Olympia DUI Lawyer Blog

In Florida, a naked man was pulled over on interstate 75. The man was unable to tell police where he was coming from or why he was naked. He was arrested and booked on charges of DUI. He has 4 prior DUI convictions.

In Washington, not only could this man be charged with indecent exposure, if his 4 prior DUI convictions occurred within the last 10 years, he could be charged with felony DUI.

The Washington State Supreme Court ruled in City of Seattle v. St. John
that police can obtain a warrant to perform a blood draw on a DUI suspect even after that suspect refuses a blood alcohol content (BAC) test. The court ruled that neither the implied consent statue, due process, nor equitable estoppel preclude an officer from seeking a search warrant. Justice Owens authored the opinion, joined by all but the two dissenters: Justice Sanders and Justice Johnson.

The Washington State Supreme Court ruled in State v. Rivera-Santos that a DUI that crosses state lines can be tried in both the outside state and in Washington under Washington law without violating double jeopardy. Santiago Rivera-Santos allegedly drove a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol from southern Washington into northern Oregon on January 12, 2007. Rivera-Santos was convicted of DUI in Oregon. The Supreme Court ruled that though he had previously been convicted of DUI in Oregon, he can also be charged in Washington without violating Washington's double jeopardy statue as the crime was committed in two separate jurisdictions.

19 states, including Washington, have laws prohibiting texting while driving. In most state, violation of texting while driving and/or violating hands-free device rules is punishable only by a fine. Utah recently enacted SB149 by unanimous vote, which criminalizes texting while driving. The new law effectively elevates violation of the texting while driving law such that it is punishable by the same penalties as DUI. The bill mandates that the first offense for texting while driving is a misdemeanor. If a texting driver inflicts bodily injury in an accident, they can be convicted of a Class A misdemeanor or a third-degree felony. A driver who is texting can also face a third-degree felony charge if they have two prior texting convictions within the past 10 years or if an accident while texting results in a death.

In Washington, texting while driving and driving while using a phone without a hands-free device are both currently secondary infractions, which means that law enforcement can not pull drivers over for violation of these rules unless there is another permissible reason for the stop, such as speeding, etc. This could change, however, if the bill sponsored by Senators Robert Menendez (NJ), Charles Schumer (NY) Mary Landrieu (A), and Kay Hagan (NC) that seeks to deny highway funding from states that do not implement the ban after two years passes. Though highway bills are not mandatory on the states, if a state chooses not to adopt the bill it will not receive highway funding from the federal government. Highway bills and the money that comes attached to adopting them resulted in every state adopting the national drinking age of 21 and the blood alcohol content (BAC) limit of .08, and may also result in mandatory ignition interlock devices for those convicted of DUI should the pending house bill sponsored by MADD pass.

People make mistakes. Clients often come to me horrified that they have been charged with a DUI. I tell them that good people can make mistakes. Perhaps they will be more inclined to believe me when I tell them that a nun from Long Island was charged with DUI after crashing her church's van into a tree. She registered a BAC of .18, over twice the legal limit. An open container of alcohol was found in her church vehicle. Anyone, simply anyone, can make a mistake.

Washington State Patrol is targeting those with active warrants on DUI cases. Troopers are working with the Mason County Prosecutor's office to apprehend the 1,160 defendants who have missed court on DUI charges. Mason county is asking those with DUI warrants to call Mason County District Court at (360) 427-9670, ext. 339 to learn how to quash their warrants.

Recent headlines regarding the Cleavland Brown's Donte Stallworth's DUI manslaughter conviction have been centering around his apologies for the crime. Stallworth, who struck and killed pedestrian Mario Reyes while driving drunk with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .126, served 24 days in jail. Upon his release from jail, he has to now serve 2 years of home confinement. Stallworth will now be able to leave his house to go train with coach Pete Bommarito, even though he is not technically employed with the NFL. (Typically, in Washington, defendant's who are on "house arrest," or electric home monitoring, are allowed to leave their homes to attend work.)

Compare that to local Thurston County resident Karen Lynn Clark, who pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide yesterday in exchange for a 30 month prison sentence. I am sure Clark would have greatly preferred 24 days in the county jail followed by 24 months of staying at home- let alone a home as nice as Stallworth's.

An interesting data release indicated that, based on statistics gathered by the FBI, in 2007, the number of women taken into custody in for DUI was 28.8 percent greater in 2007 than it was in 1998, while the number of men apprehended was 7.5 percent lower. The numbers were taken from just 56 percent of the country, though Alfred Blumstein, a Carnegie Mellon criminologist, states "the trend probably holds true for the country as a whole."

What happens to your driver's license if you plead guilty to an amended charge of reckless driving or a negligent driving 1rst degree from DUI? In Washington, when you get pulled over for a DUI, the police officer faxes the report he or she creates to the department of licensing. if you blow above the legal limit of .08 or refuse the breath test at the station, the department of licensing will send you a letter stating that they will suspend your license 60 days after the date you get pulled over. If you do not contest that suspension by requesting a hearing, your license will automatically become suspended on that date. If you end up pleading guilty to an amended charge of Negligent Driving in the First Degree, you will face no additional license suspension other than the administrative suspension. If you plead guilty to Reckless Driving, you will face an additional 30 day license suspension on top of the original administrative suspension. It is important that you talk to a qualified DUI attorney who can help you with the specific facts of your case.

In Olympia, Thurston County District Court began a new program last week aimed at helping veterans who wind up in legal troubles. The new Veterans' Court focuses on providing vets who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury(TBI), and other problems associated with recovering from the trauma of war with the necessary treatment and support. The veterans in this court wind up with legal troubles, such as assault or domestic violence charges as well as DUI. Rather than merely punishing the behavior in the form of jail time, this program seeks to get defendants out of jail sooner and get them them hooked up with mental health and chemical dependency treatment. The court meets weekly and serves as both a support group for the vets as well as a way to monitor participants' progress. If participants re-offend or stop doing their treatment, Judge Buckley, the veteran court Judge who is a former JAG member and the son of a veteran, has the ability to impose sanction up to making the participants serve the remainder of their suspended sentences.

