DUI Attorneys Blog

I am happy to report the good news that Atlanta DUI attorney Richard Lawson won a not-guilty verdict in a Cherokee County DUI trial on a case that many Georgia DUI lawyers would have advised their clients was impossible to win.

The victory goes to show that, for DUI attorneys and their clients, good things happen when the defense declares that they are ready for trial.

To sum up the case, Mr. Lawson's client had a prior DUI charge from about 4 years earlier in Cobb County.

Once question that arises in Georgia DUI trials, and in drunk driving trials around the country, is whether it is appropriate for the jury to hear and consider the existence of prior DUI arrests or convictions.

In this case, the trial judge rules that the prior DUI was a similar transaction, and therefore was admissible into evidence. In Georgia all DUI's are considered similar in nature and are admitted into evidence to show the bent of mind of the defendant. Then the prosecutor gets to argue to the jury that once the person's bent of mind is towards getting a DUI, then it is always that way, making the current charge more likely (this type of argument is not allowed in most courts in other states, but is in Georgia, making the GA DUI lawyer's job that much more difficult).

To make matters worse, in the prior case, Mr. Lawson's client had run off the road and hit a tree, and remained in a coma for two months thereafter. The Cherokee county jury heard all of this.

Like most great trial attorneys, Mr. Lawson believes that cases can be won or lost in jury selection. During this case, he was able to have 4 adverse jurors removed (including one for cause). Two of those jurors were EMTs that had "seen the effects of drunk drivers." One was the wife of an EMT who likes to follow drunk drivers and report them to police. The person removed for cause stated that his client would automatically be guilty if she had a prior offense.

Mr. Lawson used the jury selection process to educate them and prepare them for the fact that his client's prior DUI would be in evidence in the case. Before the facts stage of the trial even began, he made the jury agree with him that they would try the case on the facts of what happened in this case, not the other case from Cobb County four years earlier.

In the current case, Mr. Lawson's client has a .188 alcohol level (the legal limit in Georgia is .08, so she was over twice). She went to a convenience store to buy more beer. After buying the beer, she went to her car, where she tripped and fell, hitting her head on the car. She finally got her self up and into the car and started the ignition.

A store clerk and another customer had called 911, and a deputy arrived on the scene. Mr. Lawson's client's car was on, but she had not moved.

At trial, Mr. Lawson argued that there was no driving (and therefore no DUI), and that the fact that the deputy and the 911 callers prevented her from committing a crime does not equate to a crime.

The client testified at trial. She took the stand and said that she arrived at the store and bought vodka and drank a fifth in the parking lot. The vodka bottle was never found by the officer. The prosecutor made a circumstantial case that she in fact drove to the store drunk. The car was parked terribly. The client claimed to be coming from home and was on video being questioned by the officer.

That his client was very drunk was not an issue in the case. Mr. Lawson is an excellent trail attorney and conceded a fact that he couldn't possibly have won on, thereby gaining credibility with the jury. Not only that, he even gave the jury something to pin on her that would amount to much less than a DUI. In opening and closing, he told the jury to find her guilty of public drunk, but not DUI. That is what they did.

The "Perry Mason" moment of the trial came when Mr. Lawson questioned the officer who came to testify about the prior DUI. He asked the cop three simple questions, and destroyed any impact that the prior may have had with the jury. They were:

Question: Did you case have anything to do with a women sitting in a parking lot drunk before driving there?

Answer: No.

Question: Does your case have anything to do with a case pending in Cherokee County?

Answer: No.

Question: Why are you even here?

Answer: No Idea.

During deliberations, the jury gave the prior DUI case no consideration. It looked silly to them since it was so dissimilar.

In his closing argument, Mr. Lawson emphasized to the jury that the case was all about circumstantial evidence. He explained that the state had to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt as well as to disprove his client's case beyond a reasonable doubt.

Mr. Lawson won this victory despite the fact that tape recorded evidence revealed that his client spent 30 minutes in the back of the police car berating the officer. She called the officer the "F" word many times, called him a "little boy," and even said he couldn't get it up, that his wife was a lesbian, that his mother hated him and that he was evil.

Mr. Lawson argued that this video did not prove anything since they already conceded the fact that his client was drunk. He used the fact that the prior event was allowed into evidence to convince the judge not to introduce the tape into evidence.

In the end the jury found Mr. Lawson's client NOT GUILTY of DUI per se and less safe, and, as Mr. Lawson advised, GUILTY only of the public drunk.

The client was sentenced to no jail time, and will have to pay a $300 fine, do 40 hours of community service, get an alcohol evaluation and treatment and be on probation for a year. This was an excellent and light sentence for a second alcohol offense.

