Recent Blog Posts in 2009

kionrightnow.com
CALIFORNIA-  You may not know it, but there are 34 ,000 people with more than three DUI in the state.

A lot are driving during holidays like today. That's why CHP and other agencies will be out in full force. Meanwhile, one Assembly Member is introducing new legislation making it harder for them to drive again.

As part of the Avoid 18 Campaign different law enforcement agencies like CHP will have extra officers looking for drunk drivers through the weekend. Meanwhile Assembly Member Jerry Hill told us, he's introducing tough laws for repeat DUI offenders.

If passed, it would let judges permanently take away the license of a driver with more than 3 DUI's. He also wants to close a loop hole that erases DUI convictions after 10 years..

" It enables the judge to look at persons entire history if he had 8 DUI's a number of years ago and is continuing to get them they should let them know, society should know so that we can help solve the problem, and know what type of treatment perhaps  this individual can get,"said Hill.

Currently a judge can only suspend the license of a repeat DUI offender. Assembly Member Hill will introduce the bill next Monday.

In Fresno, Calif., police say they know their DUI checkpoints are being avoided by young drivers sending tweets. Sgt. Dave Gibeault, head of the traffic unit, tells McClatchy Newspapers his own daughter has sent him text messages about where she's heard there is a DUI checkpoint.

Gibeault supports getting out the word about DUI checkpoints in general, but not specific location information that might help evaders and let people drive drunk.

ALSO ON DRIVE ON:New Year's Day is the favorite holiday of car thieves

Police in Phoenix agree, KPHO-TV reports on its website. It's not just Twitter, but Facebook and iPhone apps as well.

"We go out of our way to tell people when we're doing enforcement efforts," said Sgt. Tommy Thompson of the Phoenix Police Department. But Thompson said law enforcement officials worry the extra distractions are putting other motorists at risk. "Behind the wheel under the influence of alcohol and a young person doing it -- it's a recipe for diaster," Thompson said.

dnaindia.com
New Delhi: Faced with umpteen complaints of high and mighty and politically-powerful accused influencing prosecution, the Centre has finally amended the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), enabling victims of crimes or their dependents to engage their own criminal lawyers for a fair trial.

The provision was introduced in CrPC in 2006, but the government did not think it necessary to notify it soon.

It’s now officially learnt that the amended CrPC will be applicable from January 1, 2010.

The amended criminal law recognises a “victim”, who had been a silent sufferer at the hands of tainted law-enforcement agencies on one hand and tardy dispensation on the other.

A  criminal lawyer will now be permitted to engage a lawyer to assist the prosecution as well as to file an appeal against unjust decisions by trial or high courts.

Amidst reports highlighting sexual escapades of certain top-ranking police officers, the government has given special attention to the charge of rape (section 376 IPC) in general and when the barbaric act is committed by cops, in particular.

Special arrangements have been made to deal with section 376, sections 376A (rape by police officer), 376B (a public servant taking advantage of his official position and raping a woman is custody), 376C (when the management or the staff of a jail is involved in rape) and 376D (the management or the staff of a hospital takes advantage of his official position and commits rape on duty).

Criminal Law ministry sources confirmed such cases would be tried by a woman judge, as far as possible. Suspects will be medically examined immediately after arrest and victims’ statements will be recorded in the presence of their parents or dependents at their residences, possibly by a woman police officer.

Statements or confessions will be audio or video-recorded. Witnesses’ statements will be recorded in the case diary so to that cops don’t tinker with them.

independentmail.com
WILLIAMSTON — Williamston Police Chief Richard Inman says the criminal investigation into the death of A’sha Rucker remains a full-time job for several investigators.

Rucker, a 17-year-old who was called “Queen Bee” by her friends and teachers, was found dead in Greenville County on Nov. 20 after disappearing from a Williamston community center parking lot Nov. 18.

“This is not a cold criminal investigation,” Inman said Thursday. “This case remains our top priority. Between the Williamston police department and the Greenville County Sheriff’s office there are six investigators actively pursing this case.”

Inman said forensic evidence is still being processed.

“There is a certain amount of evidence that SLED is processing along with Greenville County forensics,” he said “And we still haven’t been given an official cause of death from the coroner because toxicology is pending.”

Inman said criminal investigators continue to reach out to Rucker’s family “at least three of four times a week,” but he has received few calls from community members wanting to be updated.

“I received one e-mail from the parent of a student who knew A’sha wanting an update, but other than that, nothing.”

vcstar.com

In this season of merriment and drink, state traffic safety officials are calling 2010 “The Year of the DUI Checkpoint,” saying they are increasing funding for DUI checkpoints to discourage drunken driving.

The California Office of Traffic Safety will fund more than 2,500 DUI checkpoints in 2010 — 47 percent more than in 2009, officials said.

About $8 million is going to 148 law enforcement agencies across the state just to conduct 250 checkpoints this holiday season through Jan. 3, up from $5 million a year ago.

Christopher J. Murphy, director of the Office of Traffic Safety, said California has more checkpoints than any other state. “DUI checkpoints are time-tested and proven as the most effective DUI countermeasure,” Murphy said in a news release.

