Not the kind of experience you would want your DUI lawyer to have, but this video is funny nonetheless.
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Technical Issues
It looks as though our blog is undergoing some technical issues and some recent posts have been deleted. We apologize for any inconvenience and will rectify this situation soon.
However, we’ll keep posting checkpoints and news to keep you updated!
Thanks for your patience.
Drunk in Public – Halloween Edition
If you intelligently take my advice in yesterday’s post and decide not to drive this Halloween, you should know that you can still get in trouble for public intoxication. Since Halloween is a holiday where more people want to parade their costumes around in public, it is important to understand what can happen if you were to get arrested for being drunk in public.
We’ve all seen that one drunken person stumbling around or have even been that one person. We all understand that personal safety is in danger when you are inebriated in a public place. However, in many states there are also legal consequences.
In order to be arrested for public intoxication, the police must deem you a danger to yourself and others. If your drunken antics prevent people from entering any public street, sidewalk, or passageway, you will be arrested.
Because of the nature of public intoxications laws, the specifics vary from state to state. In fact, there are a few states that technically do not even have a public intoxication law (Missouri, Nevada, and Wisconsin.) However, in a majority of states, getting arrested for public intoxication is often classified as a misdemeanor. Some of the consequences include jail time and fines that are often up to $1,000.
If you are arrested and charged for public intoxication, it is still important that you hire a lawyer. A charge for public intoxication may seem like an open and shut case, but there are many details that you may miss if you head to court without representation.
With this information stored in your noggin, I hope you all have a very Happy Halloween. Check back tomorrow for sobriety checkpoints that will be occurring in your area. Be prepared for heavy patrols this weekend.
Things Get Thorny for Bachelor Star!
Maribel Delgado faced actual reality when she was arrested for a DUI a few days ago. The contestant on both the fifth and sixth seasons of The Bachelor refused a breathalyzer test and was booked on a misdemeanor charge.
Needless to say, Mary really knows how to take a good mugshot.
DUI checkpoints 7/30 to 8/1
It’s the weekend! You know what that means — DUI checkpoints all over the country. Stay safe this weekend.
California: Fontana; undisclosed location; Saturday, 6 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.
California: Riverside County; eastbound lane of San Timoteo Canyon Road, between Fern Avenue and Refuse Road; Saturday, 10 p.m. to 3 a.m.
Indiana: Goshen; undisclosed location; Saturday night
Florida: Ocala; near the 4900 block of Southwest 60th Avenue; Friday, 8 p.m. to midnight
Vince Neil DUI!
Say it ain’t so, Vince! He was busted this weekend for DUI in Las Vegas. TMZ sources say Vince had been sober for three years before the incident.
You may remember the 1984 incident in which Vince pleaded guilty to DUI and vehicular manslaughter after a crash that killed one man and seriously injured two others. Neil served 15 days, worked 200 hours of community service and paid $2.5 million restitution to the victims and their families.
According to Nevada law, he won’t be charged with a second DUI since the first DUI was more than 7 years ago. However, he could be ordered to serve 48 hours to six months imprisonment, or, at least 96 hours of community service.
Vince Neil mug shot from TMZ
AA Celebrates its 75-Year Anniversary
June 10 marks the 75th anniversary of Alcoholics Anonymous, arguably the most historical organization that helps people struggling with alcoholism.
It all started back in 1935, in Akron Ohio, when a man known as “Bill W.”, who, desperate for a drink, found a member of the self-help Oxford Group via a telephone directory. The member, Henrietta Seiberling, sought out Dr. Bob Smith to meet with Bill.
Smith and Bill had a very powerful meeting and within time they worked together to form the principles, or 12 steps, for Alcoholics Anonymous, a support group designed to help recovering alcoholics along with their loved ones. June 10th, 1935 was the last day Bill W. had a drink and therefore marked the birth of AA.
This weekend, Akron will be commemorating the anniversary with tours and special exhibits, along with musical performances. For more information about this historic event, please click here.
For more information about AA, please go to the official Alcoholics Anonymous website.
Oh the Lindsanity!
Watch this video; Angie and Becky discuss Lindsay Lohan, Rip Torn, and all the latest DUI updates.
The Cost of Tougher DUI Laws
Most people in the United States are really pinching their pennies during this recession. We are budgeting more carefully and changing our spending habits and becoming more vocal on how the government spends our tax money.