This program was spearheaded by members of Thurston County's Mental Health Court as well as local public defender Alex Frix, who is the son of a two star general. While growing up, Frix saw the impact that PTSD had on this father and other military members and families, and recognized the need for this specialized court during his representation of veterans charged with crimes in the county. Though veterans previously had the ability to enter mental health court, that court presented some problems for veterans. I previously represented a veteran charged various domestic violence crimes in Thurston County District Court who suffered from both PTSD and TBI. In that case, the prosecutor would not agree to allow my client entrance into mental health court, which is a requirement prior to the Judge allowing entry. The prosecutor felt that though my client suffered from mental health issues, mental health court was not appropriate as this prosecutor viewed veterans mental health problems as different than those defendants who typically wind up in mental health court. Beyond the hurdle of getting prosecutors to agree on mental health court, veterans too often often don't want to enter that court due to the stigma of suffering from mental health problems. Hopefully, now that Thurston County has a court tailored towards veteran specific mental heath issues, veterans can seek comfort in knowing that others who have gone through comparable combat situations have developed similar mental health problems.

Seattle Seahawk Owen Schmitt, who was arraigned on a DUI charge earlier this month pleaded guilty to an amended charge of Reckless Driving this week. Schmitt was sentenced to various terms imposed on every dui conviction including alcohol assessment and follow up treatment as well as a victim's impact panel. Schmitt will also have to perform 24 hours of community service and pay $2,130. Reckless driving does not carry the mandatory jail time that comes with a DUI conviction. It does, however, carry a 30 day license suspension in addition to any administrative suspension the department of licensing imposed upon initial arrest.

Washington State Patrol officers working out of the Olympia airport are now using airplanes to catch DUI and Reckless Driving suspects. When callers speak with 911 representatives, the 911 worker contacts the operator of "Smokey 3," a plane used by Washington State Patrol. The plane's operator calls the complaining party, and uses the information provided by him or her to track down the suspect vehicle and relay the vehicle's location to law enforcement on the ground. Beyond just tracking down location, Smokey 3 is also equipped with a gyro-stabilized video camera attached to the side of the aircraft. It's called a Forward-Looking Infrared or FLIR camera. According to an NPR article, the camera is "similar to ones used by the military, it has night-vision capabilities and can lock-in on a vehicle zipping down the freeway." The camera records the driver, and prosecutors then have access to these recordings to use against DUI suspects in court. 911 dispatch also has access to the driving the camera records, and relays what he or she sees to law enforcement on the ground. This cutting-edge technology is not cheap. Washington did not have to pony up for this capability out of our budget as Uncle Sam picked up the several hundred thousand dollar bill in the form of a Homeland Security Grant. Washington State is currently the only state that utilizes this technology to apprehend drunk drivers.

In Olympia, The Washington State Supreme Court, in a unanimous opinion, reinstated a $14 million award in a DUI case.

The plaintiff in the case, Bianca Faust, sued The Bellingham Moose Lodge and Alexis Chapman a bartender of the lodge, as well as the Estate of Hawkeye Kinkaide. Kincaide, who was Alexis Chapman's boyfriend, drank at the Bellingham Moose Lodge where he was served by Chapman. There was evidence that had not consumed alcohol prior to arriving at the tavern and that at the time of the collision he was above the blood alcohol content (BAC) legal limit. When he drove away from the lodge, he collided with a car driven by Bianca Faust. The impact killed Kincaide, paralyzed Faust's minor son and injured Faust.

The Appellate Court overturned the $14 million jury award for injuries sustained to Faust and her family. The issue in the case related to the type and level of evidence required to prove that a tavern's bartender(s) negligently continued to serve drinks to a visibly intoxicated patron. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that evidence sufficient to submit the issue of negligent overservice to a jury may be either direct or circumstantial and that evidence of BAC and autopsy reports can corroborate evidence of postservice appearance and support an inference that a defendant appeared under the influence at the time he was served.

A man in Kansas City was taken to the hospital for blood tests after being arrested on suspicion of DUI. At the hospital, the man stole an ambulance and attempted to flee the scene. Law enforcement chased the man for almost an hour prior to laying down stop sticks. The chase ended after the suspect ran into a pole, causing damage to the ambulance. Even after the crash, the suspect still tried to flee, but was apprehended after being bit by a police dog.

In Washington, upon arrest for suspicion of DUI, an officer will offer the suspect a breath or blood test. You may refuse the test if you choose unless the officer gets a warrant authorized by a judge to perform a blood draw. Refusing a breath test has serious consequences including potential loss of a driver's license and higher mandatory minimum jail time and fines if ultimately convicted of DUI.

Stars of two popular 70's sitcoms were cited for DUI within the last week. Eddie Mekka, better known as "The Big Ragoo" Ragusa on Laverne and Shirley was arrested on suspicion of DUI after a car accident in Las Vegas last week. Mekka's arrest occurred one day prior to Joyce Dewitt's citation for DUI. Dewitt, who played Janet on Three's Company, was arrested for DUI on the 4th of July after driving through a barricade in El Segundo, California. What would Mr. Roper think?

On a more serious note, celebrity DUI arrests, though sometimes voyeuristically entertaining, serve as a reminder that DUIs happen to people from all walks of life. It is important to consult an attorney when charged with DUI to ensure that you receive every protection available to you under the law. DUI convictions have serious, long term impacts, including mandatory jail time and a license suspension, and are are not to be taken lightly.