Criminal Law

Wackiest DUIs of the Week...and More

Posted on June 12, 2008
Check out Total DUI's latest updates of celebrity DUI news, DUIs that don't involve cars and all-out zany DUIs.

Arizona Cranks Up Penalties for "Extreme" DUI

Posted on June 09, 2008
Arizona governor Janet Napolitano signed into effect another new chapter in what is becoming one of the country's toughest set of DUI statutes. State legislators passed a bill that would increase penalties for first-time DUI offenders convicted of "extreme DUI," or a DUI with a blood alcohol concentration of 0...

A Possible Lucky Break for Some Seattle DUI Suspects

Posted on June 02, 2008
Hundreds of people awaiting trial for Washington DUI in Seattle Municipal Court just became a step closer to beating the charges. A recent court ruling has barred the results of all breath tests given before December 18, 2007 from being used against the defendants in court.

Bears' RB Benson Arrested for DUI - while Boating!

Posted on May 05, 2008
Widely criticized Chicago Bears running back Cedric Benson was arrested over the weekend for DUI, despite the fact that he wasn't driving. Of course, you don't have to be driving a car to be arrested for DUI--usually operating any kind of motorized vehicle under the influence will do the trick.

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The Latest Tool to Fight DUI

Posted on May 02, 2008
With the dangers of drunken driving so obvious, it's no surprise to often come across stories in the media about the latest efforts to curb DUI and bolster arrests and convictions. The latest story involves a device that records the eye movements of DUI suspects during the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test -- more commonly thought of as when an officer tracks the eye movements of a DUI suspect.

Was Your DUI Breath Test Fair?

Posted on April 16, 2008
In many DUI cases, the results of the breath test administered at the time of arrest are considered strong evidence. But how accurate are breathalyzers, really? Maybe not as accurate as you (or your arresting officer) once thought. Check out...

Smoking Bans = More DUI Accidents? Study Says "Yes So"

Posted on April 08, 2008
Smoking bans in bars and restaurants have seemed to be a vogue way to make such establishments more appealing and healthy places to people who may be turned off by such "vices." With that said, a recent study indicates that smoking bans are producing a surprising and unintended effect : • Smoking Bans Contribute to Rise in Fatal DUI Crashes, Study Finds...

Tenth DWI = Life in Prison?

Posted on April 07, 2008
While DUI penalties vary from state to state, it is important to know that they most often increase after a first conviction. This point about increased DUI penalties for multiple convictions is especially clear in the recent case of a 53-year-old Texas man, who may now spend the rest of his living years in prison following his tenth DWI conviction: • Man Convicted of 10th Texas DWI May Die Behind Bars.

What Does Laughing about Your Victim's Death Get You?

Posted on January 24, 2008
A Tucson woman, Melissa Arrington, was charged with negligent homicide and two counts of aggravated DUI after she swerved off the road in her car to hit a cyclist, Paul L'Ecuyer, in December 2006. Arrington could have been stuck with a minimum sentence of four years, but the judge didn't hesitate to give her a much higher sentence of 10...

Kiefer Sutherland, TV's Jack Bauer, Released after Serving DUI Sentence

Posted on January 22, 2008
Kiefer Sutherland, who was jailed nearly two months ago for violating a DUI probation by, you guessed it, driving under the influence again, was released yesterday from the Los Angeles County jail. Sutherland had pleaded no contest to having a blood alcohol content (BAC) above the legal limit of 0...

Breathalyzers in High School--Now There's a Thought...

Posted on January 21, 2008
An article published last October in USA Today recounts the increasingly common sight of breathalyzers administered at high schools social functions such as sports events and dances. High school administrators have found the small breath test devices to be a cheap and publicly-visible way to deter students from trying to attend social events drunk or with alcohol...

Teens Freeze to Avoid Arrest for DUI

Posted on December 30, 2007
It's hardly news that underage teenagers have drinking parties, unfortunately. But this one has a bit of a twist. Sheriff's deputies in Florence, Wisconsin were alerted to an underage drinking party. When they arrived, a vehicle was leaving the alleged...

DUI Checkpoints--How Effective Are They?

Posted on December 29, 2007
News from Portsmouth, New Hampshire calls attention to a potential thorn in the side of the extremely popular DUI sobriety checkpoint that law enforcement officials have used with some frequency across the nation over the past few years.

