Massachusetts DUI Lawyer Blog
At 3:30 in the afternoon a witness saw Linda Bevelander drive her car up onto a curb. Police appeared and observed Bevelander drive through a stop sign. When they tried to stop her she kept on driving. Ultimately she was apprehended in a parking lot in Falmouth Heights. Bevelander gave a false name to the officer who stopped her. She has been charged with 3rd offense DUI, failing to stop for a police officer, using a motor vehicle without authority, driving on a suspended license and running a stop sign. The case is pending in the Falmouth District Court.
Massachusetts Woman Charged With 3rd Offense DUI
Third offense OUI cases in Massachusetts are punishable by one hundred days in the house of correction. There is a minimum mandatory one hundred fifty day sentence that must be served. Third offense drunk driving cases are felonies in Massachusetts. There is a potential five year state prison sentence that can be imposed. Usually third offenses are prosecuted in the District Courts where the maximum sentence is two and one half years. If convicted of a third offense there is a eight year loss of license. You can apply for a hardship license after four years.
In this case it appears that there was no breathalyzer test or field sobriety tests. If that is accurate defending this case becomes much easier. The simplest way for prosecutors to prove people guilty of OUI is through a breathalyzer test or failed field sobriety tests. It is when suspects do not take these tests that the task of the district attorney becomes more difficult. In Massachusetts the refusal to take a breathalyzer test or field sobriety tests cannot be used as evidence against you at trial.