Articles Posted in DUI Defense

On Tuesday, December 16, an unnamed 23-year-old Kalamazoo woman was arrested for allegedly stealing a golf cart and driving it while intoxicated. According to a news report at Fox 17, the woman’s name has not been released and will be identified pending a formal arraignment.

The woman was pulled over at about 8 in the morning when an officer noticed her driving the golf cart on Florence Street and thought it a bit odd. Public Safety Officer Ariana Gasca said that she pulled up to the cart, and the woman driving it pulled over to talk with her. The unidentified woman told Gasca that the golf cart had been given to her by a friend to drive. However, Gasca noticed items on the cart that made her suspect it belonged to a local apartment complex. Upon checking it out, the cart had in fact been stolen.

Gasca conducted a series of sobriety tests on the woman, who was ultimately charged with operating while intoxicated, driving on a suspended license, unlawfully driving away a vehicle, and obstruction by disguise. Police claim the woman also has two additional warrants out for her arrest.

On Monday morning, December 15, 51-year-old Allan Charles McTavish was stopped after a Hillsborough County sheriff’s deputy witnessed McTavish’s Chevrolet HHR run a red light, according to a news article at Tampabay.com. McTavish has been with the St. Petersburg Police Department since 1984.

Upon stopping McTavish, the deputy noticed an odor of alcohol, that McTavish’s eyes were bloodshot, and his speech slurred. When asked to get out of his vehicle, McTavish allegedly stumbled and fell against the side of his vehicle. He refused a breath and field sobriety tests, and was arrested before being taken to the county jail.

Police spokesman Mike Puetz said that until an internal investigation is completed, McTavish will remain on desk duty. The article claims that McTavish has had positive evaluations over the years he has been with the police department, and that his personnel file includes numerous thank-you notes from residents in the local area.

Last week, a Thermalito, California woman who is employed as a school bus driver in the Thermalito Union School District was arrested while on her way for her morning bus route, according to a news article at Action News Now.

Kimberly Oxley was reportedly on her way to work in her personal vehicle when an anonymous citizen alerted the Oroville Police and reported Oxley was drunk. According to Assistant Police Chief Al Byers, she has no prior criminal history with the Oroville Police Department. He also added that in addition to being arrested for drunk driving, the department was looking into additional charges in connection with Oxley attempting to drive a school bus that day, considering police suspect she was consuming alcohol as recently as two hours prior to being arrested at the bus yard.

While the school district said in the report that it would not determine her employment fate until Oxley had an opportunity to state her case through a Skelly hearing, Byers said his department filed the paperwork to hopefully prevent Oxley from getting her bus license back.

On Thursday, December 4, 56-year-old Patricia Ann Robertson, a third grade teacher at Earl Warren Elementary School in Sacramento, was on her way to school when she missed a turn which resulted in her Mustang crashing into several vehicles and damaging two homes.

According to a news article at News10, Robertson has been placed on administrative leave from the school as an investigation begins into the crash, which police believe was a result of DUI. California Highway Police Officer Rick Turner said that a preliminary alcohol test performed on the teacher resulted in a reading that was three times the legal limit of .08 percent. At the time of the news report, Robertson’s blood test results were still pending.

Robertson told the officers that she attempted to make a right turn as she was driving westbound on Deddington Way, however she missed the turn and continued straight. This resulted in her Mustang sideswiping one car and striking another in a driveway, which pushed the car in the driveway into a home. Robertson’s Mustang continued forward before veering to the right and eventually crashing into the home next door to the one that had already been struck. John Sandu, the owner of the home Robertson struck, said that she had been speeding through the neighborhood for years, and that he had yelled at her on several occasions to slow down because there were children in the vicinity.

In late November, Fruitport Township Police officer Timothy Thompson was arrested for allegedly driving drunk with a child in his vehicle. On December 3, Thompson was arraigned on a misdemeanor charge of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated with an occupant under age 16 in the vehicle, according to a news article at Mlive.com. Thompson, who is 36 years old, was arraigned in 58th District Court.

Thompson was reportedly taken into custody in Coopersville in the early morning hours of November 22. According to a news article at Fox 17, he had a three month old baby in the car with him, and was driving with a blood alcohol content that was nearly twice Michigan’s legal limit of .08 percent.

