Thursday, June 4, 2009

Our DUI Court System in the Real World

48 year old woman dead, husband a paraplegic....

John Strine, a financial advisor for Smith Barney, decided to drink and drive - again. After having drinks at two different bars (that we know of), he loaded a lady bartender into his Mercedes and proceeded to plow down two innocent folks who were enjoying the lovely weather.

This man was a serial drunk driver who repeatedly, due in large part to his ability to pay the right people, had his prior DUI offenses reduced in court.

"I see two prior alcohol related offenses, a negligent driving back in 1997 originally charged as a DUI as well as a reckless driving in 2005 that was also originally charged as DUI," Deputy Prosecutor George Gagnon said.

In 1990 I became a card carrying member of AA. Did I ever drive drunk before that? You bet! Only by the grace of God did I not cause either harm or death to another, and for that I will be eternally grateful.

If I had been caught driving drunk I would have probably done the same thing John Strine did when he was caught - hired me the best legal beagle I could find and do my utmost to buy my way out of the whole mess.

That's the point. The courts need to quit allowing us drunks to slide. It is no favor to us to let us skate on charges (it's the way we lead our lives - we're drunks !!!), and it was certainly not a favor to this woman or her husband.

Pray for the repose of Lorri Keller's soul, and for her husband who not only lost his wife, but will probably be a paraplegic.


Driver in fatal crash had history of DUI arrests

SPOKANE -- The man driving a car that collided with a motorcycle in Spokane Tuesday night that left one person dead and another hospitalized has a record of drunk driving. read the rest