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We have discussed issues involving allegations of underage drinking and driving on several occasions. Generally, North Carolina law says that underage drinking is prohibited in general. When it comes to driving, a person may be charged with an underage DUI offense based upon any evidence of alcohol in his or her system.

But the existence of the zero tolerance policy for underage drinking and driving does not mean that a person under the age of 21 cannot be accused of driving while impaired charges. The legal limit of 0.08 percent blood alcohol concentration applies to underage drivers as well.

Similarly, if law enforcement believes there is enough evidence of impairment, prosecutors may seek DWI charges based upon the evidence of impairment.

A Greenville, North Carolina teenager is accused of DWI after a car accident was reported Thursday Evening in Lenoir County, North Carolina. Troopers claim that the Greenville teen lost control of the Dodge Challenger he was driving on Rouse Road in Kinston, North Carolina around 7:00 Thursday evening. The car reportedly went through the ditch, struck a tree and crashed into a house.

Nobody was in the home at the time of the wreck. The 18-year-old driver and his 18-year-old passenger form Dover, North Carolina were not injured. Authorities estimate that the accident caused ,000 damage to the home.

The Greenville, North Carolina teen is charged with DWI and reckless driving related to the allegations. It is not clear what evidence led troopers to suspect the young man was impaired at the time of the accident.

Source: WBTW, “NC teen crashes car into house, faces DWI charge, police say,” May 3, 2013  

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A woman in New Hanover County, North Carolina says that she is facing charges for allegedly driving while impaired based solely upon an agility test that she was subjected to at the hospital after she was involved in a car accident. The woman does not remember what occurred in the wreck. The air bag on her car deployed and the woman suffered a concussion in the wreck.

The woman says that a North Carolina trooper gave her a breath test at the hospital, which she passed. But she says that the trooper did not like how she performed on a field sobriety test after she sustained the concussion. Apparently, the trooper claims that the woman did poorly in tracking his finger while she lay in a hospital bed. What is more, she says that her hospital records show that she did not have any alcohol or drugs in her system.

Law enforcement took a blood sample for purposes of a drunk driving investigation. Test results may not come back from that test for up to a year. Meanwhile, the woman is charged with DWI and she is scheduled to appear in court later this month.

Followers of this blog may recognize that car accident investigations lead from time to time to drunk driving charges. Law enforcement may subject an accident victim to field sobriety tests after a wreck a jump to the conclusion that a victim’s performance on one or more tests may not be up to the satisfaction of the officer. In the recent New Hanover County case, the woman reportedly says that she has tests to show that she was not under the influence when she was in a wreck.

Typically, news reports on an alleged drunk driving car accident are generated by government actors and carried in the press. Although there may be two sides to a story, a person suspected or accused of a crime has the right to remain silent. Most defendants do not speak to the press about an offense, as anything a person says may be used in court.

Our constitutional system acknowledges the freedom of the press, often as an important check on government power. But our constitutional system also guarantees numerous due process and other rights for people accused of a crime. Criminal defense lawyers argue in court to protect those rights, and the right to a criminal defense is important check on government power to maintain the integrity of our system.

Source: WECT, “Hospital tests negative, woman still charged with DWI,” Ashlea Kosikowski, updated April 6, 2013

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Police say that a woman behind the wheel in a rollover crash in Gaston County, North Carolina was sober when the accident occurred. Law enforcement believes the woman was texting when the accident happened. However, authorities say that she was not the one in control of the steering wheel. Law enforcement says that her passenger was steering-and officials say that the passenger was under the influence of alcohol.

Authorities have charged the sober 19-year-old driver with aiding and abetting driving while impaired in the incident. She is also accused of allowing an unlicensed person to drive.

The allegations follow a single-vehicle wreck that was reported around 9:15 Thursday evening on U.S. 321 near Dallas, North Carolina. Police say that the pickup truck the two young women were traveling in left the road, struck a road sign and apparently rolled more than one time.

The female passenger was thrown from the pickup in the rollover. She suffered serious injuries and was taken to Gaston Memorial Hospital, where she was listed in Fair condition by Friday. Police believe that the passenger had been steering the truck when it wrecked. Police say that charges may be pending for the female passenger.

Meanwhile, the 19-year-old driver, a Lincolnton, North Carolina resident, was booked into the Gaston County Jail early Friday morning and was later released.

A first time aiding and abetting charge in North Carolina can lead to harsh consequences if a person is convicted. Typically, the consequences of an aiding and abetting DWI conviction can be very similar to a level 5 DWI offense.

