Articles Posted in OWI

Four children were injured on Wednesday after the minivan they were riding in was involved in a hit-and-run crash in Leighton Township, 19 mi south of Grand Rapids. Three of the kids were treated for minor injuries and released the same day, but the fourth one sustained severe injuries and was placed in intensive care. The police noted that all children were properly restrained.

The accident was caused by the driver of a GMC pickup truck that ran a red light and crashed into the back of the Honda minivan. The pickup truck sped away, but the police were quick to locate the vehicle and its driver, a 53-year-old Wayland man. One of the officers noticed the man smelled of alcohol and other signs of intoxication. The man was arrested and once blood test results come in, police expect to charge him with OWI causing serious injury.

How to spot a drunk driver

Michigan – January 20, 2023

Two friends in Northern Michigan found out that showing up to support a friend does not always yield positive results when one was arrested during a traffic stop.  According to troopers from the Michigan State Police Gaylord Post, a woman was stopped in Otsego County after police suspected her of operating a vehicle while intoxicated.  She called her friend to help, and the friend arrived and was promptly arrested for OWI as they had been drinking together earlier.  Alcohol and drug-related fatal crashes remain a significant traffic safety issue in Michigan, with approximately 44.7 percent of the total fatal crashes involving alcohol and drugs in 2021. Drunk driving is considered an illegal criminal act in Michigan and the consequences of a driving-related death due to operating while intoxicated can severely and negatively impact the negligent driver’s life no matter how the case turns out.

Severe stance.

Datamaster-300x200On January 13, 2020, the Michigan State Police (“MSP”) declared every evidentiary breathalyzer in the State of Michigan compromised and unusable. The contractor responsible for calibrating the machines falsified certification records, making test results from those devices inadmissible in court. Although the criminal fraud investigation has only just begun, the MSP has identified 52 drunk driving cases that have been compromised, and at least 12 of those cases have already been dismissed.

The situation is dripping with irony. Someone’s scheme to avoid an afternoon of work, pretending it was already completed, created a statewide crisis that investigators, judges, attorneys, administrators, law makers, and untold others will spend countless hours fixing. Nevertheless, allowing unmonitored drunk drivers back on the road is a serious matter. Courts will not be able to mandate treatment for individuals convicted of Operating While Intoxicated (“OWI”), foregoing a critical opportunity for judicial intervention into a serious public health concern.

Most people are familiar with an intervention, where friends and family gather together to try and convince someone to accept treatment for a substance use disorder. Well, a large number of successful interventions are conducted under judicial supervision. When first detained, the suspect will be under constant observation by law enforcement. When the suspect is subsequently released on bond, he or she will be subjected to community monitoring, including regular alcohol and drug testing. Prior to sentencing, most courts conduct a substance abuse evaluation, where an experienced social worker evaluates the defendant’s substance use disorder(s), if any. Armed with the results of the evaluation, courts will order proportional and targeted treatment during sentencing. The underlying threat of a probation violation and possible jail time for non-compliance motivates compliance with treatment.

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