Police Chief Ken Doctor also confirmed that Thompson had been arrested for driving under the influence, and that he had been terminated from his position with the police department. However, he did not indicate whether Thompson’s firing was a result of the drunk driving arrest. A trial date had not been set at the time of news reports.

On Saturday, November 29, a member of Johnny “Football” Manziel’s entourage was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, according to a news article at Cleveland.com. The 24-year-old man, whose name was not released in the news report, was allegedly driving Manziel’s vehicle when he was arrested. Johnny Manziel is former quarterback at Texas A&M, and currently an NFL quarterback with the Cleveland Browns.

As of the time of news reports, the man had not been charged, however Cleveland police confirmed that drunken driving charges are forthcoming. Manziel was not in the car at the time the man was stopped, which was approximately 2:30 a.m. Saturday in downtown Cleveland. The offender, who is reportedly Manziel’s roommate where the two live at The Metropolitan on The 9, was also allegedly involved in an assault a week earlier as a couple approached Manziel and his entourage at an elevator at The 9.

Other news reports claim that the member of Manziel’s “entourage” who was arrested for driving under the influence is his bodyguard. Manziel’s vehicle was reportedly impounded following the arrest.

Michigan DUI defense lawyers are highly aware that some individuals have a real problem with alcohol, and are addicted to the point that they get out and drive on our nation’s roadways and interstates on a regular basis. This seems to be the case with a Tennessee man who has recently been arrested three times over the course of 11 days by three different agencies in Williamson County.

According to a news article at WKRN, 34-year-old Wayne Gearhart has been arrested for DUI on November 15, 23, and 25. He was first arrested by Brentwood police when they found him in a parking lot, passed out in his car with the engine running. He was stopped eight days later by Franklin police, and on Tuesday the 25 by a trooper with the Tennessee Highway Patrol. Each time, officers reported Gearhart smelled of alcohol, and was unsteady on his feet. According to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Gearhart has been charged with driving under the influence on at least one occasion prior to these three most recent incidents.

The news report indicates that Gearhart may still have his driver’s license, and that until he is convicted there is nothing that can be done to take it away. At last reports, Gearhart was incarcerated in the Williamson County Jail on a $5,000 bond. As a condition of his bond, he must wear an alcohol monitoring bracelet.

On Friday, November 21, 42-year-old former Atlanta Falcon running back Jamal Anderson was arrested on charges of driving under the influence. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, this was Anderson’s second DUI arrest in 2 1/2 years. He was arrested for DUI in June of 2012, but pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of reckless driving.

Georgia State Patrol officials arrested Anderson on Friday after he was found on the southbound side of I-85 in his stopped car. He was also arrested for improper slowing or stopping on the roadway. Anderson has since been released, and was held in a Gwinnett County jail on a bond of more than $2,000.

In the 2012 incident, Anderson was required to attend a drunk driving impact panel, perform community service, and pay fines of $700. He was also placed on probation for 12 months. Anderson was with the Atlanta Falcons from 1994 to 2001.

On Friday morning November 14, a deadly accident on US 84/285 in Santa Fe took the life of 40-year-old Celeste Maestas. Investigators weren’t certain at first who caused the crash, however they suspected 59-year-old Jimmy Griego, whose vehicle was found pulled off on exit 177. Griego allegedly left his SUV and walked to a nearby casino, according to eyewitnesses. Griego has pleaded guilty to DWI on four occasions since 1985, according to news reports at KRQE News 13.

The crash occurred around 10:30 a.m., when police received reports of a Ford Explorer driving in a reckless manner and almost hitting other motorists. It was just minutes later when a crash involving two vehicles happened near the Buffalo Thunder Casino. Celeste Maestas lost control of her Chevy Impala and collided with another vehicle after she crossed into the southbound lane. She died at the scene.

At the time, police were uncertain of whether Griego was involved, however he was arrested and charged with felony DWI. His license had also been revoked. Days later, deputies learned that Maestas swerved to avoid hitting Griego on Friday, as he was driving recklessly. Her attempt to avoid Griego’s vehicle resulted in her crashing into another car before her own vehicle slammed into a concrete barrier. Griego now faces charges of vehicular homicide in addition to DWI.