Connecticut DUI & Criminal Defense Law Podcast

Latest Episodes:

S28: Who We Are and What We Do Aug 06, 2026

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Get to know all about the Connecticut Criminal Law podcast and your hosts, the lawyers of Ruane Attorneys, and how they can help you if facing charges in Connecticut. For help with a Connecticut criminal defense case, contact us at 203-925-9200 or 860-925-9200

S27: A Criminal Case from Start to Finish, a 50 year criminal trial lawyer explains it all. Aug 06, 2026

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Attorney Jim Ruane has been in Connecticut criminal courts since 1977, and in this episode he walks you through an entire criminal case, from the moment of arrest all the way to a jury verdict.

If you have never been through the system, almost none of it is obvious. What happens if you cannot post bond by 7 a.m.? What is a bail commissioner actually telling the judge about you? What is the difference between accelerated rehabilitation and the impaired driving program? What really happens during jury selection, and why does the state get two chances to address the jury while the defense gets one? Jim answers all of it in plain language, step by step, so you understand the road ahead before you are standing on it.

This is the episode to hear if you want the full map: arrest and bond, arraignment and protective orders, diversionary programs, discovery and pretrial motions, plea agreements, and the order of a trial from opening statements to the reading of the verdict.

In this episode:

Arrest with and without a warrant, and how bond gets set
What happens if you do not post bond by the next morning
Arraignment, pleas, and conditions of release
Protective orders and why violating one is a separate crime
Diversionary programs that can lead to dismissed charges
Discovery and the motions your lawyer can file to limit evidence
How pretrial negotiations work and why the pretrial judge cannot preside at trial
What a plea agreement actually commits you to
The full order of a trial, jury selection through verdict

Chapters:00:00 Introduction00:14 Arrest00:35 Bond04:13 Arraignment05:17 Diversionary programs07:58 Discovery09:26 Pretrial11:14 Pleas and plea agreements13:44 Trial21:15 Verdict

Want to learn more? Visit https://ruaneattorneys.com. If you find yourself in legal trouble anywhere in Connecticut, call Ruane Attorneys at 203-925-9200 or 860-925-9200 for a free case evaluation.

General information, not legal advice. Listening does not create an attorney client relationship.

S26: What to do if you are a servicemember and arrested in Connecticut Aug 05, 2026

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If you serve in the military and you get arrested in Connecticut, two systems come after you at the same time. The civilian court is one problem. Your command and your military career are the other, and winning in court does not automatically protect your service.

Attorney David Villa, who also serves as a JAG defense attorney, breaks down what every Guard member, reservist, and active duty service member needs to understand after an arrest. He explains how the rules change with your duty status, why the reporting deadline can become its own offense, how a protective order collides with your ability to carry a weapon, and why a domestic violence charge is the single most dangerous arrest for a military career.

In this episode:

Why your criminal case and your military status run on parallel tracks
Title 32 status versus active duty and when the UCMJ applies
The 72-hour reporting rule and security clearance obligations
Protective orders, federal weapons law, and the Lautenberg Amendment
Discharge types and the benefits at stake: GI Bill, VA healthcare, retirement points

Service member facing charges in Connecticut? Call Ruane Attorneys for a free case evaluation. 203-925-9200/860-925-9200 https://ruaneattorneys.com

The views expressed are attorney Villa's own and not those of the U.S. military. General information, not legal advice. Listening does not create an attorney client relationship.

S25: Self Defense Law In Connecticut Aug 05, 2026

Show notes

Someone steps out of the shadows as you walk to your car. You hear glass break downstairs while you sleep. Your body reacts before your brain catches up, and the question that follows you for months is a simple one: were you allowed to do what you did?

Attorney Patrick Greenhalgh explains Connecticut self-defense law in plain English. When does the law allow you to protect yourself? When can you use deadly force? Why is Connecticut a duty to retreat state and not a stand your ground state, and how does the castle doctrine change the rules inside your own home? He also answers the question people ask most: if someone comes at you with a knife, can you use a gun?

In this episode:

The basic rule of self-defense and the meaning of reasonable force
When Connecticut law allows deadly force
Duty to retreat versus the castle doctrine
Defending other people and defending your property
The gun versus knife question and why the threat is the test
What to do in the minutes after you defend yourself

Facing charges after defending yourself? Call Ruane Attorneys for a confidential conversation. 203-925-9200/860-925-9200

https://ruaneattorneys.com

General information, not legal advice. Listening does not create an attorney client relationship.

