Posted on 08/12/2005 11:36:01 AM PDT by Rodney King
McLEAN -- A Fairfax County judge has ruled that key components of Virginia's drunken-driving laws are unconstitutional, citing an obscure, decades-old U.S. Supreme Court decision that could prompt similar challenges nationwide.
Virginia's law is unconstitutional because it presumes that an individual with a blood-alcohol content of 0.08 or higher is intoxicated, denying a defendant's right to a presumption of innocence, Judge Ian O'Flaherty ruled in dismissing charges against at least two alleged drunken drivers last month.
As a district judge, O'Flaherty's rulings do not establish any formal precedent, but word of the constitutional argument is spreading quickly among the defense bar. Every state has similar presumptions about intoxication at a 0.08 blood-alcohol level, so defense lawyers across the nation are likely to make similar arguments....
(Excerpt) Read more at timesdispatch.com ...
Virginia's law is unconstitutional because it presumes that an individual with a blood-alcohol content of 0.08 or higher is intoxicated, denying a defendant's right to a presumption of innocence, Judge Ian O'Flaherty ruled in dismissing charges against at least two alleged drunken drivers last month.
You can't make this stuff up, but I'll try.
Afterwords the judge was heard to say, (in your best Irish accent) "Well now lads, what say we tip a pint or two of stout to celebrate the end of the day."
Best Regards Sergio
This decision is so irrational that the perp involved must be black, a minority or related to himself.
WHAT ABOUT THESE PEOPLE!!
ARE THEY CRIMINALS AS YOUR POSITION STATES????
YES OR NO
ILLINOIS DUI DEFENSE CASES ILLINOIS CRIMINAL DEFENSE CASES
Hyperlinking widget for 1-800-Dial-DUI and dialdui.com
To: Don Ramsell:
I just wanted to "Thank You" again for making it possible for my son to get on with his life. I have watched him straighten out his life and now he has a chance.
When everything looked hopeless, you were still there fighting for us, win or lose. Even when it took six prosecutors against one, you kept on protecting us. You must love your profession because you are so good at it. Without you, a "Not Guilty" verdict would not have been possible.
I will never forget you!
A satisfied Ramsell, Armamentos & Klis client
Oooops, not a FEDERAL judge!
Alcohol affects everyone differntly as you have stated. People also build a tolerance. I have a friend who's BAC probably hasn't been below 0.2 since '63 but he is functional and probably drives better than 50% of the "non drunk's" on the road.
The BAC laws are really a travestry.
The other problem is the hodgepodge of enforcement. It depends who pulls you over and where you are, whether you are convicted of DWI or it is reduced to another violation. In some places, they can actually "take" your vehicle and acution it off.
When New Jersey was getting ready to lower the limit, as a reporter I asked the State Police to show me the study that indicated the need. The spokesman laughed and said there was no study. There was no evidence that alcohol-related deaths would decline by dropping the limit.
A woman ran in front of guy's car in New York City the other day and was killed. He had the light and wasn't speeding and had a reading of 0.78, two-tenths under. The Daily News wrote him up as a beer-guzzling blah-blah-blah. That guy had four beers at the Mets game so you're really pushing your luck if you think you can drink four beers, drive and be sure you're under the limit.
BTW, no word from the cops if the woman was commiting suicide by oncoming car. They couldn't charge the guy with DUI so they hit him with driving while impaired, the same charge Fedorov got when the cops pulled him over all whacked out and he was under the limit.
Cops could arrest these guys left and right by waiting outside bars at midnight.
Know what gets me?? The police approval of 60 thousand fans coming out of a Eagles/Giants 4pm game 3/4 lit. You ever see a DUI check point outside ANY stadium?? Hell they smoke dope in an area reserved for pot smokers in the stairwell.
Yet my kid has two beers after work , gets caught at .10 and loses CDL for a year...real fair.....
I'm sure a decent fraction of them are, yes.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
How does the state determine the blood-alcohol level of a person? Are they not causing the person to unconstitutionally be a witness against himself if they extract blood or breath?
The 5th Amendment to the Constitution.
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
Would you rather be on the highway with a bunch of people who had 1 drink, or a bunch of people who were yapping on their cell phones?
ALCOHOL-RELATED DEATHS, 1994-2003
AS A PERCENT OF ALL CRASH DEATHS
Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Yeah, I don't know exactly, but I know that it has already been litigated numerous times, in favor of the state.
Do they do that? No."
They do in Looziana.
Even this figure is meaningless without a baseline number.
What percentage of traffic fatalities are caused by drivers who are stone-cold sober?
Implied consent. Essentially, you have consented to the "tests" when you accept the drivers license. So ruled by the courts.
Your choice is to not drive, or drive without a license, or consent to any sobriety test if the officer has "probable cause" to pull you over. Therein lies the problem, as the probable cause is your word against the officer. They always win. The only way you can win is if the paperwork is wrong, or if the stop is on video and the officer does something wrong.
I was pulled over for failure to signal when I exited the interstate (wasn't a soul around -- highway deserted). The officer asked if I had been drinking, I replied yes. He made me do the walk, recite the alphabet, the "eye" test and blow twice. He really wanted to arrest me, but couldn't as I was well below the legal BAC.
0.078
At 0.78 he'd be very much dead.
SD
Lets not let the facts get in the way of a good story :-)
Highest BAC I ever saw was .29 and the girl was near death...
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