Congratulations to Georgia DUI lawyer Richard Lawson on a battle well-fought. You are a credit to the profession and an example of what can happen when you fight for unpopular clients in seemingly impossible cases.

While most DWI lawyers learn the law from manuals written by attorney-authors like San Antonio DWI Attorney Kyle Simpson, San Diego DUI Lawyer Larry Taylor, and Michigan DUI Lawyer Patrick Barone add so much value to the profession for thousands of other DUI attorneys around the country by distilling thousands of statutes, administrative codes, cases and scientific articles down to a practical and useable volume.

While many lawyers pretend to be self-made experts on the subject, the attorney who write these books actually provide all other DUI attorneys a crutch by which to build their expertise and practice.

To these, and other lawyers who take the time to share their knowledge with fellow professionals, I want to say thank you. I also want to encourage other lawyers who rely on these books to give credit where it is due.

These attorney authors aren't typically the ones blogging and tooting their own horns. They are too busy serving their clients and writing supplements and new editions to their books. Instead of commenting on what others are doing, they are out there doing it.

Did you know that Lawrence Taylor's book was referenced as an authority by the California Supreme Court in an opinion? If the highest court in our largest state sees him as an authority on the subject, that's pretty much the best endorsement anybody facing a California DUI could ever want or need.

Attorneys like Kyle Simpson, who are younger and still building their practices deserve just as much credit. To find the time to run and build a private practice and also take the time to produce a superior product of statewide importance published by West is no easy feat and shows anybody seeking representation just how dedicated he is to the subject and the cause.

DUIAttorney.com's own Aaron Wolff will be co-chairing the annual WSBA criminal seminar.

Seattle DUI Lawyer Aaron Wolff To Chair Criminal Law Seminar : DUI Law Blog: "Aaron Wolff, an attorney who focuses his practice on Seattle DUI defense will co-chair this year's Washington State Bar Association Criminal Justice Institute, a two day seminar in Seattle which updates practicing lawyers on the latest in criminal law and procedure."

Congratulations to Aaron Wolff for the honor, and good luck with the seminar.

Get ready for the new Missouri DUI law which will require ignition interlock devices on certain offenders' vehicles.

New law affecting repeat drunken drivers takes effect Wednesday in Missouri - Kansas City Star: "Business is about to pick up for ignition interlock providers in Missouri.

A new state law takes effect Wednesday that requires people with two or more drunk-driving convictions to install the devices on their vehicles for six months in order to get their license back.

The Missouri Department of Revenue says about 70,000 people in the state will be affected.

An interlock is a breath-testing device connected to a car’s ignition system. The driver must blow into the device before the car will start. An alcohol content above a prescribed level will disable the vehicle.

The law is good news for Mothers Against Drunk Driving and other traffic safety advocates."

Missouri is following in the path of states like Arizona and New Mexico who have, in past legislative sessions, enacted tough interlock laws.

Here's a story about a young Tampa DUI hero. Perhaps it is the emotional stories that make the biggest impact and act as the biggest deterrent for would be DUI drivers. In Florida, one little girl has inspired at least one person to follow and stop a person suspected of drunk driving.

Drunk driver caught, thanks to Summer: "TAMPA - Weighing in at 40 pounds, Summer Moll doesn't have a badge or a gun, but deputies say her painful story of survival, of coming back from a deadly drunk driving crash on the Crosstown that killed her mother, is having an impact on the war against drunk driving.

BJ, who doesn't want his full name used, saw a driver weaving all over the interstate.

'It took about 20 miles before I could get anybody to get him stopped,' he said.

BJ called 911 and followed drunk driving suspect, Brian Beals. Turns out, court records show, it's Beals second DUI arrest.

'He almost hit four or five different vehicles including a bus,' BJ says. 'And after the little girl's mother got killed on the Crosstown, it was the right thing to do.'

BJ also says he's lost family to drunk drivers, and he's followed Summer's progress."

What's interesting for the BJ in this story is that it seems to have ben the death of the little girl's mother, not his own family member, that inspired his 20 mile chase. Whatever the reason, the more people are aware of the dangers of drunk driving, and the more negative emotional response they have to the idea, the less likely they may be to get behind the wheel of the vehicle after drinking too much.

Earlier today I blogged about some random California DUI Thoughts, and thought that I'd expand on it a little.

California DUI law has always been tough, and each year it seems to get a little tougher. After all, it borders Arizona, which without a doubt has the toughest DUI laws in the nation (and supposedly the only jail to be condemned by Amnesty International, but that's another story).

