DUI trial - Fairfax [not guilty]
Nov 03, 2014OUTCOME: Not guilty - motion to strike granted by judge
A driver called the police when she saw a pickup truck swerve across both lanes of travel in one direction, striking the sidewalk on one side and crossing momentarily into the other direction's lane of ... travel. No other cars around or affected. At the next traffic light, the pickup truck's brake lights went out and the truck rolled back into the front of the caller's car. When the police arrived on scene, they found the driver of the pickup truck unable to respond properly to questions or obey commands. When the driver placed one hand beside his seat, the officer used his Taser to immobilize the driver. (No weapon was found in the pickup, but officers must think about their safety first!) After use of the Taser, the officer physically pulled the driver out of the pickup. The driver did not place his hands out to cushion his fall and struck the pavement with his face, breaking his nose and opening two wounds that would require stitches. At the hospital, blood was drawn to test for alcohol and drugs. No known intoxicants were noted in the driver's blood. Mr. Esten made a motion to dismiss after the Commonwealth presented this evidence. While intoxication by an unknown substance was a possibility, the judge recognized that it was equally possible that the driver was suffering from a medical condition that caused the intoxicated-like behavior and dismissed the case.
