Client was stopped for speeding in Hall County, did poorly on field sobriety tests and was arrested for DUI (his second). He agreed to a blood test at the jail, resulting in a BAC of .134. Bob Chestney argued that the test results were inadmissible because the state did not prove the blood test was administered in a reasonable manner under the Fourth Amendment. The judge agreed, and suppressed the test results. Without those results, the assistant solicitor agreed that the DUI case would be difficult to prove, so the case was closed with a plea to Reckless Driving.
Tagged: Hall County DUI
Hall County DUI (Refusal): Hung Jury
Client left a restaurant around 1:30 am, decided to demonstrate to his passenger the 4-wheel capability of his Jeep by driving up a steep muddy hill beside the roadway. Jeep didn’t make it, but did manage to spray mud all over a passing car. Deputy drove up on scene, performed FSTs and asked for breath test. Client admitted drinking six beers and a shot, and refused testing. After two-day trial conducted by Bob Chestney, jury convicted on Reckless Driving, but could not agree on the DUI charge, so a mistrial was declared on that count. State chose not to re-try the DUI charge, so client was sentenced only on the Reckless Driving count.