Cop Retires, Gets Fancy Reporter Job, Drives Drunk into Police Horse...

It is truly amazing how many different ways there are to get a DUI. Just ask TV Newsman Mike Sheehan. He recently got charged with DWI according to this article in the NYDailyNews.com website. To the left is an actual screen shot of the website that shows his vehicle and his official Fox photo.

Mike should know something about the dangers of drunk driving, because he's an ex-cop! As a former NYPD detective, he must have many stories of collaring nefarious perps. But unfortunately ex-detective Sheehan found himself on the wrong side of the law recently.

Apparently he ran into a police horse, injuring the officer and damaging his own vehicle. That is a real shame when innocent animals get hurt. I certainly don't approve of DUI's that hurt animals (or anyone, for that matter). I wonder what type of discussion took place after the accident. I'm pretty confident that Sheehan identified himself as ex-NYPD.

A lot of cops might have skipped the DUI investigation as a courtesy to a former copper. But hey, when you hurt a man's horse or dog, you gotta expect retribution, whether it's the wild wild west or the upper-west side. By the way, Sheehan's lawyer is blaming the horse. Seriously. The horse.

Just When you Thought it was Safe to be Drunk on a Barstool...

Driving under the Influence is a fascinating subject. No matter how hard our legislators try to define the acts that are illegal and merit punishment, there is always a guy who wants to figure out a new way to test the limits. Kile Wygle, for example has constructed a magnificent new contraption consisting of a bar stool that is motorized by a lawn mower engine.

Unfortunately, he recently fell off his bar stool, apparently while driving it around his Ohio neighborhood. Sadly, this is also an example of someone talking himself into a DUI. According to the police report, Kile made a number of statements to the police officer investigating the crash, stating that he had been driving the stool, that he had not consumed any drinks since the accident, and stating that he had consumed approximately 15 beers before wrecking the bar stool.

This story emphasizes a classic lesson for anyone who is ever questioned by the police. Don't say anything. Show them your identification and don't say another word. Without Mr. Wygle's admissions, it might be very difficult for the prosecution to prove that he was the driver, that he had been drinking, or that any subsequent BAC wasn't tainted by post-driving consumption of alcohol. I once had a client who I helped get off a DUI charge after he ran his truck into a ditch. According to the officer, he was too intoxicated to answer questions about when the accident took place or whether he drank more after the wreck.

Would this act of buzzed barstoolery count as a DUI in Virginia? Probably. The General Assembly has been tightening loopholes in the DUI statutes for decades. Until 2005, a moped was not considered a motor vehicle and could not support a DUI. But the Virginia Statute on Drunk Driving specifically includes motor vehicles, defined as "every vehicle as defined in this section that is self-propelled or designed for self-propulsion except as otherwise provided in this title", and it specifically excludes "any device herein defined as a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped shall be deemed not to be a motor vehicle." Note: yes mopeds are included, but that is specific to the definition of DUI in §18.2-266.

We then must determine whether this contraption is a "bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device," or an "electric power-assisted bicycle". Bicycle is defined as "propelled solely by human power", so that is out. I wonder if it would count if a human used a hand crank to charge a battery while sober, and then... nah - maybe in California, but not in Virginia. What about an "electric personal assistive mobility device"? Nope - this is electrically powered, and from the "self-balancing two-nontandem-wheeled device" language, I'm pretty sure they're talking about a Segway.

Would it be legal to operate a Segway while under the influence? I recommend you not try, and it is specifically re-defined as a "vehicle" (not a "motor vehicle", mind you), when operated on a public highway. I would imagine this includes crossing the street. Don't tempt the Virginia Court of Appeals. Then there is the "electric power-assisted bicycle". Sadly, the barstool fails here as well, for lack of pedals and an electric motor, not to mention the troublesome fourth wheel. It seems then that Virginia is just as adept at statutory inclusion of unusual vehicles as Ohio. Best of luck to Kile - maybe you should construct your next vehicle with the Ohio statutes in mind?

Another Cop Busted for DUI!!!

Probably no big shock here, but the government's plan to use police to stop Drunk Driving has backfired. This time it was 3 year veteran of the Chatanooga Tennessee Police, Josh Turner, who ran into a pole in his 2004 Mercedes. I wonder if he bought the Mercedes with overtime pay earned prosecuting DUI cases. Officer Turner's actions resulted in the pole falling and hitting the windshield of another vehicle. Fortunately there are no injuries that have been reported as a result. This serves as another great example of why the DUI laws constantly fail: they are meant to fail.

If the people we are counting on to stop drunk driving are getting DUI's, how can the system ever work? The secret key to this mystery is the nature of alcohol. Many people overlook the fact that alcohol is a drug. When used in the intended manner, it causes reduced judgment. People feel sober and believe they will be able to make it home safely. They also feel that even if they are close to the limit, they will drive well enough not to get caught.

This problem can easily be solved by a little machine that attaches to the ignition and ensures that the driver is sober before the car can be started. Why don't the manufacturers put them on every new car and stamp out DUI? Is it because they enjoy the profit from selling a new car every time an old car gets wrecked in a DUI?

Virginia DUI Attorney Bob Battle Discovers Accuracy Problem in VA DUI Breathalyzer

Richmond Virginia DUI attorney Bob Battle recently won a case before it even went to trial. Battle was prepared to have an expert witness hook an oscilloscope up to the DUI breath analysis machine and find out what really takes place. But according to this article, "Manufacturer CMI Inc. has refused to disclose the source code that would allow an independent analysis of the device."

Apparently, the source code or basic software program that runs the machine is too secret for even the defendants who are charged with DUI to examine. This makes little sense. If you have a Sixth Amendment right to cross examine witnesses, shouldn't you have the right to find out what instructions are running the machine that is trying to put you in jail?

