Aggressive Defense of All DUI Matters
Published on:

By

A Salem, Massachusetts man was driving the wrong way down a one way street. That in and of itself should be enough to get anyone’s attention. However, the defendant, Natalio Rodrigues drew a little more attention to himself by honking his horn at a car coming right at him. Unfortunately for Rodrigues, the car he was beeping at was occupied by two Salem police officers. Reports indicate that Rodrigues drove directly at the officers without endeavoring to stop or pull over. The officers eventually were able to stop the suspect. Upon doing so they smelled alcohol. Rodrigues failed the field sobriety tests and refused to take a breathalyzer test. He stands charged with fourth offense OUI, driving negligently to endanger and driving down a one-way posted street.

Fourth Offense DUI Charges For Massachusetts Man In Salem

Rodrigues is in trouble. Fourth offense OUI convictions in Massachusetts carry a minimum mandatory one year house of correction sentence. There is also a ten year loss of license. There is also a maximum five year state prison sentence that can be imposed meaning that this is a felony. Many district attorneys in Massachusetts indict fourth offense DUI cases particularly where the facts are disconcerting. I would not be surprised to see Rodrigues case get indicted and prosecuted in the Essex County Superior Court.

From the outside looking in this case looks difficult to defend. The events took place at 12:30 a.m. Driving the wrong way down a one way street with police officers as eyewitnesses suggests a problem from the outset. Failed field sobriety tests and the odor of alcohol complicate matters more. There is typically little sympathy felt by judges when sentencing fourth time offenders, particularly in circumstances such as these. Unless he goes to trial and wins, Rodrigues will be serving some jail time.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

Rodrigo Freitas was operating has car on Main Street in Hyannis, Massachusetts shortly after leaving a bar. He then broadsided a car being driven by Lynn Garland, a forty three year old mother of two from Brewster. Garland died as a result of the crash. Authorities claim that Freitas was drunk at the time of the accident. Freitas suffered a broken leg in the crash. His passenger broke his nose. Blood was taken from Garland at the hospital and no results have yet been obtained. As of now Freitas has been charged with OUI and operating to endanger. Reports suggest that Garland pulled out in front of Freitas. Police accident reconstructionists have been engaged to investigate the cause of the crash.

Cape Cod Massachusetts Man Kills Woman While Driving Drunk

Some pretty interesting issues come to mind when reading articles about this tragedy. First and foremost, whose was at fault in causing this accident. This becomes critical in determining how to charge Freitas. If accident reconstructionists determine that Freitas was at fault then it is likely that he will be charged with the additional crime of motor vehicle homicide. If Garland was at fault then the charges will remain simply OUI. The next issue is what if anything was Garland’s blood alcohol level at the time of the crash. If any levels of alcohol registered in her blood then Freitas can perhaps more easily call into question the issue of ultimate responsibility. Regardless, these cases can be difficult to defend for the simple reason that someone died. Greatly difficulty for the defense will arise if it is determined that Freitas was impaired by alcohol.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

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.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

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.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

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”.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

Joan Clark just got out of jail a few days ago. Then, this past Wednesday she got into a motor vehicle accident. When the police arrived she looked disoriented and had bloodshot eyes. She claimed to have had nothing to drink but was taking three kinds of medications for back pain and for withdrawal. She also had four children between the ages of three and ten in her car. Clark failed field sobriety tests and was charged with DUI, DUI with personal injury and DUI child endangerment. She did take a breathalyzer test and consistent with her representations to the police the machine registered a .00.

