A 54-year-old man recently died after a fender-bender that caused the driver to tumble down an embankment, ABC News reports.
Charged is a 24-year-old woman who now faces charges of DUI, driving on a suspended license, felony hit-and-run, and murder, the TV station reports.
Charges of DUI in Fresno will get more and more attention as the holidays approach. Law enforcement will spend more and more time ramping up DUI checkpoints and saturation patrols to try to bust drunk drivers.
But as Fresno criminal defense lawyers have seen from time to time, officers looking for intoxicated drivers sometimes make arrests even when there isn't an abundance of proof of driving under the influence.
When drivers are pulled over, other than during a scheduled checkpoint operation, the officer must have a reason, such as speeding, swerving or some other driving infraction. They can't simply pull over a vehicle randomly to try to prove a DUI was committed.
Once pulled over, the officer's observations will largely determine if he or she will begin a DUI investigation or stick to citing the driver for the speeding or traffic violation. For instance, if the driver has slurred speech, bloodshot or "glassy" eyes or other indicators of alcohol consumption, the officer may begin the routine for DUI. That includes a possible field sobriety test, breath test and other exercises to determine whether a person may be under the influence of alcohol or other substance.
But even in situations where a person passes field sobriety tests and perhaps refuses to take a breath test, officers could still charge a person with DUI and book them in jail. It may seem unfair, but if officers believe a crime has been committed, even if there is some proof against it, they can still make the arrest.
For the suspect, he or she now has a criminal record and possibly a spot on a local TV station or a story and a mug shot in the local newspaper and on its website. The person must now muster up the strength to do all that is possible to defend against the charge and restore their good name.
In this case, the 24-year-old left a concert and rear-ended a Jeep Wrangler. The impact allegedly caused the driver of the Jeep to lose control and go off an embankment. The driver died at the scene.
Police say the driver of the other vehicle kept driving and didn't stop at the scene. Video shows that the airbags in her sedan even deployed. The news station reports that the 24-year-old passed out in the back of a patrol car the night of crash. It's unclear if police conducted any tests to determine a blood-alcohol level.
In California, it is possible for a person to face a charge of murder in Fresno under California Penal Code 187 if alcohol was a factor in a crash that killed someone. Under this law, a person faces murder in the second degree, which is punishable by 15 years to life in prison.
If you need a Fresno criminal defense attorney, contact the Law Offices of Michael E. Mitchell at 559-222-2424 for a free consultation.
More Blog Entries:
Drunk Driving in Fresno, Nationwide Down, But Police Still on the Lookout: October 26, 2011
State v. Walker Shows Why Breath Testing, Rights Violations Must Be Examined in Fresno DUIs: October 13, 2011
Additional Resources:
Fresno woman faces murder charges in fatal DUI, by Shannon Handy, Sontaya Rose, ABC 30