In terms of driving safety, anyone with a soul would want drunk driving to never happen again. However, how the government spends our money in ways to prevent future drunk driving tragedies seems to be a source of dispute. How much money during these terrible economic times are taxpayers willing to spend to keep drunk drivers off the road? How do we know that the money we give the government is being effective in drunk driving prevention?
According to an article in the Statesmen Journal, Oregon seems to be having this exact issue. Many bills have been sent to the state legislature only to be turned down. These bills include a proposition to lower the state B.A.C. level and a proposal to increase the number of sobriety checkpoints in the state. The reason for these bills’ failure, in some way or another, has to do with financial matters and high costs.
This coming November, Oregon citizens will have a chance to vote on the Oregon Crimefighting Act. This bill, also known as Initiative 13, will require a 90 day minimum sentence for a third DUI offender and would eliminate the 10-year time frame mandate for offenders committing subsequent felonies. This act will cost taxpayers a lot of money, but will it be a smart investment for Oregon citizens? We shall see when November rolls around.
Drunk Driving vs Distracted Driving Amongst Teens
I read in the Department of Transportation’s blog that 80% percent of teens are aware of the dangers of drinking and driving. This seems like a really positive statistic, but it became null when I found out about the amount of teen deaths due to distracted driving.
In fact, according to last Friday’s post on the Department of Transportation blog, there were no corresponding numbers of the jump in deaths of teen drivers due to drinking and driving. However, the numbers of fatalities in teen-driving-related accidents are due to distracted driving and many of these incidents happen during the nighttime.
3 % of teens are aware that nighttime driving is an added risk. Nighttime driving mixed with fatigue and using a cellphone drastically increases this risk.
Despite these rising numbers being unrelated to drinking and driving, it seems to me that the philosophy of these drivers remain the same: they think they will drive home safely. These people think accidents won’t happen to them.
I think it is important for the general driving public to know that you cannot trust that you will get home safely whenever you get behind the wheel with an added risk-factor. There is no way of relying on luck that you will get home safe when you are drunk or distracted on the road. “Risking it” should never be an option.
Fox Undercover Leads to Revocation of DUI Offender's Bail
Scott Green is a repeat drunk driver in the Boston area who had his license revoked back in 2005. He has since been arrested twice for driving without a license. After his second arrest, Fox Undercover recorded him driving. The judge at the Woburn District Court happened to watch that segment of Fox Undercover and decided to revoke his bail from his most recent arrest.
Despite the clear evidence, Green said he was not driving. He even hired a driver who testified on Green’s behalf and even his bible teacher testified that Green was sober and not getting behind the wheel. (There was a bit of a weird outbreak in the court when the prosecutor asked Green’s bible teacher about seeing Green in trouble. The teacher lashed out and responded, “Trouble is part of our life. Trouble makes a bigger man out of him than you will ever be.”)
Even if Green did have a (for lack of a better word) rational argument, it would be tough for him to catch a break. As we all know, the camera doesn’t lie.
[Source: My Fox Boston]
Harsh DUI Laws in San Diego
In today’s San Diego Gay and Lesbian News, Thomas Hughes, Esq has a very interesting editorial on the harshness of San Diego DUI laws for first time offenders.
Hughes makes comparisons of San Diego DUI laws versus the rest of California counties. Unlike the three year summary probation in other parts of California, San Diego has a five year probation. Furthermore, San Diego fines are double the fines of the rest of the state.
Hughes raises the point that the punishment for a DUI offender is a huge financial burden. They have to pay for their mandatory three-to-nine month DUI class in addition to their fines, along with DMV and insurance expenses.
A first time DUI offender in San Diego is required to take a class offered by M.A.D.D. The offender is required to pay for this class. Hughes questions the legality of this tactic. Although M.A.D.D. is powerful political lobbyist, it is a private non-profit organization that (on paper) is in no way connected to the government. Should citizens be required to give money to such an organization?
Hughes concludes that it is integral to have a qualified DUI attorney in San Diego. Needless to say, it is essential to have a qualified attorney no matter where you get a DUI.
Taxi Magic – How Magical Can it Be?
Yesterday, California unveiled a new iPhone app called Taxi Magic. This app can detect where you are and will dispatch a taxi to pick you up. The app will bill your credit card, so, ideally, your only job is to wait for your ride. With Heineken as its sponsor, the app will hopefully reduce the number of drunk drivers on the road.