Woman Facing Charges Of DUI Drugs, Child Endangerment

This incident occurred in Florida. Massachusetts has similar charges that can be brought against someone who commits these crimes in Massachusetts however. The most serious of these charges in Massachusetts would be the Child Endangerment OUI charge. That crime is codified by Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 24V which states that anyone convicted of OUI with a child under the age of fourteen in the car shall be sentenced to a minimum ninety days in the house of correction. This crime is a misdemeanor but it is not subject to the “24D” disposition.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

Tyrone Fuller is twenty one years old living in Hayward, California. He is getting arraigned today on charges of murder stemming from a March 21, 2009 crash in which he killed another man. At the time Fuller was under the influence of alcohol and marijuana. It was reported that at 6:00 a.m. Fuller drove his sport utility vehicle through a red light striking a car driven by Roger Guess. Fuller left the scene but later filed a false police report claiming that his car had been stolen. The charges are in the Alameda County Superior Court.

DUI Murder Charges Filed Against California Man

In Massachusetts you cannot be charged with murder for a motor vehicle death involving impairment due to either alcohol or drugs. You can however be charged with motor vehicle homicide or manslaughter based on OUI. Motor vehicle homicide charges carry a maximum fifteen years in state prison. The crime can be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony. OUI manslaughter in Massachusetts originated with Melanie’s Law. It is a felony charge that carries a minimum mandatory five year state prison sentence and as much as twenty years. There is also a lifetime loss of license associated with this crime.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

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.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

Alex Lambino of Somerville, Massachusetts got into an accident at 5:40 a.m. Saturday in Arlington, Massachusetts. According to reports she struck an unidentified pedestrian who is now in a Boston hospital in critical condition. The incident occurred at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Teel Street. Police documents state that Lambino was driving under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident. She has been charged with OUI with serious bodily injury, and negligent operation of a motor vehicle. The case is pending in the Cambridge District Court.

OUI Serious Bodily Injury, Negligent Operation Charges For Massachusetts Woman

DUI with serious bodily injury in Massachusetts can be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony. The felony version of this crime carries a ten year state prison sentence. There is a minimum mandatory six month house of correction associated with this crime. The misdemeanor aspect of this statute carries a two and one half year maximum with no minimum mandatory. The article states that Lambino is being charged with the felony. I imagine that this case will remain in the district court where her maximum exposure will be two and one half years in the house of correction. If however the victim dies or has sustained some sort of permanent disabling injury it would not surprise me to see this case prosecuted in the Superior Court.

Continue reading →

Published on:

By

Last Sunday night Marueen Fogwell was arrested in Massachusetts for OUI. A cell phone caller reported that Fogwell was driving erratically on Route 95. She failed some field sobriety tests and blew a .125 on a portable breathalyzer. She later blew a .10 and a .15 on a breathalyzer back at the police station. Pursuant to Massachusetts law Fogwell’s operating privileges were immediately revoked for thirty days.

Fogwell was arraigned early in the week in the Salem District Court. The judge learned that the police forgot to take her license when she was arrested and she was ordered to surrender it in court. She did and was reminded that she could not drive in Massachusetts until the Registry of Motor Vehicles restored her operating privileges. What the judge did not know was that Fogwell drove herself to court that day. However, when she left the courthouse a court officer saw her drive away and called the police. She was arrested, brought back into court and ordered held for sixty days in the house of correction or until her at least until her case is resolved.

Woman Arraigned On DUI Charge Caught Driving From Courthouse On Suspended License

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 23 makes it a crime for anyone who has a license suspended for OUI to operate a motor vehicle during the period of suspension. The sentence is sixty days in the house of correction if convicted of this crime. It is very difficult to defend someone accused of this crime. You would have to show either that the person was not driving the vehicle or that there was an affirmative defense to this crime such as necessity. Given the facts set out in this article it is unlikely that either of these defenses is available to this defendant.

Continue reading →

Contact Information
Boston Office
10 Tremont St #602
Boston, MA 02108
(617) 263-6800 (888) 266-1781
North Andover Office
200 Sutton St #231
North Andover, MA 01845

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Please do not include any confidential or sensitive information in a contact form, text message, or voicemail. The contact form sends information by non-encrypted email, which is not secure. Submitting a contact form, sending a text message, making a phone call, or leaving a voicemail does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Copyright © 2016 – 2024, Stephen Neyman, P.C.
JUSTIA Law Firm Blog Design