State officials said DUI-related deaths have declined since funding for checkpoints started increasing in 2006. They cited National Highway Traffic Safety Administration statistics showing a 21 percent decline in DUI-related deaths since 2005. State officials say 214,811 DUI arrests were made across California in 2008, the highest since 1993.

In fact,DUI-related deaths have fallen across the nation over the past decade, including a 7 percent drop from 2007 to 2008, according to the Traffic Safety Administration.

Brian Woolley, a senior Oxnard police officer in charge of the department’s traffic enforcement, agreed DUI checkpoints are effective at deterring drinking and driving.

Oxnard ranked first among 55 similar-sized cities across the state in the number of alcohol-involved collisions in 2008, according to the state Office of Traffic Safety. In all, 197 people were killed or injured in DUI-related crashes in Oxnard in 2008.

Because of those numbers, Oxnard is eligible for more DUI-related grants, Woolley said. This includes a $357,000 state grant to combat drunken driving through Sept. 30, 2010.

To qualify, the city agreed to conduct 16 checkpoints and a dozen “saturation patrols” during this period, among other things, Woolley said. The Police Department sends out a large number of patrol cars during saturation operations, looking for intoxicated drivers or anyone driving unsafely.

Oxnard police will conduct a saturation patrol from 6 p.m. today to 4 a.m. Friday. They urge anyone who drinks to have a designated driver or call a taxi.

Even if a DUI checkpoint does not produce a bunch of arrests, it does “act as a deterrent in preventing people from driving intoxicated in the first place,” said Capt. Ross Bonfiglio, a spokesman for the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department. He said saturation patrols likely “yield more actual arrests.”

canalstreetchronicles.com
Bobby McCray used Twitter - pretty much the first time he's every actually used it - to give his side of the story behind his DUI arrest last night at 4:30 in the morning. I didn't catch this when he first posted it and his account seems to have been shut down and deleted since then, but the Huffington Post has screenshots of his tweets. Here is what he wrote, in it's entirety. 

Trying to deal with this Bogus charge of DUI...driving with Pizza...I had cuffs on me with in 3minutes...This was a short guy with Napoleon complex...He got upset because I asked him why did I need to get out the car on a routine traffic stop...He starving ranting and raving saying I think I know it all and threw me in cuffs...my fiance was feeding me pizza driving home...And he pulled me for doing 80 in a 60...not to mention I was sober...DUI Lawyers mount up, we got some work to do!!!!!    

Regardless of what happened during the DUI incident, probably not the best way to go about handling the situation. Not surprised his account doesn't exist anymore.

signonsandiego.com
SAN DIEGO COUNTY— Over the long Christmas weekend, 67 people were arrested for DUI of drugs or alcohol in San Diego County, the California Highway Patrol said Monday.

The number of DUI arrests fell from the prior year, when the total was 95, even though the period when data was collected — from Thursday evening through midnight Sunday — was two days longer than last year.

Meanwhile, San Diego County highway DUI fatalities jumped this holiday season. Seven people died in the CHP’s jurisdiction, the agency said, compared to two in 2008.

CHP spokesman, Officer Larry Landeros, said he had no information about the nature of the fatalities.

Statewide, 1,104 people were arrested for DUI during the holiday period, down from 1,397 the prior year. California saw 22 highway fatalities, compared to 37 in 2008.

appeal-democrat.com
Christmas weekend was less than jolly for at least 11 drivers snagged in Yuba-Sutter for suspected DUI— a figure in line with recent holiday totals.

California Highway Patrol officers from the Yuba City office made eight arrests for DUI between 6 p.m. Christmas Eve and 6 a.m. Sunday, up from five in the same period in 2008. Yuba City police arrested three motorists on suspicion of DUI during that time, after making no such arrests a year earlier.

CHP's Williams bureau has not made any DUI arrests since Dec. 20, despite Interstate 5 running through its jurisdiction. Figures from Marysville police were not available Monday.

The increase in local arrests mirrored a jump in DUI incidents statewide, as the CHP reported 970 arrests for alcohol impairment, up from 824 in 2008.

For New Year's weekend, the Yuba City Police Department will join other local agencies in adding saturation patrols on major streets, according to Sgt. Brian Baker. Extra officers will patrol streets from early evening to about 2:30 a.m. on Thursday and Friday nights.

The California Highway Patrol will encourage officers in Yuba-Sutter to delay paperwork and routine duties until next week in order to spend more time on roads and highways, said Sgt. Scott Klocker. Locations for DUI checkpoints will not be released until 24 hours in advance.

In other Central Valley cites, both the Sacramento and Tracy police departments held DUI checkpoints over Christmas weekend, trying to heighten awareness of the dangers of driving while under the influence of alcohol. Sgt. Mark Dux bury of the Tracy Police Department said the checkpoints are not designed so much to catch DUI offenders as they are to instill awareness — and perhaps a little fear — in drivers.

"Sometimes it's a little bit of a shock," said Duxbury, talking about the reaction from people as they go through a checkpoint.

