DUI / BUI - Drunk Driving Category Archives — Page 9 of 12 — Jacksonville Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog Published by Jacksonville, Florida Criminal Defense Attorneys

August 25, 2010

Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence (DUI) Caused By Involuntary Intoxication

Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence (DUI) occurs when a person drives under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance to the extent that he or she is impaired. Most people understand that you cannot drive a vehicle when you have had too much to drink. The same is true for medications. For example, even if a person is prescribed a drug, he or she cannot drive a vehicle if that drug impairs the ability to drive. What if a person accidentally takes prescription medication? This is known as involuntary intoxication.

Under Florida Law, Involuntary intoxication is a defense to Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence.

In Devers-Lopez v. State of Florida, 710 So. 2d 720 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998), Ms. Devers-Lopez was charged with driving under the influence of the sleeping medication, Halcion, in violation of section 316.193(1) of the Florida Statutes. She testified that she thought she was taking Valium, which she is prescribed. Instead, she accidentally took one of her husband’s Halcion. The Florida court failed to instruct the jury in reference to the defense of involuntary intoxication to driving under the influence. She was found guilty and appealed.

August 3, 2010

Jacksonville DUI Drivers License Suspension: I Refused a Jacksonville DUI Breath Test, but Tried to Take it Later

by David M. Goldman

When a person is arrested for Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence of Alcoholic Beverages (DUI), he or she will often be asked to take a Jacksonville DUI Breath Test. If a driver refuses to take a Jacksonville DUI Breath Test, he will lose his license for one year (for a first refusal). In some circumstances, the driver will recant and choose to take the Jacksonville DUI Breath Test. The Florida Fourth District Court of Appeals addressed this issue in Larmer v. State, Dep’t of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles, 522 So. 2d 941 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988).

In Larmer, the Defendant was arrested for DUI in Florida. A police officer advised him of Florida’s Implied Consent Law. Then, he asked if Lamar would take a breathalyzer test. The officer advised him that he would lose his license for one year if he refused. The defendant refused to take the breathalyzer test until he spoke with his employer or an attorney. He spoke with his employer only minutes later and told the officer that he wanted to take the breathalyzer test. The officer refused his request, and his drivers license was suspended.

This Florida court found that Lamar’s “pretraction of his initial refusal came moments after that refusal, while petitioner was continuously in the presence of the police officers, and in circumstances where no inconvenience would result by permitting him immediately thereafter to take the test that would produce the evidence that is the object and intent of Florida’s Implied Consent Law.” Therefore, the order suspending petitioner’s license was quashed.

May 7, 2010

Jacksonville DUI Permanent License Suspension May Change

by David M. Goldman

Florida Law prohibits any person convicted of a fourth DUI (Jacksonville Driving Under the Influence) from obtaining a Florida Driver’s License. In Jacksonville, if you receive a conviction for driving under the influence for the fourth time in your life, your Florida license will be suspended permanently. Thus, you will never be able to legally drive a vehicle, and you are not eligible for a hardship license.

However, this could change if House Bill 971 is passed. This Bill permits those convicted of four DUI offenses to obtain a Florida driver’s license after the completion of a Jacksonville DUI treatment program. In addition to the DUI program, the Jacksonville driver is required to have an ignition interlock device, similar to a breathalyzer, installed in his or her vehicle. The Bill will be presented to Governor Charlie Christ.

March 1, 2010

Jacksonville DUI Arrest: Jacksonville DUI Manslaughter and Hit-And-Run Charges for Bridge Accident

by David M. Goldman

Sasha Pringle was arrested for DUI manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident involving death in Jacksonville, Florida. Witnesses report that the accident occurred at approximately 9:40 P.M. on Saturday, February 28th. They saw Pringle driving recklessly on the south-end of the Buckman Bridge in Jacksonville, Florida. She hit a vehicle driven by Luma Kajy causing Kajy’s vehicle to crash into the St. John’s River. Pringle did not stop and give aid to Kajy. Witnesses followed Pringle to her home in the Mandarin area of Jacksonville. Thereafter, they called Jacksonville police. Reports state that “Pringle was question and booked into the jail.”

