Articles Posted in 1st Offense OUI DUI

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Jesse Marquardt was competing in a triathlon this past Sunday in Marlborough, Massachusetts. At around 9:00 a.m. during the running leg of the event he was struck by a car driven by Richard Dwyer, a 62 year old Marlborough man. According to witness accounts, Dwyer’s car swerved into Marquardt causing him to flip over the vehicle and hit the pavement. Dwyer continued to drive and was apprehended by police about one mile away. Marquardt was taken to a local hospital where he was treated for sever injuries and ultimately released. Dwyer was charged with OUI drugs, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, leaving the scene of an accident and OUI with serious bodily injury. The case is pending in the Marlborough District Court.

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Massachusetts Man Charged With DUI Drugs After Hitting Triathlete

Here is the interesting part of this case. Dwyer has been charged with OUI Drugs even though “the type of drugs is yet to be determined”. What exactly does this mean? If he did not submit to a blood test there is no way to ascertain with any degree of legal certainty that he was under the influence of drugs. Rather it appears that this is pure speculation on the part of law enforcement. If he did submit to a blood test then a toxicology screen will determine if in fact drugs were in his system. This still does not mean that he was under the influence of those substances. In situations like this it is advisable to engage a toxicologist to assist in the preparation of the defense. A good toxicologist will be able to explain to a jury how these substances affect certain individuals and how the symptoms of intoxication manifest themselves. They will also be able to tell a jury how long certain substances remain in the system and whether the substance was causing impairment at the time of operation.

Dwyer’s bigger problem seems to be the crime of leaving the scene. Leaving the scene of an accident with personal injury in Massachusetts is punishable by a sentence of between six months and two years. These charges are taking quite seriously in Massachusetts. The law requires a driver to stop in situations such as this and a failure to do so will almost always result in a prosecution.

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Jane Doe must have had a great lawyer. She is also very lucky. The forty two year old Massachusetts mother was given probation after pleading to a second offense DUI, reckless operation of a motor vehicle and child endangerment. The sentence was imposed in the Gloucester District Court. The punishment: a two year loss of license, a ninety day suspended sentence, two years probation, court costs and completion of the alcohol education program. The district attorney alleged that Featherstone was spotted driving with one blown tire that was down to its rim. When the officer stopped her she was given several field sobriety tests. She failed. Featherstone’s two sons were in the car at the time of the incident.

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Probation For Woman Convicted Of DUI Second

The law in Massachusetts regarding second offense OUI cases mandates that anyone convicted of the second offense be fined at least six hundred dollars and up to ten thousand dollars. There is also a mandatory house of correction sentence of sixty days, at least thirty of which must be served. There is an exception to this which most likely explains why Ms. Featherstone is not in a jail right now. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 24D states that if the first offense OUI conviction is ten years old or older the “24D” disposition can be imposed by a judge. It looks like the judge in this case availed himself of portions of this provision thereby allowing the defendant to avoid jail time. Other aspects of the sentence were more harsh than “24D” requires. Specifically, the two year loss of license. The ninety day suspended is required under the child endangerment law.

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Saturday night was supposed to be a night that would provide a lifetime of enjoyable memories and stories for the teenagers going to the Saugus, Massachusetts senior prom. Jonathan Caruso was one of the students attending. He apparently went to the prom and with other students was bused to a Boston Harbor cruise, a tradition at Saugus High School. Students were checked for alcohol and given breath tests before the prom and the cruise. They were bused back to the high school where they returned at 4:00 a.m. Caruso then left with two other students. However, at 7:30 a.m. tragedy struck when the car Caruso was driving swerved onto a sidewalk near Essex Street and Grove Street, hit a street sign, telephone pole and bush and struck and killed Carol Marean and severely injured her daughter. Now, Jonathan Caruso stands charged with motor vehicle homicide, OUI and a minor transporting alcohol. The case is currently pending in the Lynn District Court.

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Massachusetts Teenager Facing DUI Homicide Charges

Prom Night Disaster For Massachusetts Man Results In Motor Vehicle Homicide OUI Charges

Motor Vehicle Homicide in Massachusetts can be charged as either a felony or a misdemeanor. The felony version of this crime carries a fifteen year maximum state prison sentence. The misdemeanor motor vehicle homicide aspect of the statute makes the maximum sentence two and one half years in the house of correction. It is not yet clear how the district attorney in this case has charged Jonathan Caruso. One thing that you can be sure of however is that the prosecution will be looking for him to serve some sort of sentence involving incarceration if he is convicted of this crime. That request is routine in Massachusetts where someone is killed as a result of a drunk driver. The critical issues in this case will likely be the amount of alcohol consumed by Caruso, the hours during which it was consumed and the manner in which he was operating at the time of the crash.

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Rene Lopez was likely drunk a few nights ago when he stole a school bus and drove it through Everett. According to reports he took the bus “on a wild ride” and was ultimately shot by a police officer. This occurred after the bus Lopez was driving pinned the police officer’s cruiser against the Median on Route 16. Lopez was treated for the gunshot wound at a local hospital and released thereafter. The Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office filed charges of larceny of a motor vehicle, OUI, malicious destruction to property, failing to stop for a police officer and more in the Chelsea District Court. Lopez is being held without bail pending a substance abuse evaluation.

Massachusetts Man Who Steals School Bus Charged With DUI

This is not one of your typical OUI cases in Massachusetts where a “24D” disposition is likely. Lopez is looking at some serious felony charges and possible jail time. The most serious charge is the larceny of a motor vehicle. The Massachusetts statute proscribing Larceny of a Motor Vehicle is Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 266 Section 28. A conviction carries up to fifteen years in state prison for this offense. Depending on Lopez’ record this case might remain in the district court. Lopez can be sentenced to 2 1/2 years in the house of correction of this charge and receive “from and after” or consecutive sentences on the remaining charges.

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Brian Harrison used to drive limousines for Lynnette’s Limousine Company. He is now suspended from the job as a result of an OUI arrest that occurred last weekend in Lowell, Massachusetts. Charges of Operating Under the Influence of Alcohol are now pending in the Lowell District Court. According to reports it was prom night and Harrison was driving a group of high school students. At around 11:30 p.m. one of the passengers called his parent who in turn notified the police. Apparently the driver was swerving enough to cause one of the passengers enough concern to ask to get out of the vehicle. Harrison left and returned to plead with the passengers to get back into the vehicle. They refused and ultimately the police arrived and Harrison was arrested.

Limo Driver Charged With OUI In Lowell, Massachusetts

This is a first offense OUI which typically gets resolved by continuing the case without a finding and imposing the alternative “24D” disposition. It is questionable whether Harrison will get that result due to the fact that he was responsible for teenagers at the time of the offense. Moreover Harrison is lucky that none of the passengers was fourteen years old or younger. Had that been the case he could have been charged with OUI Child Endangerment.

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At 2:20 a.m. Sudbury, Massachusetts police officers observed a vehicle being driven down Route 27 with a flat tire. Based on what they saw the officers pulled the driver over to assist. They quickly determined that the vehicle had been in the accident. Upon further investigation the police formed the belief that the driver, Stephen Robak was driving under the influence of alcohol. He was arrested and charged with OUI and leaving the scene of an accident. Operating under the influence of alcohol charges are now pending in the Framingham District Court.

Drunk Driving Charges For Sudbury Massachusetts Man

By all accounts this is a first offense for Mr. Robak. There is no mention of field sobriety tests, breathalyzer tests or other indications that he was actually impaired at the time of operation. There is likely more than the article is sharing. However that is not likely the most serious charge in this case. Leaving the scene of an accident is a violation of Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 24. The relevant portion of that law states that anyone who fails to stop after getting into an accident where there is property damage ”
shall be punished by a fine of not less than twenty dollars nor more than two hundred dollars or by imprisonment for not less than two weeks nor more than two years, or both”.

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Kelly McCarthy of Peabody, Massachusetts was arrested Saturday afternoon and charged with operating under the influence of drugs (OUI). It was reported that a 911 caller called police to report a vehicle being operated on its rims. Officers located the vehicle, driven by McCarthy and followed her for a distance. As police made chase the vehicle failed to stop and eventually crashed into a fire hydrant. McCarthy was charged with DUI drugs, operating recklessly, leaving the scene of an accident and failing to stop for a police officer. She is being arraigned in the Peabody District Court today. The incident occurred at approximately 3:30 p.m.

Peabody Massachusetts Woman Arrested For DUI Drugs

Operating under the influence of drugs is a violation of Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 24. For a first offense conviction the punishment is the same as OUI alcohol. You can be sentenced for up to two and one half years in the house of correction, required to pay court costs and fines and receive probation for a year and a one year loss of license. There is also a “24D” disposition available to first time offenders where you can get probation, a mandatory alcohol education program, a forty five day loss of license, court costs and fees. If McCarthy does not have a criminal record and her conduct is aberrational she just might get the “24D” disposition.

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Now here is a really interesting case that just started in the Newburyport District Court. The defendant is a driver’s education teacher. His name is Daniel Winsky. He is fifty three years old and lives in Salem, Massachusetts. The district attorney’s office has charged him with OUI stemming from an incident on December 26, 2007. According to reports, Winsky was giving a driving lesson to a couple of teenagers in Ipswich, Massachusetts. Winsky was in the passenger seat. He had a set of controls but the vehicle was, according to the defense being operated by the student. Winsky also stands firm that he was not drunk. Interestingly enough, Winsky was not arrested until two months after the incident.

The trial started yesterday. Four civilian witnesses testified, two on the issue of operation and all four on the issue of impairment. As to both issues, the testimony is in great conflict.

Massachusetts Driver’s Education Teacher On Trial For DUI
First Of Its Kind Drunk Driving Trial Starts In Newburyport

In Massachusetts the element of “operation”, like all other elements in an OUI case must be proved by the prosecutor beyond a reasonable doubt. An old Supreme Judicial Court case, Commonwealth v. Uski, 263 Mass. 22 (1928) held that operation consists of any act that relates to the electrical or mechanical functioning of the vehicle that alone or in connection with other acts will put a vehicle into motion. Having keys in the ignition satisfies this element in Massachusetts. Never however has a court or jury held a passenger responsible for OUI. This case presents an interesting question of fact for the jury. Did Winsky do an act that put the driver’s education car in motion, while he was under the influence of alcohol.

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