"They're not sure what's happening. Sometimes you get a little nervous for no reason. I would imagine that if you've had just one or two drinks, (going through a DUI checkpoint) would affect me greatly — knowing that I had something to drink and I drove into one of these."

Sixteen people died in California road accidents between Thursday and Sunday, which the CHP said was the same number of Christmas weekend fatalities as in 2008.

No alcohol-related road injuries were reported for Yuba, Sutter or Colusa counties.

latimesblogs.latimes.com
More than 1,400 people were arrested for DUI in Los Angeles County during a weeklong DUI crackdown that ran through the holiday weekend, authorities said.

“With all the Christmas parties and holiday office parties going on, a lot of people are out drinking and driving” said Wendy Soos, the local coordinator for Avoid. “It’s amazing how the stats go up around Christmas."

The DUI crackdown will continue through the New Year’s holiday weekend, Soos said. In 2008, more than 400 arrests were made on New Year’s Eve and New Year's Day.

The California Highway Patrol, one of the coalition's partners, made more than 200 arrests for driving under the influence on Los Angeles County freeways this holiday weekend. Overall, the CHP made 236 DUI arrests in L.A. County this year.

kionrightnow.com
Monterey County agencies are reporting drunk driving arrests were down by one person During this year's holiday DUI enforcement crackdown.

A total of 57 drivers were arrested for a DUI in Monterey County. Eleven of those were arrested on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Statewide, the California Highway Patrol is reporting 16 highway deaths over the holiday weekend, the same number of fatalities as last year. However, the 970 DUI arrests made by the highway patrol over this holiday weekend is "a notable increase" over the 824 made in 2008.

Another holiday DUI crackdown will take place during New Year's Eve.  

miamiherald.com
DADE CITY, Fla. -- A Zephyrhills woman has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for a DUI manslaughter conviction.

A Pasco County judge sentenced 35-year-old Heather Dison on Tuesday. She pleaded guilty last month to DUI manslaughter and other DUI-related charges.

Authorities say Dison was driving a truck in June 2007 when she collided with Jason Hamilton's car. Another vehicle swerved to avoid the wreck, hit a pole and overturned. Hamilton died at the scene, and passengers from the other two vehicles were injured.

The judge considered leniency but told Dison she should have learned her lesson after a 1995 DUI conviction.

Dison had faced up to 20 years in prison.

Authorities in the Eastern District, which covers inland areas from Bakersfield to the Oregon border, announced Wednesday that 414 illegal immigrants were prosecuted this past fiscal year. Nearly all of the cases involved illegal re-entry to the United States.

They say that's a 45-percent increase over the previous fiscal year, and a 130-percent increase over 2007.

Immigration Customs and Enforcement officials say this effort is part of a push to target suspected illegal immigrants with criminal records. Most of the criminal defendants had previously served prison time for aggravated felonies in this country.

suntimes.com
A 30-year-old Chicago man was charged with murder today for allegedly causing a DUI collision  that killed a 48-year-old Rogers Park woman and severely injured her 6-year-old son.

Ralph Eubanks, of the 1400 block of North Sedgwick, was also charged with aggravated DUI and leaving the scene of an accident in the hit-and-run that killed Maria Worthon.

Worthon, of the 1400 block of West Touhy, was walking with her son when they were struck at 9 p.m. Monday in the 1400 block of West Greenleaf by the Pontiac Grand Prix Eubanks had been driving, according to Cook County prosecutors.

The Pontiac went south on North Greenview after the DUI crash, but police stopped it at 6400 N. Newgard, about a mile away.

The boy initially was taken to Saint Francis Hospital in Evanston, but was later transferred to Children’s Memorial Hospital in critical condition, police said.

visaliatimesdelta.com
Visalia police operating two DUI checkpoints during the weekend arrested seven suspected intoxicated drivers and one person suspected of riding a bicycle DUI.

Officers also arrested two minors suspected of being under the influence of alcohol, issued 13 citations to unlicensed drivers, had 16 vehicles towed and cited 28 people for unspecified offenses.

The first DUI checkpoint began at 9 p.m. Friday and ended at 3 a.m. Saturday in the area of Court Street and Paradise Avenue. The second ran from 9 p.m. Saturday to 3 a.m. Sunday at Demaree Street and Campus Drive.

Members of the Police Department's DUI Team, traffic unit and other patrol officers — as well as civilian volunteers — were involved in the operations, in which 803 vehicles were checked.

Funding for the DUI checkpoints was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety using funds from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

chicagobreakingnews.com
A Lockport police officer had a blood alcohol level almost three times the legal limit when he caused a three-car DUI accident on the Stevenson Expressway, killing a man who was returning home from his second job.

Edward Stapinski, 34, had a blood alcohol level of .223, Assistant State's Attorney John Carroll said at a bond hearing in the Bridgeview DUI courthouse today.

Stapinski declined to take a Breathalyzer test at the scene of the Sunday night crash but was given a blood test at the hospital, Carroll said. Police officers at the scene described Stapinski as having "bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and a strong smell of alcohol."