Sources:

• WSOC TV, “Authorities: Teens were texting, drinking before serious crash,” March 29, 2013
• Gaston Gazette, “Police: Impaired passenger steers car, wrecks on highway,” Wade Allen, March 29, 2013

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North Carolina state troopers arrested a high school principal from Hyde County over the weekend on suspicion of driving while impaired. Authorities claim that the Mattamuskeet High School principle was driving a school-owned vehicle when he was arrested.

State troopers claim that the man measured 0.11 percent blood alcohol concentration after he was taken into custody. North Carolina law presumes impairment for any driver who measures 0.08 percent BAC or more.

DWI defense lawyers in North Carolina know that a person accused of drunk driving remains innocent until proven guilty. This blog has previously discussed collateral issues that can flow if a person is convicted of an alcohol-related offense. The high school principal reportedly has taken leave from his role as principal while the school district completes an independent probe into the DWI allegations.

Troopers claim that the 57-year-old man crashed the school-owned car while traveling on U.S. 264. Authorities believe that the driver took a curve too fast and lost control after over-correcting on the curve.

The car struck a utility pole alongside U.S. 264 near Swan Quarter, North Carolina. Law enforcement says that the driver’s-side fender of the county-owned vehicle, a 2001 Ford Crown Victoria, was damaged in the car accident. The wreck was reported around 12:45 Saturday afternoon.

Troopers ultimately arrested the school principal for drunk driving. A court date on the DWI allegations is scheduled for March 6. Meanwhile, the high school official is out on annual leave. This is the man’s first year as principal of the school.

Sources:

• WITN, “High School Principal Taking Leave After DWI Arrest,” Feb. 5, 2013
• WXII, “NC principal charged with DWI in school vehicle,” Feb. 4, 2013

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A 24-year-old Raleigh, North Carolina woman pled guilty Monday in Pitt County Superior Court to driving while impaired and felony death by vehicle charges. The charges arose from an August 2009 accident that authorities say claimed the life of a passenger. The woman also pled guilty to misdemeanor hit-and-run allegations arising in an unrelated incident in May 2009.

The woman entered the guilty pleas Monday afternoon in Pitt County and was sentenced to the maximum term of 36 to 53 months in prison on the death by vehicle charge. The judge imposed a two year prison sentence on the DWI conviction and ordered that that sentence run consecutive to the death by vehicle sentence.

Generally, a consecutive sentence does not begin until a prior sentence is completed. For comparison, when a person is sentenced to concurrent sentences for separate offenses, the sentences are served at the same time.

The felony death by vehicle and DWI charges were filed after authorities say that the woman crashed her vehicle on Worthington Road east of County Home Road in August 2009. A 21-year-old man was thrown from the passenger seat as the woman’s Toyota Sequoia flipped several times, according to North Carolina State Police. The passenger suffered fatal injuries in the tragic wreck. The woman had been charged with second-degree murder

The same woman appeared in court last week on separate DWI charges. Tuesday, she was found guilty of DWI from allegations that arose in August 2008. At the hearing last week, the judge imposed a six-month sentence for the DWI conviction, which prosecutors say is the maximum sentence, according to the Greenville Daily Reflector.

Source: Greenville Daily Reflector, “Driver pleads guilty in fatal wreck,” Kristin Zachary, Jan. 28, 2013

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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

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A young man is facing drunk driving charges after allegedly being in a car accident on Highway 13 near the Beaufort-Pitt County line over the weekend. Police believe the teen was heading east on Highway 33 when he lost control of his car. Authorities say that the car hit a road sign, careened into a ditch and slammed into a light pole, knocking it down.

The North Carolina Highway Patrol says that the teen called his family after the wreck. But troopers say the teen fled the area on foot. Troopers apparently responded to the scene of the accident and apparently waited for the teen’s family to arrive. Authorities say that the troopers commanded the family members to go find the teen.

The Highway Patrol says that the teen’s family brought him to the scene of the accident. At that point, the 17-year-old was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving, leaving the scene of an accident and failing to maintain lane control.

It is not clear in the media what level of drunk driving charges the young man faces after the alleged incident. Most people know that the legal limit to drive in North Carolina is set at 0.08 percent blood alcohol concentration. That is what is known as the per se level of impairment, where the law-unfortunately-assumes impairment for all drivers. However, law enforcement and prosecutors can also bring charges based upon the observations of officers in a normal DWI case, if the officers believe that the driver was impaired while driving.

But for underage drivers–those who are under the age of 21–North Carolina law allows authorities to pursue underage DUI charges based upon any evidence of consumption. A teen or 20-year-old driver can face underage drinking and driving charges when well below the general legal limit of 0.08 percent BAC.

