Another Elected Official Arrested for DUI

What is more embarrassing?  Getting busted for DUI as a city council member, or getting busted for DUI in a minivan? Well look no further than seventy-two year old city councilman William J. Craig of LaFayette. Georgia.

He should be able to answer that question after his arrest on Wednesday night. According to reports, Trooper Jason Geddie stopped Craig’s minivan around 11:00 Wednesday night after noticing the vehicle driving erratically.

Upon speaking with Craig, the trooper noticed the smell of alcohol, and administered field sobriety tests. He was then taken to the Walker County Jail for a breath test. He blew .12. He was charged with DUI after all testing was complete. He was reportedly cooperative with police through the entire process.

Craig joined the city council in January of 2008, and has served in several administrative roles throughout his career. DUI’s everywhere are frowned upon. The defendants are looked at as “bad people”. This case proves once again that anyone who drinks can find themselves defending their innocence in court. Several states have begun using ignition interlock devices for repeat offenders in DUI cases. Why not put them on ALL vehicles registered in EVERY state to prevent one’s first offense from ever happening? Why can’t all legislators starting at the city council level push for such laws?

This is just one more example of the truth that MADD and the justice system don't want you to know.  The very people who rant and rave about drunk driving and try to demonize those who get caught are just as guilty as the rest.  Nobody who gets behind the wheel above the legal limit knows whether they are above or below the limit, but they feel like they are perfectly fine to drive.  That's because the government's narcotics distribution conspiracy is pushing ethyl alcohol, an insidious drug that makes people lose their judgment.  It's a guaranteed recipe for disaster.  Drunk driving disaster.

Another Legislator Cited for DWI - Louisiana's Bobby Badon Joins the Hall of Shame

Louisiana State Police cited State Representative Bobby Badon with a DWI Monday night after he was pulled over for a traffic violation. According to reports, Badon was stopped just after 11:30 p.m.. When the arresting officer noticed signs that he may be impaired by alcohol, he was taken to the police station where he submitted a breath sample. The test showed a blood alcohol level of .125. The limit is .08, so he was charged with DWI.

Reports say that following the arrest, Badon was driven home because the Lafayette Parish Correctional Center was at maximum capacity with one person already waiting. I wonder why the one person who was waiting for a spot in the jail wasn’t sent home to the comfort of his home. Or is it common in Louisiana for people who are arrested and awaiting jail for certain crimes to just be sent home because there isn’t room for them?

Badon is reportedly a life-long resident of Carencro. He was elected to represent the Lafayette, St. Landry and St. Martin parishes in 2007 in the House of Representatives for the state of Louisiana. Reports say he underwent double bypass surgery in October. His office is expected to address the media later today. Hopefully he’s learned from his mistakes and can turn this arrest into a positive thing by setting an example for everyone. Anyone who drinks can get a DUI without something in place to help their impaired judgment, not just the common alcoholic.

Utah Senator Arrested for DUI - NOW UPDATED

UPDATE - Sheldon Killpack resigned today after making a public statement in which he told the people of Utah that he did not want to be distracted or to be a distraction as he recovers from his DUI charge.  Unfortunately it seems that he drank the kool-aid and feels that he is no longer worthy to serve as a state senator.  This is a terrible shame - everybody makes mistakes, and Killpack could have made a real difference with a universal ignition interlock bill - a measure that would actually have some effect on the tragic consequences of DUI.

Utah Senate Majority Leader Sheldon Killpack was arrested Friday morning on suspicion of driving under the influence, according to the Utah Highway Patrol. He was stopped after his vehicle was seen being driven erratically. The trooper noticed "a strong odor of alcohol" and asked Killpack to perform field sobriety tests, according to reports. He performed the tests but refused a breath test. A blood test was later obtained.

According to news reports, Killpack’s own father was killed by a drunk driver, and he has always stood against drunk driving.   Killpack is also a member of the Mormon Church, which is well known for the official church policy of abstaining from alcohol.  He was even the Senate sponsor for a bill that would allow habitual drunk drivers to have their vehicles seized by the state. Reports say that he also sponsored legislation last year that allows drunken drivers to plead to a reduced charge of impaired driving and go to a DUI court. It was thought that this would speed up cases and send the drivers to treatment.  If someone who is completely morally opposed to DUI winds up in this situation, is it any wonder that drunk driving continues to kill people?

I do give Killpack credit because he apparently didn’t tell the arresting officer who he was during the arrest. At least he wasn’t trying to get himself out with his “powers” like so many seem to think they can do. But again, this is a story about the very person who should be working to keep our streets safer being the one making them dangerous. Hopefully Killpack will learn from his mistake and realize how strong of a drug alcohol really is.  Nobody can make a good decision about whether or not to get behind the wheel after consuming enough alcohol to impair his ability to drive.  Killpack needs to use his law-making abilities to put laws in place to prevent this problem *before* it starts, not after it is too late! If this case doesn't wake people up to the need for an ignition interlock in every car sold in America, nothing will.

