San Jose Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

Two suspects robbed a Bank of America in San Jose early yesterday, wielding what looked like a bomb. The men fled the scene in a blue Honda and made for Highway 85, driving at speeds well in excess of the posted limit. The robbing duo crashed their Honda into a Minivan at the intersection of Highways 85 and 87 and took off on foot. A woman in the minivan was injured due to the collision.

One suspect was followed by a San Jose martial arts expert who tackled and subdued the suspect. The second suspect ran into the fields of Gunderson High School, only to be arrested a short time later. The school was in lockdown for several hours.
Highway 85 was closed do the possible existence of a bomb in the suspect vehicle.

Although the crash took place at approximately 11:40 a.m., the Highway was closed till around 5:00 p.m. In the end there was no bomb, after the object was later detonated by the police.

The suspects face felony charges including robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, making terrorists threats, evading and conspiracy.

San Jose officials are reporting that the annual AVOID the 13 DUI crackdown netted less DUI arrests this Christmas and New Year's season. Santa Clara County made just under 500 arrests of people on suspicion of driving under the influence, down from 557 last year and 632 in 2009. The Sheriff's Office believes that high DUI enforcement visibility acted as a deterrent, which included highly advertised sobriety and license checkpoints.

As of December 28, 2011, Santa Cruz reported a total of 30 DUI arrests and Morgan Hill totaled 18. All county local law enforcement agencies have noted a decrease in arrests this past holiday season and there were no deaths related to driving under the influence.

AVOID is an anti-DUI law enforcement program funded by grants from the Office of Traffic Safety. The program provides the framework to pull different law enforcement agencies from all participating counties to "cluster" together and clamp down on drunk driving. Santa Clara County was the first to participate in the DUI program in 1974. Forty one counties now participate in AVOID, which includes 540 law enforcement agencies.

Source: Morgan Hill Times