Do you think this app will be effective in preventing drunk people from getting behind the wheel? I am sure we all have seen many situations where a drunk person gets offered a ride from a sober friend or even an available taxi pulling right up to him or her offering a ride. Yet, time and again, that person still manages to grab the keys and get behind the wheel. Could Taxi Magic have an affect on this behavior? If so, that would truly be magical.
Consequences of Refusing a Breath Test
The Illinois House of Representatives passed a bill that would require people to have a one-year license suspension if they refuse to submit to a sobriety test. The bill’s sponsor, Representative Deborah Mell, states that this bill is to thwart repeat offenders. However, there were representatives questioning the fairness of this bill. After all, should a person who is found not guilty have their licenses revoked as well?
This is the case with a man in Pennsylvania who is profiled in Pennlive.com today. Abdul Walters claims he was not drinking the night of his accident and refused a breath test. He was found not guilty but still had his license revoked for a year. Despite being innocent, Walters now has a difficult time getting to work and taking his daughters to school. Walters did break Pennsylvania’s “implied consent” law, but is losing his license for a year too harsh a punishment?
[Additional Source: Stltoday.com]
Advancing Interlock Bills in Multiple States
At the end of last week, Vermont and Tennessee both saw advances their proposed ignition interlock bills.
The Vermont House of Representatives approved Representative Eldred French’s ignition interlock bill. Not only will this proposed law reduce fatalities on the road, offenders who opt for an ignition interlock could possibly pay less in civil fines and see reductions in their license suspension.
In Tennessee, Representative Tom Shipley’s ignition interlock bill gained approval from the House Budget Subcommittee. Shipley’s bill beat out a competing bill by Representative Henry Fincher, despite Fincher’s bill being supported by the TN chapter of MADD.
[Sources: Times Argus and Timesnews.net]
DUIs and Lindsay Lohan
Angie and Becky discuss Lindsay Lohan’s latest legal woes.
PA Bill to Avoid Loophole
I reported last week about a legal loophole that allowed for a DUI offender not to be convicted for a second time since her first conviction had not happened yet. Apparently, this is an issue in many states.
This week, PA representative Seth Grove’s bill was approved by a state House of Representatives Committee. The bill allows people arrested for a second DUI to be considered repeat offenders even if they have yet to receive their first conviction.
There are many supporters of this bill, including the PA chapter of MADD. Ultimately, it will keep roads safer and make people more accountable for their actions.
The bill has yet to be approved by the PA House and Senate. Following the possible approval, the bill will be sent to Governor Ed Rendell.
[Source: York Dispatch]
No Organ Transplant for DUI Offender
The state of Nevada has gotten itself in a difficult situation over a sick prisoner. Erik Lawrence Randall is in jail for a DUI causing death charge and a hit-and-run charge. However, he is also suffering from kidney disease.
$50,000 a year is spent on Randall’s dialysis treatments. Furthermore, he cannot earn work credits for his parole because he is seeking treatment in the state medical facility, which forces his parole date to be pushed back.
So, when Randall asked the Nevada Board of Pardons Commissioners to adjust his sentence so he can receive a kidney transplant, he was denied.
Yes, Randall did a terrible thing ending the life of an innocent civilian. However, is the state of Nevada being fair in denying him treatment so he can successfully fulfill his time in prison?
[Source: North Lake Tahoe Bonanza]
The Cost of Drunk Driving – For Those Not Even Involved
In today’s New York Times, Freakonomics blogger, Eric A. Morris discusses the real cost of drunk driving amongst all Americans.
Although he states that the number of drunk driving fatalities has gone down, people still continue to be irresponsible on the road, costing taxpayers a lot of money.
When a drunk driving accident happens, it is the taxpayer’s money that pays for the transportation of the police, fire, and emergency services, as well as medical care for those affected and property damage. In 2000, drunk driving accidents costs the country $114 billion dollars, which Morris states is more than twice the cost of the recent GM bailout.
It is understandable that citizens would be upset to have to pay their own money because the negligence of other drivers on the road. However, with the amount of people who do get behind the wheel after a few drinks, maybe there is a lesser amount of upset citizens and a bigger amount of guilty citizens.