Judge Sends Massachusetts Senator to Jail After his Toothpaste Defense Didn't Hold up in Court

Massachusetts Senator Anthony Galluccio will be spending a year in jail for violating his probation after being convicted of DUI. According to reports, Gallucio was involved in a hit and run accident in October where a father and son were injured.

Gallucio was given two years probation, and also ordered to undergo random urine tests, and use a Sobrietor, a portable device for monitoring blood-alcohol content to make sure that he was not drinking. Galluccio has to breathe into the device at random times during the day. Galluccio also lost his driver's license for five years and was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine. He got a jail sentence that was suspended.

It was less than a week after sentencing, on December 21st, when probation office worker, Michael Jacobs, showed up at Galluccio’s home to perform the alcohol test. According to reports, not only one, but two breath tests were failed during the visit. Galluccio denied drinking any alcohol that day, and argued that it must have been his toothpaste that caused the positive result.

Cambridge District Court Judge Matthew Nestor did not buy the “toothpaste defense” in court Monday. Galluccio even flew in an expert to testify that by hair sample, he had tested Galluccio, and it was proven that he had not consumed alcohol. But the test was not approved by the court, and the Judge sent Galluccio away in handcuffs. Reports have referenced the fact that the October crash was not Galluccio’s first encounter with the law over alcohol. Maybe a year in the slammer will teach him that being a senator doesn’t give him special treatment!

Maybe his senator friends will fight for laws helping to prevent DUI's while he's behind bars, like mandating ignition interlock devices on ALL vehicles.  Of course, we should always remember that alcohol testing in the criminal context is pathetically inaccurate.  It is definitely possible for a person who hasn't had a drink to provide a breath sample that a machine will report as positive for alcohol.  Maybe the Senator's cronies will pass a law banning the horrific guilt machines that lie silent outside of our courthouses, pointing the finger of blame at people.

This Week's Big Virginia DUI News Story... Former U.S. Congressman Vito Fossella Going to Jail

This gentleman is former U.S. Congressman Vito Fossella. He's been serving the people of New York for 12 years. This weekend he'll be serving time in a Virginia jail. That's because he blew a 0.17% BAC after running a red light in Alexandria, just across the river from Washington D.C. His DUI contains some very important lessons for anyone charged with DUI in Virginia.

First, it is worth noting that this guy is going to jail. This in and of itself is amazing, and it demonstrates the tremendous odds in favor of the prosecution here in Virginia. You can be certain that Vito is not a poor man. He could afford the best criminal defense attorneys in Virginia. But despite their presentation of the most compelling evidence they could come up with, he is still going to serve the mandatory minimum sentence of 5 days in jail (although he gets a day of credit from being locked up when he was arrested).

His defense team was prepared to argue that his breath test was inaccurate due to a Purell hand sanitizer containing alcohol that he had used 9 hours earlier (sounds kinda dubious). Also, it was claimed that the breath testing machine was inaccurate because of radio wave interference (not normally a great argument, but the machine allegedly misspelled the cops name on the certificate - a great argument). But the problem they ran into was the Virginia jury sentencing rule.

In most states you can try a DUI case to a jury, which gives you better odds than trial before a judge. But if you do that in Virginia, juries that convict also impose a sentence. Which makes this outcome understandable. You never know what a jury will do as demonstrated by the OJ Simpson acquittal and subsequent conviction. His defense tried to make it sound like Vito decided to plead guilty because it was the right thing to do in the wake of the recent tragic death of LA Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart. I think his true motivation was the thought of spending a year in jail. That's the maximum sentence, but this was an aggravated DUI, and with Virginia juries, you never know.

The second point of interest was the fact that Mr. Fossella is getting weekend time. My experience with Virginia courts is that mandatory minimum time is always straight time - no weekends and no work release. That means I'll be citing this case from now on in every mandatory minimum case if the client is convicted. No longer are Virginia's judges shackled to any sort of unofficial policy on such sentencing options.

The third point of interest is Vito's fatal flaw. If you know you are drunk and the police want a breath sample, you are less likely to serve time in jail (especially on a first offense) if you refuse. When you provide a breath sample, you never have any idea what will result. Will it be 0.14 (no mandatory minimum sentence), 0.15 (five days), or 0.20 (ten days)? If you don't know, you probably shouldn't blow. Of course, the refusal carries a 12 month hard suspension with no restricted driving privileges. So if you prefer jail to a hard license suspension, feel free to take your chances.

Here's what I want to know: how many bills did this guy vote for that ratcheted up the penalties for DUI? I wonder how he's going to feel about those votes as he sits in jail this weekend? Also, how much money did MADD get from the federal government while this guy was serving, and will they return a pro rata share of those funds? Could it be that MADD is really all about money rather than taking an ethical stand on drunk drivers?