Law Office of Carl M. Ward

05/30/2024

A sad day for our Criminal Justice System

In October of this year, I will have been an attorney for 40 years. In that time, I have tried more cases, in front of more judges, than I could ever possibly count. What happened these past five weeks in New York was the biggest miscarriage of justice I have ever witnessed. Welcome to the newest Banana Republic.

03/15/2024

I was at the Boone County, MO courthouse yesterday for a hearing. I have been trying to remember to take courthouse pictures wherever I go, but often forget to do so. I remembered this time.

The Boone County Courthouse was erected in 1906. It is a Classical Revival style building with three stories. It is constructed of gray colored stone and concrete with a round dome with green colored roof at the center.

Boone County was named after Nathan Boone, the son of pioneer Daniel Boone.

01/16/2024

Back at the Osage County courthouse this morning. The Osage County courthouse was constructed between 1923 and 1925 at a cost of $85,000. That is the equivalent of nearly 1.5 million today.

The courthouse is largely made of brick and has three floors. The courtroom on the third floor. The jail is still in the basement.

01/12/2024

I received this in the mail today. This one is pretty cool.

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In case this is considered an advertisement, the following disclaimer is required by Mo. S. Ct. Rule 4-7.2: "The choice of a lawyer is an important decisions and should not be based on advertisements alone. "

10/27/2022

Hi, Friends:

While I am mainly known for handling criminal cases, I want everyone to know that I also represent folks who are hurt in car accidents by careless drivers. This Spring, before I got sidetracked running for judge (I lost), I closed out another personal injury file for a client who suffered severe whiplash when her vehicle was rear-ended while stopped in traffic.

The case had been reviewed by a very prominent St. Louis area PI firm. It was rejected over concerns that client had pre-existing injuries and because her vehicle sustained only minor damage. After the negligent driver’s insurance company paid out the policy limits of $100,000 last year, I settled with the underinsured motorist carrier in April for another $100,000.

The billboard in the photo is located on the south side of WB I-44, immediately east of the Washington, Missouri/Hwy.100 exit. If you or any of your friends or family members have been hurt because of a careless driver and need a very aggressive trial lawyer, I am here to help. Please feel free to share this post. Carl
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The following disclaimers are required by Rule of the Supreme Court of Missouri. “The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely upon advertisements. Past results cannot guarantee future results. Each case is different and must be judged on its own merits.”

03/19/2020

To Our Valued Clients and Friends:

We at The Law Office of Carl M. Ward remain available to serve you in light of the National, State, and County Declarations of Emergency regarding COVID-19. However, in the interests of the safety for our staff, our clients, and our community, we made the important decision to close our physical office effective immediately.

Despite our absence from our physical office, we remain available, ready and able to help you with your legal needs during this time. Documents may be mailed to our office or placed in the mail slot accessible from the sidewalk out front. Our main office phone line will be answered, and calls and messages will be directed to Mr. Ward and his staff working from their homes. Mr. Ward will make appropriate arrangements to confer with clients remotely via telephone, or make other arrangements when necessary. Payments may be made safely and securely through our secure payment portal: http://bit.ly/carlward

While our absence from the office may result in small delays in response time, we are committed to minimizing these as much as practical. For those seeking legal services, our staff will continue to respond to your calls and will direct your matters and questions to Mr. Ward for review and consideration. We will continue the high quality of work product our clients have experienced over more than 30 years of practice, but we ask that you bear with us in these uncharted times.

We do not know how long this crisis will last, and cannot predict when our physical office will reopen. The Missouri Supreme Court has essentially ordered all courts to reschedule the vast majority of cases through April 3, 2020, but we anticipate that this date will be extended.

We wish each of you and your families health and safety in the days and weeks to come.

Sincerely,

Carl M. Ward

07/17/2019

On Thursday, July 18th, Mr. Ward will be lecturing to more than 200 Missouri lawyers on DWI cases. This will mark the 100th time he has presented on this topic in Missouri. Included in his audiences have been municipal, county and state law enforcement officers, judges, private defense lawyers, prosecutors, attorneys and hearing officers for the Department of Revenue, Missouri public defenders, and court clerks.

07/06/2019

Wisconsin v. Mitchell is the latest case on warrantless searches. This case involved a warrantless blood draw from an unconscious driver suspected of DWI.

While warrantless searches have been presumptively invalid under the 4th Amendment, SCOTUS appears to have shifted the burden to citizen drivers to establish a lack of exigent and other circumstances for the search. While this opinion could be read more narrowly, and limited to DWI cases, it is my opinion that it has far greater significance and will lead to the further erosion of our 4th Amendment rights and the expansion of the exigent circumstances exception.

I have always been torn between supporting the appointment of liberal vs. conservative justices to the US Supreme Court. As a rule, conservative justices can be counted on to support our 2nd Amendment, and our right to bear arms. My friends know how I feel about the importance of that right.

At the same time, conservatives justices have generally sucked when it comes to protecting our 4th Amendment rights against unreasonable searches and seizures and our 5th Amendment rights against self-incrimination. In the Mitchell case, decided on June 27, 2019, the vote of Justice Kavanagh, a conservative appointed by President Trump, was really the deciding vote.

I have attached a link below that will allow you to find the full opinion. If nothing else, please read Justice Sotomayor's dissenting opinion. She is one of the liberal justices on the Court, but has been a true defender of our 4th Amendment rights.

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/18pdf/18-6210_2co3.pdf

07/19/2018

Congratulations to our very own Carl Ward for winning the National College for DUI Defense 2018 Leadership Award!

Congratulations to this years recipient of the NCDD Leadership Award, Carl Ward.

09/15/2017

The verdict is in: Not Guilty. If you would like to read the Judge's Verdict and supporting opinion, you can find it here: