Recent Blog Posts in November 2009

LOS ANGELES — David Hasselhoff's ex-wife has been arrested on suspicion of DUI in Los Angeles.

google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ reported. The California Highway Patrol said Sunday that Pamela Bach was pulled over Saturday night just south of U.S. 101 on Laurel Canyon Boulevard. She was booked at the LAPD's Van Nuys jail and released.

The patrol says Bach showed blood alcohol levels of .14 and .13 on a breathalyzer test. California's legal limit is .08.

Bach was charged with misdemeanor DUI in 2007, but the charges were dropped when she agreed to pay minor damages to the woman whose car she hit. She pleaded no contest to a DUI charge in August and was placed on three years of informal probation, court records show.

She was also ordered to go to a treatment program and not drive with any measurable amount of alcohol in her blood.

A phone message left for Bach's DUI attorney was not immediately returned Monday. She is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 24.

Bach was married to Hasselhoff for 16 years until he filed for divorce in 2006. She appeared as a cafe owner in several episodes of Hasselhoff's series, "Baywatch."

State Police worked with the Lackawanna Police Department to set up DUI sobriety checkpoints on Route 5 near Ridge Road.

About 1,800 vehicles passed through the DUI checkpoint over a four-hour period late Wednesday and early Thursday. Police issued 25 tickets for various violations and made a number of DUI-related arrests.

Patrols stationed at other locations also made numerous DUI arrests. Among those charged during the holiday enforcement efforts were:

• Donald G. Stachewicz, 30, of Buffalo, who was charged with aggravated DUI.

• Robert L. McNamee Jr., 36, of Buffalo, who faces felony DUI and marijuana possession.

• Terry C. Farrington, 39, of West Seneca, who was charged with aggravated driving while intoxicated.

According to the state police, 10 DWI arrests and three drug-related arrests were made during the holiday enforcement blitzes.

COLUMBUS, Ohio—Authorities announced a DUI checkpoint for late Friday and overnight Saturday.

NBC 4 reported with the FAST FACTS.

The Franklin County DUI Task Force announced Task Force members will be conducting a sobriety DUI checkpoint on Norton Road south of West Broad Street in Prairie Township.

The checkpoint will be in operation approximately from 9:30 p.m. Friday until 3 a.m. Saturday.

Support in operating the upcoming checkpoint will be provided by members of the Franklin County DUI Task Force and the Ohio Department of Public Safety.

abc-7.com reported. Below is a list compiled by the Lee County Sheriff's Office of those arrested by deputies for DUI during the past week.

On November 16, 2009, at approximately 06:20 pm, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Nelson Bravo Ortega, D.O.B. 04/24/79 of 5428 Second Ave, Fort Myers, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Boca Key St & Winkler Rd, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 17, 2009, at approximately 12:05 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Timothy J. Linder, D.O.B. 09/02/66 of 3801 Cleveland St, Fort Myers, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of N. Tamiami Trail/Pirates Restaurant, North Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 17, 2009, at approximately 12:37 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Ryan Marr Daly, D.O.B. 05/14/87 of 3208 Sea Haven Ct, North Fort Myers, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Maravilla Ave/Cleveland Ave, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 18, 2009, at approximately 02:05 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Taylor Elizabeth Brown, D.O.B. 08/29/88 of 10438 Blue Beech Lane, Fort Myers, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Ben Hill Griffen Pkwy/Everblades Pkwy, Estero, Florida.

On November 19, 2009, at approximately 02:35 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Jose Eliseo Sorto, D.O.B. 11/25/82 of 10161 Carolina St, Bonita Springs, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of South I-75 @MM127, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 19, 2009, at approximately 06:29 pm, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested John Francis Gallagher, D.O.B. 01/29/64 of 24344 Claire St, Bonita Springs, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of 8801 W. Terry St, Bonita Springs, Florida.

On November 20, 2009, at approximately 09:35 pm, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Nancy D. Meier, D.O.B. 03/10/69 of 715 Fairweather Lane, Fort Myers, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Health Park Walk, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 20, 2009, at approximately 10:40 pm, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Norman D. Reid, D.O.B. 06/10/50 of 9241 Lanthorn Way, Estero, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Palm Ave/Estero Blvd, Fort Myers Beach, Florida.

On November 21, 2009, at approximately 01:46 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Francisco Baltazar Antonio, D.O.B. 02/20/89 of 9876 Georgia St, Bonita Springs, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of 2580 Estero Blvd, Fort Myers Beach, Florida.

On November 21, 2009, at approximately 02:55 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Roberto Serverino Corporan, D.O.B. 03/30/73 of 542 SE 26th St, Cape Coral, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Mid Point toll Plaza, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 21, 2009, at approximately 03:06 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Robert Christopher Easterly, D.O.B. 09/29/80 of 18553 Phlox Dr, Fort Myers, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Daniels Pkwy & SR 82, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 21, 2009, at approximately 04:50 pm, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Todd Phillip Odum, D.O.B. 10/24/66 of 14031 Briar Lane, Lehigh Acres, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Sunshine Blvd/Lee Blvd, Lehigh Acres, Florida.

On November 21, 2009, at approximately 11:30 pm, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Anthony Charles Reed, D.O.B. 05/15/68 Fort Ogden, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of SR 31/N. River Rd, North Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 21, 2009, at approximately 11:49 pm, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Cindy Cavazoz, D.O.B. 07/31/74 of 4901 Palm Bch Blvd, Fort Myers, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Boatways Rd/Orange River Rd, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 22, 2009, at approximately 02:48 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Amy Susan Whalen, D.O.B. 07/01/69 of 1410 SW 1st Ave, Cape Coral, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Bell Tower Dr & Big Pine Way, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 22, 2009, at approximately 03:03 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Leonel V. Carballat, D.O.B. 10/17/73 of 15432 SW 142 Ct, Miami, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Cleveland Ave/Boy Scout Dr, Fort Myers, Florida.

On November 22, 2009, at approximately 04:48 am, Lee County Sheriff's Deputies arrested Michael Kenneth Dyson, D.O.B. 03/15/48 of 503 NE 6th Pl, Cape Coral, for DUI. The incident occurred in the area of Palm Tree Blvd/Cape Coral Pkwy, Cape Coral, Florida.

If you have a cellular phone, you can report drunk drivers while traveling in Lee County. Dial 9-1-1 if you want to be eligible for a $100 dollar reward* through the "Mobile Eyes" program."

* "Mobile Eyes" Against Drunk Driving is a joint partnership between the Lee County Sheriff's Office, MADD (Mother's Against Drunk Driving) and Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner, Personal Injury Lawyers, P.A. A 9-1-1 caller reporting a drunk driver and acknowledging the "Mobile Eyes" program becomes eligible for a $100 dollar reward if the impaired driver is stopped by law enforcement and arrested for DUI. For more information contact our Traffic Unit at (239) 477-1000.

TAMPA - Jailed now for seven months, Randy Archiquette wants out.

Police blame Archiquette's drunk driving and drug use for the horrible seconds-apart fatal crashes on Florida Avenue that instantly took the lives of 69-year-old Betty Williams and 20-year-old Britany McFarland. The women's cars were crushed by what police say were high-speed impacts, with Archiquette's spedometer stuck at 70 miles an hour.

Then this week -- of all weeks, Thanksgiving week -- Archequette's DUI lawyers asked a judge for bail.

The family of Britany McFarland trooped to the courthouse, ready for a fight.

Britany's mom had written a two-page statement for the judge, and her grandfather, a retired sheriff's sergeant, researched police reports showing Archiquette got a speeding ticket and crashed into a sheriff's vehicle in the days before his DUI arrest

Prosecutors told the judge that if Archiquette hadn't wrecked his SUV, he would have kept on going.

"The only thing that stopped him was the fact that his vehicle finally crashed, it flipped several times and landed upside down," said Assistant State Attorney Barbara Coleman.

The DUI defense attorney argued that Archiquette had family ties to the area -- a wife and two young daughters -- and an honorable discharge after a decade of military service.

"There are conditions that the court could impose," argued Archiquette DUI attorney , "to sufficiently safeguard the community in this case. The court could impose an alcohol monitor, a leg monitor; put him on pretrial house arrest."

But Judge Thomas Barber refused bail for Archiquette.

"He's going to stay there, the judge made that clear," said Rachelle McFarland, Britany's mom. "I'm good; he's where he needs to be."

And with their pain still so fresh, the family is urging folks not to drink and drive this holiday.
 

The national effort to reduce death and injuries from DUI has received a major boost from New York State. Gov. David Paterson signed a law that made New York among the first states to make it a felony to drive while DUI with a child in the vehicle. The new law also made New York one of a dozen states to require all convicted DUI drivers to use an ignition interlock device that prevents them from driving their cars if they are drunk.

Last month, an 11-year-old girl, Leandra Rosado, was killed after the mother of one of her friends flipped her car on the Henry Hudson Parkway in Manhattan while she was, authorities said, intoxicated. The new law is named Leandra’s Law and owes much to the intense lobbying campaign waged by her grieving father, Lenny Rosado.

With his help, Mothers Against Drunk Driving and other supporters of the bill were able to overcome initial resistance from Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who sought to water down the DUI bill by making drunken driving with a child in the car a felony only for drivers with a blood alcohol level far above the legal limit.

Under the new measure, drivers convicted of being drunk while carrying passengers 15 years or younger could face up to four years in prison.

New York’s embrace of interlocks for everyone convicted of DUI follows by just a month California’s enactment of a similarly strict interlock pilot program. It is smart public policy.

Most people convicted of driving under the influence continue to drive even after their licenses are suspended. A recent study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a nonprofit group financed by auto insurers, found that repeat DUI offenses dropped 65 percent among those with interlock devices.

Beyond reducing alcohol-related crashes in New York, Albany’s toughening of penalties for drunken driving should prompt other states to follow suit.

ATLANTA -- The father of a woman who police say was killed by a DUI driver Saturday morning is urging other drivers not to get behind the wheel when they have had too much to drink.

Around 3 a.m., a wrong way DUI driver struck a vehicle containing 24-year-old Shameyka Welch, her boyfriend and her 3-year-old  daughter and 7-month-old son  on I-20 East near Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.  Welch was killed.  Her father says the 7-month-old is in critical condition.

Police say the wrong-way driver, Robert Ayiteyfio,  tried to run away but officers caught him.  He is charged with DUI, vehicular homicide and driving the wrong way.

The father of Shameyka Welch, Otis Welch, approached 11Alive News at Grady Hospital to deliver a message.

"Every parent who has witnessed something of this nature, I feel you.   I lost a daughter this morning.  For all of you DUI drivers out there, please stop.  Please.  I'm begging you.  Please, this hurts," Welch said.

Two hours later, there was a minor DUI accident at the same location.  After investigating it, an Atlanta policewoman returned to her squad car.   Police say that's when another driver struck her from behind.

Doctors say the officer suffered a concussion and will be kept in the hospital overnight for observation.  The driver who hit her also went to the hospital. 

The Examiner reported. The Thanksgiving holiday usually means family, fun and food. However, each year across the nation, families are left devastated during the holidays because of drunk drivers.

It is not uncommon for people to drink alcohol on Thanksgiving, but often times they make the fatal mistake of driving home after drinking. Texas leads the nation in DUI related deaths each year. According to DUI-USA.DrinkDriving, in 2008 there were:
 

 
• 1,146 fatal DUI crashes in Texas where at least one driver had a BAC of 0.8% or above

• 1,269 people were killed in Texas in DUI crashes where at least one driver had a BAC of 0.8% or above 
 

• 195 people were killed in Texas in DUI crashes where at least one driver had a BAC between 0.01% and 0.07%

• 1,463 total DUI fatalities caused in Texas where at least one driver had a BAC of 0.01% or above

Once again, all law enforcement agencies in Texas are stepping up DUI enforcement throughout the holidays. There will be additional officers patrolling the roads, so do yourself and everyone else a favor this holiday; if you must drink, don’t drive. There are many of us who have lost loved ones to a senseless drunk driving accident, don’t let this be you this year. Please watch the video below about drunk drivers, made by the STAR Flight team.

VIRGINIA (Indiana's NewsCenter) - The wife of Senator Richard Lugar has been charged with drunk driving and hit and run after hitting a vehicle in northern Virginia.

Police later determined that she also hit an unattended parked car about two miles away from the traffic stop.

A trial is scheduled for January 8th.

Here are a few websites to visit:

Orange County Dui Attorney

Orange County Drunk Driving Lawyer

Orange County Dui Lawyer

Orange County DUI Attorney

Orange County Criminal Attorney

Orange County DUI Attorney

PITTSBURGH Gazette report.- A former Pittsburgh news anchor has been arrested in California for failing to serve DUI sentences in two western Pennsylvania cases.

Sixty-nine-year-old Don Cannon, whose real name is Donald Clark, was arrested on an Allegheny County bench warrant Tuesday in Carlsbad, Calif., where he moved after pleading guilty in 2008 to a DUI. He's in the San Diego County Jail and faces extradition to Pittsburgh.

The Allegheny County sheriff's department says Cannon was to begin serving house arrest and probation last month. The department says it's learned Cannon has also been arrested for DUI in California.

Cannon's attorney, Patrick Thomassey, plans to talk with an Allegheny judge Thursday.

WASHINGTON – The Journal Gazette reported. Charlene Lugar, wife of Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., was arrested Wednesday evening on DUI charges after hitting an empty car near their home in a Washington suburb.

A statement released Thursday by Sen. Lugar’s office said no one else was in Charlene Lugar’s car or the one she hit at about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.

"Thankfully, no one was injured. We are deeply sorry and embarrassed that this DUI accident has occurred," the statement said.

Charlene Lugar, 76, was arrested at an intersection kitty-kornered from the Lugars’ home in McLean, Va.

Fairfax County Police spokesman Bud Walker said she was stopped by an officer, charged with DUI and processed at the county’s adult detention center. Sen. Lugar’s office said she had been released.

Walker said other information, such as whether a blood-alcohol test was administered and its results, would not be released before a DUI trial. Charlene Lugar’s court appearance has been scheduled for January.

nydailynews.com reported. Leandra's Law is on the books.

Gov. Paterson signed the bill Wednesday making it a felony to drive drunk with a child in the car.

"These are the types of penalties that this state has need for a long time," said Paterson, who inked the bill just hours after the Senate approved it.

An emotional Lenny Rosado, whose 11-year-old daughter's death in a DUI accident last month inspired the law, stood behind Paterson with a picture of his only child.

"My daughter's name and Leandra's Law will save lives from here on," Rosado said, tears in his eyes.

The signing concluded a lightning-quick turnaround after the DUI bill, considered one of the toughest in the nation, had stalled for weeks in the Democrat-controlled Assembly.

Earlier in the day, just before the Senate voted on it, Rosado said the law will help him begin to move on from his only child's death.

Cop say family friend Carmen Huertas was driving drunk on the Henry Hudson Parkway when she lost control, killing Leandra Rosado.

"It takes away half the pain," said Rosado who lobbied the Legislature tirelessly in recent weeks.

"The next step is when Carmen Huertas is on trial and I get to look at her and hopefully see her convicted of all DUI charges."

"That day will be a day I an let a lot of myself go and probably move on," he said.

"I'll look up in the sky and tell my daughter we accomplished two things -- your law and seeing this lady do the time for the crime."

In addition to making it a felony to drive drunk with a kid 15 or under in the car, the law will also require ignition locks for any convicted drunk driver.

Rosado broke down in tears, kissed his hand, patted his heart and pointed to the sky after the Senate passed the legislation 58-0.

The Assembly gave unanimous approval on Tuesday.

"It's a big sense of relief," Rosado told the Daily News, which campaigned for passage of Leandra's Law.

"This is going to make a difference to save lives. I wish it didn't happen the way it did, but we turned a tragedy into a little bit of a positive."

The Senate held out for a tougher DUI bill after Assembly Democrats tried to water it down.

After taking heat from Rosado, advocates and The News' campaign, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver announced late Monday night he would pass the tougher bill.

Sen. Charles Fuschillo (R-L.I.) and Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Martin Dilan (D-Brooklyn) credited Rosado for his strong advocacy, saying the grieving father "was relentless in his pursuit to ensure a tragic event like this never happens again."

For his part, Rosado thanked Paterson and lawmakers for working together to get it done.

"I appreciate that everybody got together here, put aside all politics and bonded together as human beings, as parents and grandparents," Rosado said.

He said he plans to try and see "Leandra's Law" passed nationally.

The Fort Myers Police Department will conduct a DUI sobriety checkpoint sometime this coming weekend. The operation will take place at an undisclosed location in the city of Fort Myers as FMPD continues its commitment to getting DUI drivers off our roadways. DUI Checkpoint emphasis is placed on the following:

1. Remove DUI drivers from the roadway 2. Reduce the likelihood DUI drivers will operate their vehicles on our roadways 3. Heighten awareness 4. Educate the public on the dangers of drunk driving.

Various community partnerships, including planned DUI sobriety checkpoints, are established with the goal of educating and informing the public on traffic safety issues. FMPD received funding from the Florida Department of Transportation to host DUI checkpoints. The money helps purchase Orange County DUI checkpoint equipment and to pay officers overtime when they participate in the checkpoints.

This  Drunk Drivers in Orange County will need an experienced Orange County DUI Lawyer.

Here are a few websites to visit:

Orange County Dui Attorney

Orange County Drunk Driving Lawyer

Orange County Dui Lawyer

nashuatelegraph.com reported. BC-VT — Salmon-DUI Charge, 1st Ld-Writethru,0347

Vermont auditor charged with drunken driving

Eds: ADDS byline, DELETES newspaper attribution, UPDATES with comment from Salmon at GOP meeting, background.

By JOHN CURRAN

Associated Press Writer

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Vermont State Auditor Thomas Salmon has been charged with DUI after being pulled over for a traffic infraction, police said Saturday.

Salmon, 46, of St. Johnsbury, blew .086 on a breath test — just over the .08 minimum — after a Vermont State Police trooper stopped him for failing to use a turn signal late Friday in Montpelier and he admitted having had several drinks.

Salmon, who had been drinking red wine at a party, was cited and has a Dec. 3 court date.

“I made a mistake,” he said Saturday. “I screwed up. I’m going to face the consequences, take my medicine. And I’ll move forward.”

Salmon, the son of former Gov. Thomas P. Salmon, was elected to the $95,000-a-year post as auditor of accounts in 2006 and re-elected last year, even though he was serving with the U.S. Navy Reserve in Iraq at the time.

Two months ago, he switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican, saying the GOP was more committed to addressing the fiscal realities facing Vermont than were Democrats.

He was stopped about 10:30 p.m. Friday while driving a 2008 Honda Civic.

“In speaking with Salmon it was determined that he had been drinking, and Salmon admitted to having a few drinks over the course of the evening,” Trooper Brandon Doll said in a report.

He was taken into custody and issued a citation to appear in court for a DUI.

On Saturday, he went into his office and notified staff members about the incident before making a scheduled appearance at the Vermont Republican Party’s annual meeting in Montpelier, where he also acknowledged the arrest.

“I’m feeling supported, and I am grateful for my support. I’m apologetic to my supporters, and to Vermonters who look to me as a statewide official. What I say to the young kids and the people across this great state is that I made a mistake and I’m going to own it 100 percent and I’m going to deal with it,” he said.

EXPORT, Pa. - A western Pennsylvania man faces a preliminary hearing next month on charges of DUI, on a lawn tractor on his way to buy more beer at a store.

philly.com reported. State police say 63-year-old Ford Earl Broome, of Export, was stopped by a state trooper on Sept. 6 about 8 p.m.

The trooper says Broome was stopped on a highway near a tavern and smelled of alcohol and otherwise looked drunk. Police say Broome at first denied drinking, then acknowledged he "drank a little" before he mounted the tractor to drive to the bar to buy more beer.

Police say Broome's blood-alcohol content was about double the state's legal limit for drivers.

Broome did not immediately return a call for comment Friday. His preliminary hearing is Dec 14.

These  Drunk Drivers in Orange County will need an experienced Orange County DUI Lawyer.

Here are a few websites to visit:

Orange County Dui Attorney

Orange County Drunk Driving Lawyer

Orange County Dui Lawyer

ocregister.com reported. The Orange County Sheriff's Department has received a three-year, $874,852 state grant to fund efforts to catch intoxicated drivers.

The money, which funds DUI sobriety checkpoints and other special enforcement activities, comes from the California Office of Traffic Safety, which gets it from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The state grants are meant to supplement the day-to-day enforcement activities of local police departments, said Chris Cochran, spokesman for the Office of Traffic Safety.

The money will be used largely in the Sheriff Department's 12 contract cities, which are mostly in South County. In addition, multiagency operations will be conducted with city police departments in the central and north parts of the county during events such as the OC Fair, city street fairs and other large events at which DUI incidents are common, the Sheriff's Department says.

"DUI drivers do not respect city limits," said Sgt. Jerry Brittain, of the Sheriff's Department's Traffic Bureau, which will oversee the grant's administration, in a statement. "DUI is a countywide problem. We want to find these individuals no matter where they are in the county. This grant gives them the ability to do just that."

A 17-day winter holiday DUI enforcement campaign begins Dec. 18 and continues through Jan. 3.

One-day DUI enforcement blitzes in 2010 are scheduled for Super Bowl Sunday, St. Patrick's Day, and Cinco de Mayo. Multiday efforts are set for Independence Day and Memorial Day weekends. Another long campaign is planned for August and September.

The Anaheim Police Department administers a $603,567, three-year grant on behalf of city police departments in the north and central part of the county, Cochran said.

Alcohol-related traffic fatalities in Orange County fell to 46 in 2008 from 56 a year earlier, according to the NHTSA. Statewide, DUI deaths fell 9 percent to 1,029.

If you are a Criminal in Orange County, you need the help of an experienced Orange County Criminal Defense Attorney who specializes in the Orange County Criminal Courts. At Coffey and Coffey we Specialize in Orange County cases only. Because we deal Exclusively with Orange County Criminal Lawyer cases, we have a huge advantage over all other attorneys that practice in Orange County.

If you are a Criminal in Orange County, you need the help of an experienced Orange County Criminal Defense Attorney who specializes in the Orange County Criminal Courts. At Coffey and Coffey we Specialize in Orange County cases only. Because we deal Exclusively with Orange County Criminal Lawyer cases, we have a huge advantage over all other attorneys that practice in Orange County.

The alleged driver in a wrong-way collision on Highway 101 that killed two Goleta residents was being held Monday in Santa Barbara County Jail on $100,000 bail. Richard Lawrence Rodriguez, 20, of Tustin, faces felony charges of DUI of alcohol or drugs causing injury and vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.

It may not have been his first DUI arrest.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department confirmed Monday that a Richard Lawrence Rodriguez, 20, was arrested by the California Highway Patrol on Oct. 30 in Westminster for misdemeanor DUI. The charge involves driving a vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol and having a blood alcohol content of .08 or above.

Rodriguez was booked by the Orange County Sheriff’s Department about 3:20 a.m. and was “cited and released,” meaning he was released after sobering up, department spokesman John McDonald told Noozhawk. According to booking information, he was released about noon and had no bail amount.

The CHP did have DUI checkpoints that evening, because it was Halloween weekend, but McDonald said it’s possible officers just pulled him over at that time of the morning. Since no injuries were caused, it was a misdemeanor charge and there was not a reason to hold him, he said.

Neither the Santa Barbara County nor Orange County district attorney’s offices could confirm that it was the same Richard Rodriguez. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office told Noozhawk that Rodriguez has past traffic citations on his record but prosecutors said they had no knowledge of the Oct. 30 arrest.

Rodriguez was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail after being medically cleared from Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, Sheriff’s Department spokesman Drew Sugars said Monday. Rodriguez’s injuries from the collision were not life-threatening, he said.

Authorities said Rodriguez was driving north on southbound Highway 101 about 1:17 a.m. Sunday when the vehicle, a Mitsubishi Montero, collided head-on with a Honda Accord with four occupants, just south of Storke Road.

The front passenger of the Accord, Macrina M. Ocampo, 58, of Goleta, was pronounced dead at the scene by county firefighters. The car’s driver, Marcos A. Arredondo, 18, of Goleta, and the two other passengers were transported to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, where Arredondo died. The two passengers, Arredondo’s teenage sisters, Karina and Yessika, are hospitalized with severe injuries, officials said.

Authorities said Arredondo was following his parents, who were in another car just ahead of him as the family returned to Goleta from Lompoc. His parents swerved out of the way of the oncoming vehicle, which struck Arredondo’s car.

The DUI crash is the second fatal wrong-way driving collision on Highway 101 in the past month and a half. On Sept. 23, a man driving a Verizon truck hit five vehicles as he headed south in the northbound lanes and crashed near El Sueno Road.

Jose Raul Reyes Vega, 49, of Goleta, was killed and several people were injured. That crash is still under investigation.

ocregister.com reported. A former Hyundai Motor America executive pleaded guilty today to a vehicular-manslaughter charge stemming from an DUI-related hit-and-run crash that killed a Fountain Valley man, prosecutors said.

Youn Bum Lee, 42, fled to South Korea after causing an Oct. 19, 2005 DUI crash that killed motorcyclist Ryan Dallas Cook, 23, prosecutors said. Lee was extradited back to Orange County earlier this year.

Lee, formerly of Irvine, pleaded guilty to one felony count of vehicular manslaughter by unlawful act with gross negligence while DUI, with a sentencing enhancement for fleeing the scene of a crime, the Orange County District Attorney's Office said in a news release.

Lee is expected to be sentenced on Dec. 7 to nine years in state prison, prosecutors said. Cook's family and friends are expected to speak at the sentencing hearing.

According to prosecutors, Lee and a group of colleagues attended a company-sponsored dinner at Seoul Oak Korean BBQ Restaurant in Garden Grove on the evening of Oct. 18, 2005.

One of the Hyundai staffers who was present at the dinner, Jason Ryu, testified earlier this year that the dinner was hosted by a high-ranking company executive, said Susan Price, the deputy district attorney who prosecuted the case. "Drinking was expected or it's considered rude ... if you don't drink when the host makes a toast," Price said

Ryu testified that the host made several toasts that evening, Price said.

The group drank 14 bottles of soju, a distilled Korean rice wine, before moving on to a nearby karaoke bar where Lee consumed more alcoholic drinks before getting in his company-issued Hyundai sport utility vehicle at about 12:05 a.m., prosecutors said

Lee drove under the influence of alcohol, with his headlights off, along the 22 freeway onto the southbound 55, where he veered into the carpool lane and crashed into the center median, prosecutors said. Lee's SUV rolled backward and came to a stop south of Dyer Road in Santa Ana. Cook, who was riding his motorcycle in the carpool lane on his way home, was unable to stop in time to avoid crashing into Lee's black, unlit vehicle, prosecutors said.

Cook, a Golden West College student who was a trombonist with the ska-rock band Suburban Legends, was thrown onto the freeway, where he was run over by several other vehicles. He was later pronounced dead at the scene.

Lee drove away before police arrived.

Later that morning, Lee went to work at Hyundai Motor America's offices in Fountain Valley. A few minutes after arriving, he returned to his vehicle to back it into a parking space in an effort to hide evidence from the crash, including a shattered back windshield and blood, hair and other human tissue, prosecutors said. Lee later consulted with the general counsel of Hyundai Motor America before he was driven by a colleague and a supervisor to Los Angeles International Airport that afternoon. At 12:30 a.m. on Oct. 20, 2005, Lee boarded a Korean Air flight to Seoul, South Korea, leaving his wife and young child behind, prosecutors said.

After an investigation by the California Highway Patrol, the District Attorney's office filed charges against Lee in April 2007. In September 2008, the District Attorney's Office submitted a request for extradition. Lee was arrested in Seoul on Dec. 2, 2008, by South Korean authorities. He was returned to Orange County on Jan. 30, 2009.

The District Attorney's Office credited Hyundai Motor America with helping to persuade Ryu, the witness, to return from South Korea to provide testimony in July. Ryu's testimony was critical to establishing that Lee was DUI at the time of the crash, Price said

After he refused to take a sobriety test, Chautauqua County sheriff’s deputies checked his record and found a previous conviction for DUI and a suspended driver’s license.

Snyder, 24, of North Main Street, Cattaraugus, was charged with felony DWI, felony aggravated unlicensed operation and refusing to submit to the sobriety test. He was arraigned in Hanover Town Court and sent to the Chautauqua County Jail after failing to post bail.