Look at California today... budget crisis. No gay marriage. Falling house values. Record high unemployment.

As a state falls from grace and as economic times go hard, there is a historic shift towards conservatism. If that is the case in California, my guess is that California DUI penalties will keep getting stiffer as the years go by.

It seems like every day there is a headline about either somebody killing somebody by driving under the influence, or a story about the defendant either pleading guilty to the DUI-manslaughter charge or being found guilty and sentenced. There has been a wide range of sentences reported in the last week. Let's look at a few:

In Santa Cruz, California - A young man got 8 years for an accident that could have killed a whole family and more than one of his passengers, and from which he attempted to flee. I have blogged about it at Santa Cruz California DUI Sentence.

Then there's Miami, where, if you are rich and perhaps can arrange a deal with the victim's family, then you get 30 days. For the whole story see Miami DUI Penalties - Wealthy Person Style.

Contrast that to a Pensacola Florida DUI homicide case where the defendant can't even make bail. For the story, see Pensacola DUI Homicide - Bail Denied.

So there's obviously a gap between the haves and the have-nots, and between states and even between counties when it comes to DUI penalties, right?

According to Oregon DUI Attorney Bart Herron, who has worked as both a private attorney and a public defender, good and dedicated defense lawyers always try to do a great job regardless of whether the client is privately retained or publicly appointed.

According to Florida DUI lawyer familiar with the case, all persons should be treated the same under the law. It is the DUI defense lawyer's duty to see that justice is in fact equal.

Still, you can't help but wonder if money and power have some influence. It worked for O.J. (for a while). It worked for Blake. It worked for Spector (for a while), but it didn't work for Martha or Wesley. It worked for Michael. Didn't work for Winona.

I'd like to believe in what Uncle Hub said in Secondhand Lions in his "what every boy needs to know about being a man speech," that people are basically good, and that money and power, power and money mean nothing.

In the DUI arena it remains to be seen.

The Pima County Sheriff in Tucson, Arizona is backing down from an ill-conceived plan to plant officers in the drive through windows late at night to nab impaired drivers who have the munchies.

The idea was to pub officers in the windows.

Hold the phone! This isn't within the definition of a roadblock. I would bet you that the $100k plus that the Governor's Office of Highway Safety planned to spend would turn into upward of a million in appeals fees, not to mention the fact that the practice would be shot down as unconstitutional.

According to Phoenix DUI Lawyer Stewart Bergman, there are several potential constitutional flaws in this plan. Therefore, it is a good thing that they scrapped it.

If there were Darwin awards for dumb DUI arrests, this Florida man would be in the running.

Man fearing DUI charge doesn't stop when woman flies out of truck | HeraldTribune.com | Sarasota Florida | Southwest Florida's Information Leader: "A Manatee man told authorities he kept driving when a woman flipped out of the bed of his pickup because he was afraid of a possible DUI charge, even though he saw her rolling on the pavement in his rearview mirror.

According to a Florida Highway Patrol report, the 54-year-old man was driving on 63rd Avenue East with a woman in the open back of the truck when she started pounding on the roof of the cab around 10 p.m. Wednesday.

When the driver looked to see what was happening, he veered left and the woman spilled out of the back. The man said he looked back and could see her rolling along the pavement on 63rd Avenue near Parkland Drive, the report said.

The man said he dropped off his son to check on the woman, but the report said the man’s son only looked at her from a distance. The man went home, then returned later to pick up his son, the report said.

By then, emergency workers had arrived and the woman was taken by helicopter to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg in serious condition, the report said.

After interviews, an FHP officer tracked down the driver at his home. He told the officer that he did not stop because he had consumed several beers prior to the incident, and did not want to face a charge of driving under the influence. He told the officer he had drank several more beers since arriving at home.

The officer then arrested James Allen Halsey Sr., 54, of Harvest Street in South Manatee, on a felony charge of leaving the scene of an accident with serious bodily injury."

Amazing what some people will ask their kids to do. Unbelievable.

Bart Herron, an Oregon DUI defense lawyer serving the greater Portland metro area has joined duiattorney.com. Bart Herron brings a wealth of knowledge and experience about Oregon DUI Law and Oregon DUI penalties. DUIAttorney.com is pleased to have Bart Herron on board and looks forward to his contributions to the project.

Below is an article that concisely sums up the penalty that a person is likely to receive for a first offense regular DUI in Arizona.

Tuitama enters guilty DUI plea, given probation | www.azstarnet.com ®: "Former University of Arizona quarterback Willie Tuitama pleaded guilty Monday to misdemeanor driving under the influence and was placed on 12 months of unsupervised probation.