Jacksonville DUI Manslaughter is serious offense. If Ms. Pringle is convicted of this charge, she will go to Florida State Prison, and the media attention surrounding this Jacksonville DUI Arrest is not going to help her. She will need the best criminal defense possible to defend against these Jacksonville DUI charges. Her Jacksonville DUI Lawyer will need to investigate the case throughly to determine if Ms. Pringle has a viable motion to suppress or defense. This investigation should include interviewing the witnesses, taking depositions, reviewing all reports, investigating the breath test or blood-draw, and visiting the scene of the accident. An early investigation is important, because in most cases, a good offense is the best defense.

January 4, 2010

Jacksonville Florida Traffic Citation: Can You Be Cited for Flashing Your Headlights?

by David M. Goldman

Drivers flash their lights by going from a low beam to a high beam. Usually, a Jacksonville driver does this to indicate to others drivers that there is something that they should be aware of. For instance, if a prudent driver sees a disable car on the side of the road, he may flash his lights to inform the oncoming vehicle of a dangerous situation. This could protect people in the disable vehicle as well on the driver and passengers of the oncoming vehicle. As a child, my mother would flash her lights at other vehicles when she saw a dog wandering the highway. She did this to get the other vehicles to slow down.

Sometimes, Jacksonville drivers are ticketed for flashing their high beams at other vehicles. Jacksonville police officers issue the citation pursuant to Florida Statute 316.2937(7) which states that “flashing lights are prohibited on vehicles except as a means of indicating a right or left turn, to change lanes, or to indicate that the vehicle is lawfully stopped or disabled upon the highway or except that the lamps authorized in” this Section. However, this is not permitted. This Florida law was not meant to prohibit flashing your high beams in the manner listed above. In fact, a handbook issued by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles recommends that a driver flash his high beams at an oncoming vehicle that if another vehicle is approaching with its high beams illuminated. In

State v. Cason, a Seminole County court ruled that Florida Statute Section 316.2397(7) does not prohibit a driver from flashing his high beams or turning his lights on and off. The court found that it did not matter that the driver was doing so with the intent to warn other drivers of a police officer with a radar device.

October 19, 2009

Florida Driving Under the Influence Case: Motion to Suppress Granted Due to Hearsay

by David M. Goldman

In Bowers v. State of Florida, the Florida Second District Court of Appeals recently affirmed a county court’s ruling that suppressed all evidence obtained during the search of a driver’s vehicle during a Florida Driving Under the Influence (DUI) stop. This ruling was based on the fact that the police officer that initiated the vehicle stop did not attend the hearing on the motion to suppress. Thus, the only evidence that the State of Florida presented to meet its burden of proving the validity of the Florida DUI stop was through the hearsay testimony of the DUI officer that was not present during the initial stop of the vehicle.

The Florida Second District Court of Appeals ruled differently than the Fourth District Court of Appeals did in a similar case. In Ferrer v. State, 785 So. 2d 709, the court allowed hearsay evidence to support probable cause for a Florida DUI stop although the state attorney failed to call the officer that initially stopped the vehicle. The Fourth District Court of Appeals held that such evidence was admissible due to the fellow officer rule.

Therefore, the Second and Fourth District Courts of Appeal are in conflict. It should be interesting to see if this Florida DUI case makes it to the Florida Supreme Court based on such conflict. Since the First District Court of Appeal has not ruled upon this issue, I do not know what position a Jacksonville Florida court would take if confronted with similar facts in a Jacksonville DUI case. However, it would make more sense for a Jacksonville court to follow the Second District Court of Appeals based upon the fact that the fellow officer rule is not an exception to the hearsay rule. Therefore, the court should not allow such evidence to be admitted.

September 8, 2009

DUI Charges Filed in Jacksonville for Atlantic Beach SUV/Bicycle Accident

by David M. Goldman

In September 5, 2009, in Atlantic Beach Florida, a Bicyclist was seriously injured after being involved in an accident with an SUV. Yesterday, the driver of the SUV, William Adams, was charged with Driving on a Suspended License and Driving Under the Influence in Jacksonville, Florida.

Due to the injury involved in this case, Adams was likely charged with Driving Under the Influence Resulting Serious in Bodily Injury. In Jacksonville Florida, DUI with serious bodily injury is a third-degree felony. As such, it is punishable by up to five years in prison. Additionally, this type of DUI will score Florida prison guidelines, so Adams is looking at a minimum prison sentence, unless his Jacksonville DUI lawyer can mitigate this.

