Articles Posted in Drunk Driving in Massachusetts

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According to a recent news report from the Boston Globe, a total of six people were injured in what is alleged to be a drunk driving crash that occurred in Bourne, Massachusetts. Authorities believe that there were several factors that led to five of the six victims being severely injured, including alcohol, speeding, and inclement weather. Police also alleged the 18-year-old at-fault driver was under the influence of alcohol at the time of what they are classifying as a mass casualty accident.

mmsIFfoWitnesses say a Toyota Camry containing five, underage male occupants from the town of Sandwich, Massachusetts was traveling at a speed that was not safe for the snowy weather.  As they were driving down Route 6, police believe the driver of the Camry lost control of his vehicle while trying to navigate a sharp turn.  At this point, he crossed over into the lane of oncoming traffic and crashed into a Toyota Corolla.    Continue reading

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In what is a strange but common scene in the greater Boston area, a man is lying in his hospital bed as a defense attorney, court clerk, and even a judge in a full black robe, conduct an arraignment.  An arraignment, also known as first session in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the first court hearing for a defendant in misdemeanor and most felony cases.  This is where there is a formal reading of the charges, and the judge decides if the defendant will be held on bail or released.

1316049_untitled-300x200While it seems strange to hold court and do an arraignment in a hospital room, the actual reason for this has to do with departments not wanting to spend money that they don’t have. When a defendant is arrested, before he or she is arraigned, the police must maintain custody unless a judge or bail commission conducts an initial arraignment.  This means that police must post officers outside of the defendant’s hospital room 24 hours a day until the arraignment occurs.  Once defendant is arraigned, custody transfers to the bail officers during court and then to the county sheriff.  The police complain about paying overtime, so they get the courts to come to the hospital. Continue reading

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To the victims of a drunk driving accident, and the victims’ families, being involving in the accident can have long lasting consequences.  It is hard to quantify how each victim’s life is changed and how deeply a family can be hurt by the irresponsible actions of those who decide to drink to the point of intoxication before getting behind the wheel.

sig-40-and-badge-158060-m-300x225While is difficult to look at drunk driving in terms of number of incidents and accidents, funding for campaigns to curb drunk driving in Massachusetts often come down to a numbers game, so, to that end, the Hingham Patch has recently published a report from the Hingham, Massachusetts Police Department detailing their drunk driving arrest numbers for last year. Continue reading

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Across the nation, authorities are trying everything reasonable and within their power to reduce the number of serious and sometimes fatal drunk driving accidents that occur each year. To get an idea of how serious a problem drunk driving in America is, we can look to statistics to show there were more Americans killed in drunk driving accidents than were killed in all wars in which the United States was involved.

beersThese campaigns have different names, such as drive hammered, get nailed, or sober or slammer. A drive sober or get pulled over campaign has been used in Bedford, Massachusetts, according a recent news feature from the Bedford Patch. The most recent campaign was run from early December of last year to January 2, 2016. This time frame was obviously chosen to cover the entire holiday season, which, as statistics have shown, is one of the worst times of year in terms of serious drunk driving accidents, including fatal car crashes. Continue reading

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According to a recent news feature from the Detroit Free Press, a 62-year-old man from Texas was just sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of his tenth drunk driving offense. Prosecutors say defendant was first convicted in the 1980s and has clearly not learned his lesson, as he was convicted nine additional times, including this most recent conviction resulting in a life sentence.

prison-1431136-mThe man will be eligible for parole under state law in fifteen years, meaning that he would be at least 77 years old if he is ever released from state prison.   During his sentencing, the judge noted that he has 12 drunk driving arrests on his criminal record with ten of them resulting in a DWI or DUI conviction.   The judge said he was giving defendant a life sentence, so he would be in a place that he is unable to drive for as long as possible under the law. It should be noted that more states are moving to a truth in sentencing system where a person would not be eligible for parole in fifteen years on a life sentence. Continue reading

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According to a recent news feature from CBS Boston, a man in Framingham, Massachusetts was just killed in a fatal car accident involving an alleged drunk driver.

n5Pvi6OAuthorities have said defendant, who is currently 33 years old, is facing criminal charges after he allegedly hit and killed a pedestrian while driving under the influence of alcohol. As prosecutors have alleged, this was defendant’s second operating a motor vehicle under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs (OUI) and a man was killed, and he is being charged with OUI second and motor vehicle homicide by reckless negligent operation. Continue reading

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When we think of the damage a drunk driver can cause, we are typically thinking about what horrific things that can happen when a car hits another car or pedestrian. However, we have seen numerous cases in Boston and across the nation where a drunk driver crashed into a home or structure. This could obviously result in serious injury to those inside the home as well as any other vehicles that may have been involved in the accident.

9638_call_the_copsA recent news article from Southern Maryland News Net describes an alleged drunk driving car crash with facts somewhat different that the typical case. In this case, authorities have said the crash occurred just after midnight on a Wednesday morning. Sherriff’s Deputies were called to the scene by witnesses after defendant’s car allegedly crashed into a strip mall in Calvert County. Continue reading

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According to a recent news feature from the News-Press, a 50-year-old woman in Naples, Florida was arrested last April on charges of suspected drunk driving. In that incident, police were called to the scene of serious car accident when the driver allegedly crashed her BMW into a Ford Mustang that was stopped at a red traffic signal. There was so much damage to her car that it was a total loss. Fortunately, nobody was injured in that serious drunk driving accident.

DUI checkpointWhen police went to question the driver, they saw that woman was wearing a bikini and appeared to be heavily intoxicated. Police administered a series of standardized field sobriety tests (SFTS), and she allegedly failed all of the tests. She said that she was not drunk and could not stand on one foot “even on a good day.” Following the administration of field sobriety tests and general questioning, they asked her to take a roadside breath test (RBT), and she allegedly refused to provide a sample. Continue reading

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In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, there is case law that establishes what is known as “dram shop” case. A dram is a word which once commonly used to describe a measurement of whiskey that we would equate with the word “shot” today. In some parts of Europe, especially in and around the distilleries in Scotland, the term dram is still used. The word indicated a store, or more commonly a bar, where alcoholic beverages were sold by the drink.

barsignEvery bar owner and employee who is serving alcohol to the public has a responsibility, and legal requirement, to not serve any patron who is already intoxicated. They are also not supposed to serve someone to the point of intoxication that they know or should know will be driving a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol. Continue reading

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Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and law enforcement agencies across the country have been trying for decades to find a way to reach potential drunk drivers and keep them from getting behind the wheel. While one might think that risk of getting a serious drunk driving car accident that could result in severe personal injury or death would be enough to deter someone, that doesn’t seem to be the case.

mJiW8uWThis is evident from the many commercials and campaigns we see. These anti-drunk driving campaigns are being generated based upon studies and the use of focus groups to determine what has the best chance of reaching potential drunk drivers. Based upon this extensive research, it seems that most people are more afraid of being arrested and having to pay for a criminal defense lawyer and also for court costs and fines. This is evident in the commercials with slogans such as “you just blew $10,000” accompanying imagery of someone blowing into a breath alcohol testing device, which people commonly refer to as a Breathalyzer. Continue reading

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