Tuitama was also ordered to pay a $1,500 fine, attend a Mothers Against Drunk Driving impact panel and obtain an ignition interlock device for his car, said Tucson city prosecutor Laura Brynwood.

If Tuitama completes an alcohol evaluation and counseling program before Sept. 30, nine days of a 10-day jail term will be suspended, Brynwood said, adding Tuitama has already served the one day.

In exchange for his guilty plea, other counts against Tuitama were dismissed, including extreme DUI and a failure to stop at a red light.

Tuitama, 21, was pulled over in the area of North Campbell Avenue and East Hedrick Drive at 2:20 a.m. on March 6 after McDonald's employees near Campbell and East Fort Lowell Road flagged down a Tucson police sergeant about a suspected drunk driver at the drive-through."

This young man's arrest occurred when the extreme DUI laws still allowed the court to suspend 20 days of the 30 day mandatory minimum sentence. For any current arrest for extreme DUI, a court must impose a flat 30 day jail sentence if the person is found guilty of an unreduced extreme DUI.

According to Arizona DUI defense lawyer Stewart Bergman, some prosecutor's offices are asking for (and getting) more than the mandatory minimum sentence of regular DUIs for current arrests when an extreme DUI is reduced to a regular DUI.

Lindsay Berman, an author at DUIAttorney.com, posted a link to an very entertaining article written by a public defender. The letter is a worthwhile read for lawyers and clients alike. It describes the surreal reality that criminal defense lawyers in the public sector find themselves in.

Public Defender Vents on Craigslist : DUIAttorney.com: "check out a hilarious Craigslist posting from a fed-up PD, entitled 'Some Advice From Your Public Defender':"

Highly recommend you check it the craigslist article... very worthwhile read.

If the thought of killing somebody or yourself, losing your job, getting a DUI, ruining your liver, being a jerk and making bad decisions isn't enough to make you think twice about drinking more than one alcoholic drink a day, here's another factoid to add to the fire. Drinking in Women is now linked to cancer.

Women and alcohol: Why their health risks are greater than men's - Fox 28: South Bend, Elkhart IN News, Weather, Sports: "Women who have two or more drinks per day actually raise their risk for breast cancer. According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, women who choose to drink should limit alcoholic beverages to no more than one per day. This is especially important if the woman also has a family history of breast cancer. Recent data from a study of 1 million middle-aged women in the UK showed that moderate drinking increased their risk for many types of cancer. For every 1000 women, 15 more women were diagnosed with cancer in the moderate drinking group. Eleven out of these 15 women had breast cancer."

It doesn't surprise me that they have made this link, since drinking obviously lowers people's immune systems and makes them susceptible to other diseases as well.

Tragic and not necessarily DUI related, but worth taking a look at the full article quoted below to see the pictures of what a Jeep Cherokee is capable of doing when driven at a very high speed.

2 killed, more injured in weekend highway mayhem | KOMO News - Seattle, Washington | Local & Regional: "Probably the most spectacular accident involved a 2003 Jeep Cherokee that was streaking north at high speed on Pacific Avenue South in Parkland early Sunday near the intersection with Highway 512."

It was a busy week for strange driving news out of Washington State. For another one involving a kid arrested for DUI in the Seattle area while heavily armed, see my post Seattle DUI arrest...

It has been reported that actress Lori Petty has involved in a vehicle pedestrian accident while allegedly under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Under California DUI law, a drunk driving charge is a felony when it involves bodily injury to another person not the driver. California felony DUI carries harsher penalties than a regular DUI, as the injury is considered to be a sentence enhancer.

'League of Their Own' actress arrested on suspicion of DUI | L.A. Now | Los Angeles Times: "Actress Lori Petty was booked into the Van Nuys jail early this morning on suspicion of a felony drunk driving, officials said.

Petty, 45, was driving in Venice about 9:30 p.m. Saturday when she struck a young man on a skateboard, Los Angeles Police Officer Bruce Borihanh said.

‘The skateboarder was treated on the scene and released,’ he said.

The actress was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and booked four hours later.

Petty, who is known for her roles in ‘Point Break,’ ‘Tank Girl’ and ‘A League of Their Own,’ was released on $100,000 bail."

According to noted Los Angeles DUI Attorney Randall Longwith, it is much more difficult to defend high profile cases like this one because of the extra care needed to handle both the media and the publics prejudgment of the case.

I loved her in Point Break and wish her the best in getting through this tough time in her life. I also hope the person she allegedly hit is okay.