S24: Banned Weapons and Gun Modifications in Connecticut Aug 05, 2026

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Here is a scary thought for a law-abiding gun owner in Connecticut. You can buy a rifle legally, add a part you also bought legally, and end up committing a felony without ever firing a shot.

Attorney Patrick Greenhalgh explains how Connecticut weapons law turns on a single part, a single piece of paperwork, or a single missed deadline. He covers what makes a rifle a banned assault weapon, why one feature can flip a legal gun into an illegal one, the truth about suppressors and the federal paperwork that decides whether they are legal, and the 90-day window you have when you inherit a firearm that is now banned.

In this episode:

The two ways a gun becomes a banned assault weapon
The one-feature test and the danger of modifying your rifle
When a suppressor is legal and when it is a felony
Why you cannot hunt with a legally registered suppressor
Inheriting a banned firearm and the 90-day window to handle it right

Have a question about whether your firearm is compliant? Call Ruane Attorneys before you make a move. 203-925-9200/860-925-9200 https://ruaneattorneys.com

General information, not legal advice, and these laws change often. Listening does not create an attorney client relationship.

S23: The First Offense DUI Process in Connecticut Aug 05, 2026

Show notes

Get arrested for DUI in Connecticut and you do not have one case. You have two. One is the criminal case in court. The other is the case against your license at the DMV, and it runs on a much faster clock than most people expect.

Attorney David Villa walks through the whole timeline: the traffic stop, the field sobriety tests you are not required to take, the breath or blood test, booking, and the 24-hour suspension that starts the night of the arrest. He explains the 7-day deadline to request your DMV hearing, why waiting for the notice letter can cost you your license, and how a DUI case can end, from the Impaired Driver Intervention Program to a dismissal at trial.

In this episode:

Why one arrest creates two separate cases
The 7-day DMV deadline and how people miss it
Implied consent, refusals, and the 45-day suspension
SR-22 insurance, the ignition interlock device, and the hardship license
First and second offense penalties and the 10-year lookback

Facing a DUI in Connecticut? Call Ruane Attorneys for a free case evaluation. 203-925-9200/860-925-9200 https://ruaneattorneys.com

General information, not legal advice. Listening does not create an attorney client relationship.

S22: Standardized Field Sobriety Testing Aug 05, 2026

Show notes

Between 18 and 35 percent of completely sober people fail field sobriety tests. These are the roadside tests police use to build a DUI case, and they get it wrong on sober people all the time.

Attorney Phil Vetro breaks down the three standardized tests, the real accuracy numbers from NHTSA research, and the non-standardized tests that have no science behind them at all. He explains the medical conditions, age, footwear, nerves, and weather that cause sober people to fail, and how body camera footage often tells a very different story from the police report. Failing one of these tests is not the same as being guilty, and it is a long way from the end of your case.

In this episode:

The three standardized tests and how officers score them
The accuracy numbers straight from NHTSA
Whether you can refuse field sobriety tests in Connecticut
The real reasons sober people fail
How a lawyer attacks the tests and the arrest behind them

Charged after failing a field sobriety test? Call Ruane Attorneys for a free case review. 203-925-9200/860-925-9200· https://ruaneattorneys.com

General information, not legal advice. Listening does not create an attorney client relationship.

S21: Domestic Violence Cases in Connecticut - from start to finish Aug 05, 2026

Show notes

In Connecticut, once police have probable cause of domestic violence, someone is going to jail. It does not matter if your partner does not want to press charges, because your partner does not control the case. The state does.

Attorney Brenton Callahan walks through a domestic violence case from the night of the incident forward: the mandatory arrest law, how police pick the primary aggressor, and the protective order that gets issued the next morning. He explains the Fernando A hearing you can lose forever by walking into arraignment without a lawyer, the immediate firearms and pistol permit consequences, and the everyday contact that clients never realize is a violation.

In this episode:

The mandatory arrest law and the primary aggressor decision
Why domestic violence is a classification, not a standalone charge
The three levels of protective orders and who controls them
The Fernando A hearing and why timing is everything
Firearms seizure, permit suspension, and the federal Lautenberg ban

Facing a domestic violence charge in Connecticut? Call Ruane Attorneys before your first court date. 203-925-9200/860-925-9200· https://ruaneattorneys.com

General information, not legal advice. Listening does not create an attorney client relationship.

S20: Self Defense in Connecticut Aug 03, 2026

Show notes

When do you have the right to defend yourself? And when can you use a weapon? Join Attorney Patrick Greenhalgh in this deep dive into self defense laws in Connecticut

S19:E11 Police Tech Mar 22, 2023

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All about Police Tech.

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