other medication.

According to the Cameron County District Attorney’s Office, it plans to screen prospective jurors by going through their Facebook profiles and postings. It will use the information gained from these profiles and postings to decide whether the person is qualified to sit on a jury. This newfound trust in social media at the Cameron County District Attorney’s Office is not exactly surprising. The courtrooms in Cameron County were recently upgraded to make them WiFi-compatible. According to the DA’s office, the decision to use Facebook profiles to screen jurors has been made to give prosecutors every tool at their disposal to find a favorable jury.

Currently, prosecutors use smart phones to do a Google search on a prospective juror. The only other information that prosecutors have to work with is the name of the juror, the number of children he has, religion and the employer. Obviously, that is limited information, considering that Facebook offers a wealth of more private and personal information, including musings, thoughts, and pet peeves and so on, that could offer great insight into a jurors mindset.

However, there’s a tiny problem. Facebook profiles can now be made private, giving only some users access to the person’s private and personal information. As Houston criminal defense attorneys, we don’t understand how this tool can be used to its maximum potential if access is as limited as it currently is.

The best idea is to make sure that your Facebook profile is set to private so that only the people that you want to see your personal information can see it.  If your profile is not set to “private,” your personal and private information can be seen and used by all sorts of people including the District Attorney’s office, insurance companies, etc.

Much of the increase in DWI arrests in Texas happened because of a $2 million grant by the Department of Transportation. The grant was used to target high-risk locations for DWI. About 442 out of the total number of arrests this year were made in areas that have a high number of drunk driving accidents.

Not only that, drivers in Texas can expect to be pulled over for intoxicated driving more and more frequently over the next year. The Department of Public Safety plans to use its $2 million grant to increase its DWI enforcement efforts through 2011. There are plans to have more troopers stationed during prominent holidays, including the Fourth Of July, Labor Day and over spring break.

Texas’ strong DWI laws can result in offenders being penalized with heavy fines, community service, probation and a license suspension. As Houston DWI attorneys, we have severely criticized these laws and their lack of effectiveness. For instance, in spite of having some of the harshest anti-DWI laws in the country, Texas continues to have some of the highest drunk driving accident rates in the US. In particular, Harris County and the Houston area have substantial number of fatalities every year in drunk driving accidents. That’s proof that the state’s DWI laws are simply aimed at racking up meaningless arrest numbers, regardless of the impact to innocent drivers.

For instance, if you have eaten soon after drinking, it is likely to impact your reading. Combining alcohol with food seems to result in a lower reading. Besides, the number of alcoholic beverages you have consumed and your weight also determine whether you reach or cross that crucial .08 limit.

We often find that women are affected differently by alcohol, than men. A woman could have the same number of drinks as a man, and still find herself with a higher blood alcohol content (BAC). There are physiological reasons for this. For instance, men have a 61% concentration of water in the body, compared to women who have a water content of around 52%. Therefore, the alcohol in a man’s body is diluted more, and may not show up as much in a test.

Similarly, women generally have a higher body fat concentration than men.  This is important because alcohol is not absorbed in body fat which keeps a high concentration of alcohol in the bloodstream.

A woman’s hormone levels also determine the manner in which the alcohol is absorbed in the body. For instance, hormonal changes around a woman’s menstrual period can cause you to become drunk faster. For example, if you’re on estrogen pills (i.e. birth control pills), you may be intoxicated faster than you know, because these pills impact the ability of the body to eliminate the alcohol. Besides, women have a higher body fat concentration, and because fat is not able to absorb alcohol, women have much higher levels of concentrated alcohol in their system.

Not being aware of these facts, could lead to a situation where a woman is drinking with her male friends and expect to be able to handle the drinks as well as they do.

The bottom line is that there are a lot of factors to consider about how our bodies process and eliminate alcohol.  Reaching the legal limit for alcohol is difficult to determine and you likely won’t know when you have reached a 0.08 BAC. You may be more intoxicated 30 minutes after you stop drinking depending on the amount of alcohol you consumed.  The best policy is not to drive if you have been drinking.  Have a designated driver or take  cab.

The so-called “DWI Lite” law is currently being considered by the Texas Legislature. The law would create a new misdemeanor charge for persons driving with a blood alcohol limit of between .05 and .08. The current maximum legally allowed limit of alcohol in Texas is .08. The law, called Driving While Ability Impaired law, will allow defendants convicted of driving with a blood alcohol limit of between .05 and .08, to plead out of DWI, but still retain a DWI conviction on their records.

Currently, some drivers who have been convicted for DWI in Texas may plead those charges down to a non-DWI related offense, like reckless driving. These people will not have a DWI conviction on their records. However in the case of a conviction under the Driving While Ability Impaired law that is now being considered, offenders will be allowed to plead out of a DWI, but will still have a DWI conviction on their record.

The next time these people commit a DWI offense, prosecutors can enforce tougher penalties. What legislators want to do is to make sure that everyone who has a DWI conviction under the Driving While Ability Impaired law, continues to retain their DWI conviction on their record.

As Houston DWI attorneys, we will be watching these proceedings with interest. There is no doubt that there is huge pressure on legislators to do something – anything – to reduce those drunk driving accident fatality numbers. However, passing legislation that could potentially trap countless numbers of drivers, who may have had a beer or two but can drive safely, is not the answer.

As Houston car accident attorneys, we often come across patients who have suffered a brain injury in an accident or fall. Brain injuries are some of the most life altering injuries, because they have repercussions that go beyond the physical limitations. A person with a brain injury may have his powers of concentration affected. He may suffer from a much lower attention span. There may be behavioral changes. Sometimes, these changes may be dramatic. All of these can have a profound impact on a person’s emotional and mental well-being. A brain injury can cause behavioral changes, which if not treated properly, can lead to the development of antisocial behavior or susceptibility to criminal tendencies.

What the study does show is that brain injuries in children must be taken seriously. This is true even if the child has suffered a minor concussion, which leads to a momentary lapse of consciousness. A child with a brain injury must be given access to neuropsychiatric treatment, and must be monitored carefully over the next few years. Look for falling grades, disinterest in studies, or aggressiveness at school. These could be effects of the injury.