We have all lived with modern machinery and computers long enought to know that they are not infallible. For example, the breathalyzer will give a falsely high reading for a driver who has a fever. The same is true for a driver with a low partition ratio that does not conform to the machine's 2100:1 "standard" ratio assumption.

How can you get a fair trial in Virginia on a DUI charge? The only way to beat a DUI charge if you have been falsely accused is to hire a top tier DUI lawyer who has the skill and experience to demand that your rights be observed. I recommend Bob Battle to drivers charged with DUI in the Richmond area. If you have been charged without strong evidence and need help to get off a DUI charge, make sure your DUI attorney is one of the best.

Your DUI Situation Can't be as Bad as This: She got 3 DUIs in 3 Days!

Meet Jo A. Trilling. She looks like a kindly grandmother type. But unfortunately she has recently been the subject of three DUI charges in three days. This article alleges that while on vacation is Wisconsin, she was the subject of three DUI charges in 72 hours. Two of those resulted in BAC readings of .21 and .16. These would constitute aggravated DUI charges in VA. Luckily, she was not in Virginia, where a 3rd DUI can be charged as a felony.

Apparently the police at one point found her in her car with a box of Black Fox wine. I have never had Black Fox wine, but usually the kind of wine that one finds in boxes is pretty cheap. And cheap wine can make for a brutal hangover. I'm sure that hangover wasn't as bad as the 30 days in jail that Ms. Trilling was apparently serving as a result of her charges. I hope she doesn't get caught again, but if she is the registered owner of a car without an ignition interlock, we can thank the alcohol industry (including the government).

Bus Driver Arrested for DUI Blows 0.24% BAC... While on Duty!

Meet Alonzo V. Martin. This unfortunate gentleman had the distinction to be selected as a full-time bus driver in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota in February of this year. Sadly, that will probably be the pinnacle of Alonzo's bus driving career. According to this article, he blew a 0.24% BAC - and the limit for DUI is 0.8% for most drivers, but only 0.4% for commercial drivers. When you blow six times the limit, things are likely to go poorly in court.

Obviously drunk driving is dangerous and must be discouraged. But when the driver is responsible for the transportation of an entire bus full of passengers, it takes on a whole new level of risk. Not to mention the added danger posed by a vehicle of that size.

Mr. Martin looks very disappointed in this picture. Hopefully he will be able to walk away from this experience with the benefit of a good lesson. On the other hand, maybe he's innocent and an aggressive DUI lawyer will prove that the breath analysis isn't accurate. After, all, it is quite possible for a sober person who has recently rinsed with mouthwash to provide a very high BAC sample without being drunk at all.

But that is unlikely, and following proper police procedures will generally rule out the mouthwash defense. I'm thankful that nobody was injured or killed in this DUI case. I'd like to know what it would cost to equip every bus with an ignition interlock device. Maybe MADD would use some of their millions in funding to actually prevent a DUI rather than advocating ever harsher punishments for the unfortunate few that are caught.

Latest Cop Busted for DUI: Yakima Washington's Tarin Miller

Well folks, it looks like it's happened again. Everybody knows that alcohol is a drug. And when it comes to the distribution of narcotics, no cartel in the world can compare to the United States Government and it's political subdivisions, the states. Billions in revenue are derived by these governments through the sale of alcohol, the most pervasive substance of abuse in the Western World.

It's ironic that the states sell this drug, and then expect that people who use their product as intended will make good decisions. Officer Tarin Miller allegedly blew a BAC over 0.16% alcohol, which is more than twice the legal limit! Why do law enforcement officers keep getting arrested for DUI? Don't they get exposure to the constant barrage of warnings against drinking and driving? Don't they hear the alcohol manufacturer's warnings to "drink responsibly"?

Wait a minute. How can you drink responsibly? When people drink, their inhibitions and judgment are reduced. Can people abuse recreational substances responsibly? Or is this just a false plea from the dealers who really don't care whether you are responsible, as long as you keep drinking and they keep profiting? The truth is that cops are just like the rest of us. Nobody wants to drive drunk. But the government keeps selling us recreational drugs and allowing the manufacturers to advertise these substances on our airwaves.

I hope the allegations are somehow false and Tarin Miller is actually innocent. Perhaps a good DUI lawyer can keep her out of jail. But on the other hand, one has to wonder why the state of Washington allows people to drive cars without ignition interlocks. If nobody could drive drunk, there would be no DUIs, no injuries, no deaths, and tremendous tax savings from the reduced need for police resources. Could it be that the state actually wants continued DUI problems in order to keep selling more alcohol to drivers, to keep employing more police, and to keep getting more DUI fines? Hmmmm.

Newsflash: Catching a Buzz with Friends now Believed to be Healthy

"Having a supportive social network enhances the health benefits of having a few drinks, new research from Japan suggests." That is the conclusion of a Reuters article posted on MSNBC today. Apparently the use of recreation substances may not actually be all bad. And enjoying a buzz with friends (what many people would call a party) is apparently even better because it encourages the healthy activity of drinking alcohol!

Light to moderate drinking has been noted as a beneficial activity that helps stroke and heart disease by the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. Of course, these findings do not extend to heavy drinking, which is generally considered unhealthy. And it is never a good idea to drive drunk, although most people are able to have a drink or two and still be able to drive home safely.

Food for thought, especially in the context of the agenda that many do-gooding buttinsky's advocate. Some people would criminalize those who drive home with even a minimal blood alcohol content. What they need to keep in mind is that most adult drinkers who are below today's 0.08% BAC limit are not causing them any undue risk, but retain the ability to drive cautiously.