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Any criminal defendant has the right to defend against the charges in a court of law. Our system of criminal justice places burdens upon the government that are intended to protect the rights of the innocent against unreasonable government intrusion, and also to protect against making out court system seem like a sort of kangaroo court.

Monday, a judge in Mecklenburg County threw out charges of driving while impaired that had been filed against the former chief of the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority. The man had been arrested on suspicion of DWI in May.

The process following the man’s arrest was flawed, the judge essentially ruled Monday. The man was put in jail, and a magistrate had given the accused an unsecured bond at 1:15 in the morning May 23. The judge ruled that following the magistrate’s decision at 1:15 a.m., the accused should have been released from custody within an hour, according to WCNC News.

The man sat in jail until 4:34 in the morning before authorities allowed his release. The judge ruled that the three hour delay was too long and dismissed the DWI charges.

Generally, a person accused of DWI faces allegations generated by the state. For instance, in a North Carolina DWI case, the arresting officer would be expected to testify as to the officer’s observations of the defendant. But a person who is detained for an unreasonable amount of time after being given unsecured bond is denied the chance to meet with people who are not associated with police. The loss of that opportunity can deny the person accused of drunk driving to have others testify to refute the officer’s opinion.

In North Carolina, DWI charges can come with two prongs. Most people know that the legal limit to drive is set at 0.08 percent BAC. But flaws with the testing can produce inaccurate results. Similarly, a person who is unreasonably denied access to gathering evidence in defense of the charges may certainly be denied a fair opportunity to present a defense.

In the recent Mecklenburg County case, law enforcement claims that the man accused of DWI refused to submit to a breath test. The state apparently was relying solely upon the arresting officer’s opinion that the man had been drinking before driving.

The charges arose after an alleged hit-and-run crash in stop-and-go traffic in Interstate 77. Authorities say that another person called 911 after the alleged fender bender, claiming that the defendant had said everything was okay and drove away from the scene. The hit-and-run charge remains pending, as the judge’s dismissal only pertained to the DWI charge.

Source: WCNC, “Judge dismisses DWI charge against CRVA’s former chief executive,” Gary L. Wright, Nov. 5, 2012

Greenville DUI Attorney Blog | North Carolina Underage Drinking Lawyer | Pitt County First DUI Law Firm

From the Globe and Mail

Tyler, who was in a higher grade than 15-year-old Mariah, asked her to the prom. Mariah’s parents were okay with her going – she’d gone out with him a few times and he seemed like a nice boy, and the formal was scheduled to end at midnight, a reasonable hour. Then she asked if she could go to the after-party that one of Tyler’s friends was throwing. To this Mariah’s parents had a firm answer: absolutely no way.

“But you don’t understand. All the other kids’ parents are letting them. Jessica will be there. Reena will be there. Meredith will be there. Everybody is going. I will be the only one to miss out.”

“But all the other kids’ parents…” is perhaps the most popular of all teen battle cries. It is so popular because it is so effective. It hits parents right where they are vulnerable: They may feel adamant about curfews, new cellphones, designer jeans, you name it, but when that phrase comes out their resolve crumbles.

Parents worry that maybe their kids are right. Maybe they are out of step with the current accepted parenting practice. Maybe their personal beliefs are blinding them from seeing today’s world, and their kids will suffer for it.

“You’re like a parent from the 1950s. George Washington’s parents or something.”

They worry that their hard-line stance will cause their daughter to be ostracized by her friends, who will see her as nerdy and start to leave her out of things. She’ll become a social wallflower because they deprived her of what all her peers were doing.

“I’m teetering on the edge already. One more social misstep and I’ll have to spend all the rest of my high-school lunches eating by myself and crying.”

Parents worry that, because of them, their kids will miss out on the good times that make adolescence special.

“I swear to God, I won’t go to any of my high-school reunions because there won’t be anything for me to reunion about.”

Nobody wants to significantly damage their child’s happiness because of out-of-sync parenting. We want our kids to be popular. We want them to have good high-school memories to look back on. We don’t want to stand in the way of our kids getting the most out of life. But at the same time we don’t think our limits are so unreasonable.

“Yes they are. I’ve just completed an Internet survey and none of the other parents agree with you.”

So what do you do?

Certainly, what you don’t want to do is get caught up in trying to counter their arguments. What if a poll of parents shows you are in a distinct minority? Does that mean you have to give in?

“Of course my parents have to give in. They were outvoted.”

It is good to discuss with other parents what they do in dealing with their teenagers. But ultimately the decisions lie with you. You have to go with what makes you comfortable.

The basis of your authority is not whether you are infallibly right, but that you think you are right. You will make mistakes. But as a parent you must make decisions.

“No, I am sorry. Maybe your friends’ parents think differently than we do, but no, you cannot go to the party after the prom.”

You can’t be certain you’re doing the right thing, but you have to make the decision anyway. The true disaster isn’t making wrong decisions, it’s being unable to make decisions – which in effect gives over the decision-making process to your children. You don’t want to let your teenager make mincemeat of your resolve.

“What? What are you afraid is going to happen? It will be a drug/sex orgy? That is what you think, isn’t it?”

If you still worry that your decision may somehow ruin your child’s life, you can always imagine a future time when you can say to them: “I decided following my best judgment at the time – based on my caring about your well-being, my own life experience and my knowledge of you. I thought it was right. If that decision ruined your happiness, I apologize.”

Clinical psychologist Anthony E. Wolf is the author of six parenting books, including Get Out of My Life, But First Could You Drive Me and Cheryl to the Mall? A Parent’s Guide to the New Teenager.

Century Council Blog