Legal Insights & Defense Strategies
Stay informed and empowered with expert legal insights from Sallinger / Melancon Defense Attorneys. Our insights page features the latest updates on criminal defense strategies and case law developments to help you better understand your rights. Whether you’re looking for guidance on legal matters or want to stay ahead of changes in criminal law, our attorneys provide in-depth analysis and practical knowledge. Explore our latest articles below.
Sobriety Checkpoints; What Are They?
Depending on one’s individual perspective, sobriety checkpoints are either considered a part of a comprehensive strategy for the interdiction of possible impaired drivers or…
OWI Defense Attorneys Prayer’s Answered. At least for now.
A quietly passed provision in Louisiana’s OWI statutory framework will fundamentally change how misdemeanor cases are handled, and defense attorneys are payingattention. On June…
New Iberia Rejects Resolution 26-46: A Necessary Step Toward Restoring Lawful Civil Service Representation
The New Iberia City Council made the correct decision last week in unanimously rejecting Resolution No. 26-46, an attempt to formally invoke an exception…
All Insights
Statewide Update: Five Months After Act 194 Louisiana Still Has No OWI Misdemeanor Jury Trial Protocols
Louisiana’s criminal justice system is facing a major procedural shift and, so far, no one seems prepared for it. On June 8, 2025, Governor…
Best Attorney in Lafayette for 2025
We are proud to announce that Sallinger/Melancon Defense Attorneys has been officially recognized as the BEST of 2025 Lafayette Award Winner in the Attorney…
Bones Regards Spock, The Ultimate OWI Practitioner
It has been said that practicing OWI defense law at its highest level is akin to playing three-dimensional chess. There are nuances and complications…
Greatest Myth of the Self-Anointed Legal Dilettante
If you are a public figure in Acadiana, you receive special treatment in the legal system. False. I cannot speak for concert passes, stadium…
Trust Your Lawyer, No One Else (unless he tells you to)
Those arrested for drinking and driving seek solace and advice from the most unlikely sources. The advice is ample and free. It is usually…
No Refusal and Forced Blood Extraction
Certain parishes institute a “no refusal” program. Under these programs, an individual who “refuses” to voluntarily submit to a breath test will be served…
Sober OWI …. yes, it’s a thing.
In Louisiana, a person can be convicted of OWI, even if there is no impairing substance present in the body. Strange but true. The…
DRUNK DRONING?
Droning While Intoxicated, Droning While Drunk, Drunk Droning ... call it what you will but in Japan, it’s actually a crime. Lawmakers in Japan…
BREATH TESTING MACHINES CAN PUT YOU IN JAIL. DON’T TRUST THEM.
The gist: Alcohol breath tests, a linchpin of the criminal justice system, are often unreliable, a New York Times investigation found. Read article here…