Source: WITN, “Teen Flees Scene Of Wreck, Charged With DWI,” Dec. 17, 2012

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A man is accused of drunk driving in a roll over crash September 17 in Pitt County. Four people were injured, including the 16-year-old son of the man accused of driving while impaired (some media reports say that the son is 17-years-old). The North Carolina Highway Patrol says that a trooper smelled alcohol on the 41-year-old driver before he was transported to Vidant Medical Center.

Authorities say that the accident occurred on U.S. 64 Alternate near Porter Road shortly after 5:30 in the afternoon. Three passengers were in the vehicle. Besides the driver’s son, troopers say an 18 or 19-year-old relative of the driver and a 21 or 22-year-old Parmele man were passengers in the car. All three passengers and the driver suffered undisclosed injuries, but troopers say all are expected to survive.

Authorities claim that the 41-year-old driver was traveling east on U.S. 64 at roughly 90 miles per hour. Troopers think that the Parmele, North Carolina man lost control of his vehicle while trying to navigate a curve about 2.5 miles west of Bethel, North Carolina. Authorities say that the car went into a ditch, roiling over and ejecting at least one of the passengers. One of the passengers was airlifted from the scene. All four occupants of the vehicle were taken to Vident after the wreck.

Few details about the police investigation have been made available in the public media. Authorities say that the Parmele man will be facing DWI and reckless driving charges after the Monday afternoon crash.

Sources:

• Greenville Reflector, “Man charged with DWI in Bethel wreck,” Sep. 19, 2012
• WITN, “Troopers: Drunk Driving Wreck Sends 4 To Hospital,” Sep. 17, 2012

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North Carolina law provides authorities with a variety of reasons to suspend or revoke a person’s driver’s license. New charges for driving after a suspension or revocation can tend to further complicate matters for a North Carolina driver. Often, a driving after revocation charge may be added in a string of allegations.

Authorities in Martin County accuse a man who was reportedly wanted on fraud, fleeing and eluding and other charges now will be facing a slate of new offenses in criminal court. Officials believe that the man was driving on a revoked license when deputies sought to pull the man over.

A Martin County deputy says that the driver pulled out in front of the deputy’s car when the deputy was in Bertie County. The man is accused of taking off, starting a high speed pursuit in Bertie County.

Authorities say that the man pulled over near the county line and made remarks and gestures toward law enforcement before returning to the driver’s seat and speeding off into Martin County. The deputy claims the pursuit reached speeds of 110 miles per hour. When the chase reached Williamston, North Carolina, authorities claim the man crashed his Mercury into a garbage truck on Main Street. The mercury also struck a van, according to Martin County officials.

The pursuing deputy says that the man jumped out of his Mercury and fled on foot. Authorities apparently apprehended the man. He is now facing charges of assault on a government official, felony fleeing, driving while revoked and traffic offenses. He was booked into jail with bond set at ,000.

A passenger who reportedly had been riding in the Mercury Marquis was cited for resisting or obstructing and released.

Source: WITN, “Man Wanted On Chase Charges Leads Deputies On Another Chase,” Sep. 20, 2012

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A Martin County deputy was reportedly pinned in his truck Tuesday night in an off-duty car accident. North Carolina troopers believe that the deputy lost control of his truck in Williamston around 6:00 Tuesday evening. The truck slammed into a tree, causing the man serious injuries. Emergency responders airlifted the man from the scene, and he spent hours in the operating room undergoing surgery.

Sources indicate that the man is in stable condition after the surgery for non-life-threatening injuries. Now that that ordeal is settling down, the deputy is facing a new ordeal-a legal ordeal in criminal court. Authorities accuse the 24-year-old man of driving while impaired.

North Carolina troopers say that the deputy, who was off-duty and driving his personal vehicle at the time of the accident is charged with DWI. The Sherriff’s Department reportedly has already placed the man on administrative leave pending further investigation into the allegations.

The DWI case could provide even more potential consequences, exposing the deputy to possible fines, jail time and issues related to his privilege to drive.

News reports do not indicate what evidence troopers are relying upon in their belief that the deputy was impaired at the time of the 6:00 p.m. car accident Tuesday.

People from any walk of life can be pulled into the criminal justice system on allegations of DWI. Moreover, the state laws are broad.

While most Greenville, Pitt County and Martin County area residents may be aware that the legal limit to drive is set at 0.08 percent blood alcohol concentration, the laws allow prosecutors to seek DWI charges based upon other evidence of impairment, and a reading lower than 0.08 percent BAC does not necessarily mean a person is immune from charges. Similarly, a prescription medication may be enough for law enforcement and prosecutors to pursue a North Carolina DWI charge in some instances.

Source: WNCT, “Update: Martin Co. Deputy Charged With DWI,” Updated July 11, 2012

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