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People V. JM

This is a case that had to go to trial as our client was charged with a felony DWI and could not continue in his career if he had a felony. The client was found walking about one mile away from his vehicle by law enforcement. He told the officers that he pulled his vehicle off the road when he ran out of gas and that he had drank since that time. The officers believed his version of the events but thought that he was likely intoxicated while he was driving before running out of gas. Our client had a bad history of DWI so the DAs office was unwilling to offer a reduction as they believed he had already had enough chances. Our client was an admitted alcoholic who was still struggling with his addiction at the time of the incident. He has since received the treatment he needed and explained to our attorneys that he had not drank until he had run out of gas. He drank the beer that he had while hoping that a car would pass by and offer him a ride home. That did not happen and he started walking towards his residence. When the police arrived they had him do field sobriety testing and arrested him based on his failure. He blew a .17 BAC at the station. There was a lack of communication between the officers and our client, thus they never asked him if he had drank before he drove. At the trial we were able to convince the jury that while our client was an alcoholic and probably made a bad decision by drinking in the car after running out of gas, that he had not drank until he ran out of gas. Thus he was found not guilty of all the charges alleging that he was driving while intoxicated. This result allowed my client to keep his job and continue supporting his family. It also helped my client realize the damaging effects that alcohol was having on his life and family. Even though our client was not guilty of the charges, he took the situation seriously and got the treatment he needed.

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People V. JM