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.

Richmond City Councilman Marty Jewell Pleads No Contest to DUI

Fifth District Councilman Marty Jewell appeared in court yesterday for a DUI charge that occurred early on the morning of October 24th. He pled no contest to the charge. The “no contest” plea in a DUI case means that you are not stating or admitting guilt, but merely admitting that the government has enough evidence to convict you. He received a sentence of ninety days in jail, all of which was suspended. He was also ordered to pay the mandatory minimum $250 fine, and he is to enroll in a state run alcohol education program known as VASAP. His license has been suspended, but he is permitted to drive to and from work, including city council meetings and functions.

The charge came when Jewell was pulled over after attending a party with his son on the night of October 23rd. He was followed by a police officer across the Nickel Bridge, and then pulled over in the Byrd Park area of the city. His blood alcohol level was .11, which is over the .08 limit. He spent what was left of the night in jail.

Councilman Jewell has served the fifth district since 2004. He is also well known in Richmond for owning a popular cleaning service. He apologized to his fifth district constituents as well as the community, saying that he knows he made a mistake, and he will not make the same mistake again in the future.

He urged everyone to take a lesson from his situation. He deserves credit for taking responsibility; let’s hope he uses his experience to let police, judges and probation/VASAP supervisors know what parts of the process work and which parts don’t! Hopefully Councilman Jewell and his family will have a happy holiday season and better luck in the coming year.

This Week's Trifecta: Judicial, Legislative and Executive Branches Represent!

Judge Al "Barb" Sadler ought to know a thing or to about drunk driving cases. He's probably lectured numerous defendants about the dangers of drinking and driving, especially when it you're mixing your booze with pills. He's the guy pictured in the booking photo at left.

Unfortunately it was that old combination of alcohol and pills that got the Judge into trouble on March 4th. Judge Sandler rear-ended a woman and then failed the field sobriety test. This was his his first mistake. Once he failed the FST, the cops had him right where they wanted him.

Then the judge made a smart move, refusing to provide a breath sample. But with the evidence they already had from the failed FSTs, the cops got a warrant to draw blood. At that point, Judge Sadler agreed to provide a breath sample. But it was the blood that got him convicted. While his breath sample of .02 wasn't enough to get him charged with DUI, a combination of booze and phenobarbitol was discovered in his blood.

The Judge took a plea agreement that called for three days in jail. Somehow this meant that he would not actually serve any jail time, receiving credit for the time he spent locked up when initially arrested. Then the DA announced that this was a standard plea deal in a first offender DUI case. I know this is true because First Assistant DA Phil Grant said so, and he's my Brother Rat.

The legislative branch was also heard from this week. Alabama State Senator Zeb Little, their Senate Majority Leader, was arrested for DUI last week. Then he resigned from his other job as a municipal prosecutor, with responsibility for putting DUI defendants in jail, in Hanceville.

Ironically, Hanceville is located in Cullman, which is a dry county. To make matters worse, it turned out that Sen. Little had initially refused to stop for the cops when they hit the party light. And he had let his license expire. And he had an open container in the vehicle. And he refused to provide a breathalyzer sample.

At least that last part reflects good judgment on the part of a DUI suspect, and we need more people with good judgment in our state legislatures. I hope Sen. Little's wisdom and cool-under-fire reasoning skill is recognized. I would support him in a bid for governor of Alabama. Plus it would be safer. You know, with the driver and everything.

Finally, Chicago Police Officer Richard Fiorito made the news last week as a result of his DUI arrests. He was honored by MADD for making 313 DUI arrests in about a year and a half. Then he got sued by a bunch of homosexuals claiming that his charges were trumped up to harass them.

Allegedly, he "grabbed Shawn Rauch by the throat in the police station, shoved him against a wall and called him a slur for a homosexual." I guess it's OK to harass people with substance abuse problems, but once you start harassing people because of their sexual predilictions, that's over the line. Ironically, it used to be legal to harass the homosexuals, but not the drinking drivers.