Former Yankee Jim Leyritz Arrested for DUI, Homicide

Posted on December 28, 2007
TMZ.com is reporting that former Yankee player Jim Leyritz has been arrested on suspicion of DUI and vehicular homicide. Leyritz is reportedly in the Broward County Jail in Florida on $11,000 bond after he refused a breathalyzer test. He was...

The DUI Year in Review

Posted on December 27, 2007
Ever hear that those who can't do teach? How about a twist on this old saying: those who DUI, teach? Read more about DUI enforcers and educators who got caught drunk driving! And who could forget those celebrities who have shared this year with us? Read about Michelle Rodriguez, Kiefer Sutherland and Lindsay Lohan in the top 10 celebrity DUI arrests of 2007!

Cell Door Slams for Actress Michelle Rodriguez

Posted on December 26, 2007
Television and film actress Michelle Rodriguez, popular for her roles as Letty on The Fast and the Furious and Ana Lucia on TV's "Lost," has started her jail sentence for violation of probation in a hit-and-run case from June 2004.

Smile for Your Arizona DUI Mug Shot: It Could Be Posted Online

Posted on December 14, 2007
Arizona DUI offenders may not be able to live down their arrest just yet. A website is publishing the names, mug shots and blood alcohol content levels of people who have been arrested for DUI in the state as a means to get across the point that even ordinary citizens can be arrested and charged with this crime...

Donut Thief Holes Up in Krispy Kreme Truck!

Posted on December 10, 2007
It's the kind of news story that copy editors live for: a high-speed chase with police in hot pursuit of...wait for it...a donut truck! The singularly-named Warren G. Whitelightning got nabbed for his fourth DUI when police officers finally caught up to his rogue Krispy Kreme truck...

Wyoming DUI Case Dismissed by Intriguing Ruling

Posted on December 07, 2007
A Wyoming, Gillette police officer must have been shocked when a judge dismissed the DUI case against a man he had arrested. By watching a seemingly-drunk man stumble to his car and letting him drive away before making an arrest for DUI, police officer Chad Trebby was ruled to have endangered the safety of the public...

Cardinals Manager Tony La Russa Pleads Guilty to DUI

Posted on November 28, 2007
The manager of the 2006 World Champion St. Louis Cardinals, 28-year veteran Tony La Russa, pleaded guilty to driving under the influence from an incident in Florida during last year's spring training, in which police found him asleep at a...

Drunk Ambulance Driver Kills Two

Posted on November 06, 2007
A drunk ambulance driver hit a car, killing two men. Her patient also dies.

DUI Offender on Bail Caught Drinking on Courthouse Lawn!

Posted on October 25, 2007
Martin Ruiz of Nevada may be living proof that actions speak louder than words. In January of this year, Ruiz was arrested for DUI after an accident in which he and his passenger were injured, as well as the other driver. Ruiz was driving 70 mph with a blood alcohol content of 0...

Update on Washington State DUI Toxicology Problems

Posted on October 12, 2007
Earlier this week, Total DUI detailed how problems at the Washington State Toxicology Laboratory, including questions about a mixture solution testing the accuracy of breathalyzers, could affect certain DUI cases. For more of a back story, Washington DUI attorneys had begun arguing for the dismissal of DUI cases or at least the reduction of charges after it was learned that the manager of the state toxicology lab had been signing papers saying that she had tested the ethanol-water solution when in fact she hadn't done so...

Blogger Misunderstands Kiefer Sutherland's DUI Charges and DUI Law

Posted on October 05, 2007
Lea Anna Cooper suggests, on the American Chronicle website, that Kiefer Sutherland may face double jeopardy when tried for his recent DUI charges. Double jeopardy refers to facing conviction for the same crime, twice. Sutherland merely faces trial for driving with a BAC over 0...

Kiefer Sutherland Charged With DUI and Probation Violation

Posted on September 30, 2007
Kiefer Sutherland, star of the controversial hit show '24', faces up to 18 months in prison after being charged with DUI and violating his probation from a 2004 DUI. The actor faces a year in jail if convicted on this new DUI charge plus six months for violating his probation...

DUI...Without the "Driving"?

Posted on September 18, 2007
A recent decision by a New Jersey appellate court will serve as a reminder to us all that sometimes the letter of the law can catch someone acting responsibly. David Montalvo had had too much to drink, and rather than driving himself home, decided to sleep one off on the bench seat of his GMC pickup in a deli parking lot in Hamburg, New Jersey...

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