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Court documents reportedly say that Wilmington Police took two vials of blood from a New Hanover County Commissioner during a drunk driving investigation. Recent reports in the media say that a toxicology test shows that the commissioner’s blood alcohol concentration registered 0.08 percent.

However, the man accused of DWI says that he intends to fight the North Carolina DWI charges in court. He says that it is his understanding that one of the blood test results measured under the state per se legal limit of 0.08 percent, according to WWAY NewsChannel 3.

The man was arrested on suspicion of DWI December 18 in Wilmington, North Carolina around 2:00 in the morning. Police claim that the man was pulled over for allegedly making an abrupt turn in downtown Wilmington.

Law enforcement says that additional officers were called in to the traffic stop to conduct field sobriety tests. Later that morning, around 4:00 a.m., law enforcement reportedly obtained the two vials of blood. One of the vials was reportedly taken for a DWI blood kit, while the second vial was obtained for additional testing.

The man accused of DWI maintains that he was not drunk the night of his arrest. WWAY says that the commissioner admitted to drinking that night, and also admitted to taking an unidentified anti-depressant medication.

Generally, North Carolina DWI laws are rather broad in their application. As this blog has discussed a breath or blood test can be used as evidence under the so-called per se impaired driving avenue that the law affords authorities.

Most drivers know that North Carolina law sets the legal limit to drive for people age 21 and over at 0.08 percent BAC. However, authorities may also rely on other evidence in a DWI case. Drivers accused of drunk driving in North Carolina are entitled to representation by a criminal defense lawyer when facing criminal charges in the state.

Source: WWAY NewsChannel3, “FIRST ON 3: Berger says he wasn’t drunk despite 0.08 blood alcohol content,” Jan. 3, 2013

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

After roughly a-year-and-a-half of legal wrangling, North Carolina drunk driving charges against a Pender County Commissioner have been dropped. The District Court Judge presiding over the case dismissed the driving while impaired charges last Friday. The case was continued several times during the course of the criminal proceedings, with delays in September, December, February and again last month.

But the case was not delayed without legal argument along the way. The defense argued that certain issues in the case violated the defendant’s constitutional rights. In February, a judge in Mecklenburg County agreed and granted a pre-trial defense motion to suppress Breathalyzer test results in the case.

The judge found constitutional violations in the police encounter, and based upon the violations of the defendant’s rights during the traffic stop and the subsequent DWI arrest, the judge has dismissed the DWI charges.

The case arose after citizens reported a stopped vehicle in the middle of the road in Matthews, North Carolina. Police reportedly responded to the area and observed a truck along the side of the road with its door open. Police claim the driver moved the truck to a nearby parking lot and parked.

The police officer stopped his cruiser behind the truck, blocking it in the parking space, and notified the driver that he was not free to leave. The officer admitted that he had not observed any violation of law, or any suspicious activity to justify the traffic stop and detention of the driver.

Generally, the Constitution provides more than mere technicalities. Pitt County DWI defense lawyers know that our country was founded on the concept that all individuals have the right to be free from unreasonable intrusions by government officials. Arguably, if law enforcement can effectively arrest drivers for parking in a public parking lot, our constitutional guarantees would have little meaning.

Sources:

Star News Online, “Pender official’s drunken driving charge dismissed,” Brian Freskos, April 16, 2012

Star News Online, “Pender commissioner’s DWI case delayed,” March 26, 2012

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

Rowan County Commissioner appeared in court Monday and entered a guilty plea to his DWI charge. The allegations arose May 8 when police accused the man of drunk driving after a car accident. The county commissioner refused to submit to a breath test. Law enforcement reportedly took the man to Rowan Regional Medical Center for a forced blood draw.

The accused reportedly had a prior DWI conviction on his record from 2008. He reportedly entered into a negotiated plea agreement with prosecutors. The Rowan County District Attorney’s office agreed to dismiss charges for driving left of center and failing to maintain control in the plea agreement.

A visiting judge from Guilford County presided at the hearing Monday. Local judges know or are familiar with the commissioner, so a visiting judge heard the case. Prosecutors sought jail time at sentencing. The prosecutor argued the commissioner had a prior conviction, was in a car accident and measured 0.21 percent BAC after the crash.

The accused has been attending inpatient treatment for alcohol. The judge ultimately rejected the prosecutor’s request for jail. The judge gave the commissioner credit for the inpatient treatment and sentenced the commissioner to two years of unsupervised probation for the DWI conviction. The man was also fined ,000. The judge said the fine was higher than he normally would impose. The judge said the elected county official should be held to a higher standard of behavior than other North Carolina residents. The commissioner will be subjected to a psychological assessment as a part of the sentence.

The judge ordered the man to surrender his driver’s license. Greenville DWI defense attorneys are aware that license suspension or revocations can occur in relation to DWI charges in the state.

Source: Salisbury Post, “Barber sentenced on DWI charge,” Shavonne Potts, Aug. 16, 2011

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