Another issue that should concern Adams, or anyone else charged with Jacksonville DUI with serious bodily injury, is the fact that serious bodily injury may turn into death. If the bicyclist were to die due to the injuries inflicted from the accident, Adams will be charged with DUI manslaughter. Jacksonville DUI manslaughter is normally a second degree felony, unless the defendant knowingly failed to render aid or give necessary information. In that case, it is a first-degree felony. As such, the penalties increase. Either way, a Jacksonville DUI charge of this nature requires immediate attention.

August 28, 2009

Jacksonville DUI: Accident Report Privilege Results in Inadmissible Evidence

by David M. Goldman

The accident report privilege is a Florida law that prohibits the introduction of evidence obtained by a police officer while investigating an accident. Normally, a police officer avoids this by informing the defendant that he is “switching hats.” The officer tells the defendant that he is no longer investigating the crash, but instead, he is investigating a possible crime, such as DUI.

A recent Florida DUI (Driving Under the Influence) case from the 9th circuit held that certain evidence in a Florida DUI case would be inadmissible due to the accident report privilege. In State v. Peltz, FLWSUPP 169PELTZ (June 10, 2009), a Florida State Trooper arrived at the scene of an accident in which the defendant crashed into a power pole. By the time the trooper arrived, the defendant was being escorted out of the vehicle. While investigating the crash, the defendant told the trooper that he was the driver of the vehicle. According to Vender v. State, this type of driver identification is protected by the accident report privilege. Vender, 849 So. 2d 1207, 1212 (Fla. 5th DCA 2003). The prosecutor failed to present any evidence, besides the trooper’s testimony, that the Defendant was the driver of the vehicle. Eventually, the trooper told the Defendant that he was going to conduct a criminal investigation, and he read the defendant his Miranda warnings. After doing so, he asked the defendant to “re-explain” the accident.

The court ruled that “Florida law excludes statements made by a defendant subsequent to the reading of his Miranda rights which merely ‘restate’ or ‘re-explain’ statements the defendant made during the crash investigation, these statements, too, are inadmissible at trial.”

August 14, 2009

Jacksonville Probation Violations: Keep Track of Everything You Do

by David M. Goldman

Jacksonville plea bargains often result in probation sentences. As part of a negotiated sentence, the Jacksonville criminal defendant is placed on probation for a certain amount of time. He must comply with the standard conditions of probation, such as meeting with his probation officer and paying a monthly fee. Additionally, the Jacksonville probationer usually will have special conditions of probation, such as random urine tests, mental health and/or drug and alcohol counseling.

For example, the standard probation sentence for a first DUI in Jacksonville, Florida is as follows:

50 hours of community service;
Level one DUI school;
Victim Impact Panel;
Fines and court costs (totaling over $1000.00); and
Ten day vehicle tag impoundment.

If the probationer does not complete all of these conditions within the time period mandated by the court, the Jacksonville probation officer will violate his probation. Once this occurs, a warrant is issued, and the probationer is arrested.

The best thing that a criminal defendant can do, once he is place on probation in Jacksonville, is to keep a journal of everything that involves his probation. This journal should state what happened and the date that the occurrence takes place. Moreover, he should keep all documents associated with the occurrence.

July 9, 2009

Jacksonville DUI Checkpoint Roadblocks Must Meet Legal Requirements

by David M. Goldman

Jacksonville DUI checkpoints occur when the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office designates an area in which it will stop vehicles in order to look for drivers that are possibly impaired. While it is commendable that Jacksonville is working to keep drunk drivers off the road, this is a intrusion into our privacy. No one enjoys waiting for road stop, and unfettered police discretion is never beneficial to the community.

Florida courts recognize this violation of our constitutional rights. Thus, they prohibit check-points that do not meet certain legal requirements. The Florida Supreme Court, in State v. Jones, 483 so. 2d 433 (Fla. 1986), ruled that before police can initiate a sobriety checkpoint, they must issue a set of uniform guidelines that set out certain procedures for the roadblock. In Campbell v. State, 679 So. 2d 1168 (Fla. 1996), the Florida Supreme Court made it clear that “police are not vested with the general authority to set up ‘routine’ roadblocks at any time or place.”

For more information about DUI stops, contact a Jacksonville DUI lawyer. A Jacksonville DUI Lawyer can evaluate the guidelines set and procedures taken at a DUI checkpoint to determine the legality of the Jacksonville roadblock.