Richmond Legal Issues Blog

People often think that all defendants in criminal matters have the option of having a jury trial, but this isn't the case. There are several things that are required before a jury trial must occur. These are set by the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article III, section 2 of the same document.

One of the limitations of the right to a jury trial is that misdemeanors won't typically qualify for a jury trial because they aren't considered serious matters from a legal perspective. In order to be qualified as a serious crime that would require a jury trial, the potential incarceration period must be at least six months.

Having a criminal charge or conviction on your record can impact your life even after you have paid for your crime. It can affect employment, housing and educational opportunities, among others. However, certain charges and convictions can be expunged from your record, so you can truly get a fresh start.

Although you might be eligible for expungement, you must apply for expungement to receive it. The first part of the expungement process involves obtaining a certificate of eligibility for expungement. You will need this official certificate to petition for expungement, but it can also be helpful to know what kinds of offenses are eligible for expungement.

Day care workers face some serious risks when they are working with children. While the payoff of seeing the kids thrive and mature is worth it, these risks can cause some serious issues for the workers. All day cares should have a protocol for keeping everyone safe. When this doesn't happen, there can be catastrophic injuries.

One of the biggest risks that these workers face is having to lift the children. These babies and toddlers often need a lot of hands-on care, which can lead to back problems. Workers should be reminded that they should lift using their legs and not their back. This might seem simple, but it is often tempting to bend over to pick up a child, which automatically puts pressure on the back.

Car wrecks produce very serious injuries for many of the involved occupants. These can lead to a need for medical care that might be significant and costly. We know that not everyone has the financial means to cover these costs. This can send their finances into a tailspin that is hard to overcome, especially when they are dealing with the impacts of the injuries.

Some people who are in car crashes suffer catastrophic injuries. These include things like head or spinal cord injuries. They might lead to lifelong challenges that make it difficult for the person to function normally again. The severity of these injuries can also mean that the person is unable to work for the foreseeable future. This means that they have an increase in expenses and a decrease in income all at the same time.