Austin DWI Attorney Blog

Austin TV station weekend anchor wrecked his car before being arrested for drunk driving in Lakeway, Texas.

Lakeway Police charged a KXAN news reporter with driving while intoxicated after finding his car stuck in a drainage ditch. David Michael Torbi, who uses the name Davis Scott on the air, was uncooperative and swore at the police as they approached his vehicle. Police detected alcohol on his breath and found a mixed drink in an open container in his car.

According to the arrest report, Torbi admitted to having had too much to drink. He refused to submit to a field sobriety test and was booked on charges of misdemeanor DWI. The criminal defense lawyers at my law firm believe that under Texas law, a motorist suspected of driving while intoxicated has the right to avoid self-incrimination through breath, blood or urine evidence. This action does not void law enforcement's ability to seek an arrest based on additional information gained from a potential DWI investigation.

KXAN, the NBC affiliate in Austin, has not issued a statement. Instead, through its website has declined comment on "private, personal matters."

Augie Garrido to spend 4 days in Travis County Jail for drunk driving arrest in Austin, Texas.

The University of Texas head baseball coach has been sentenced to four days in jail stemming from an arrest for DWI in Austin. Garrido had entered a guilty plea to driving while intoxicated earlier this year in February.

Garrido was stopped around 1:00 am on January 17th for driving without headlights. After performing a field sobriety test, he admitted to having consumed five glasses of wine and to being intoxicated. He was arrested and booked on charges of driving while intoxicated in Texas. Garrido issued a public apology for the arrest, calling his actions a "serious mistake". He was suspended by the UT athletic department for the first four baseball games of the 2009 season.

Garrido will receive two days credit for time served and Travis County jail officials will decide how the balance of the sentence will be carried out. Garrido was also fined $500 and his driver's license was suspended for 90 days. As an Austin DWI lawyer, some may question the extent of the penalties, especially with an admission of intoxication on the part of the defendant, they are in keeping with a first offense DWI. Coach Garrido received no special favors for his notoriety or stature in the community.

Prosecutors were seeking a five day jail sentence for Garrido but said they "understand and respect" the decision of Travis County Judge Elisabeth Earle.

Related article: Augie Garrido to be sentenced later this summer for his Austin DWI arrest

Diana Taurasi, star of the Phoenix Mercury women's basketball team, is now facing three drunk driving related charges stemming from her July 2nd arrest. Lab results show that her blood alcohol content was .17%, more than twice the legal limit for intoxication in Arizona. That qualifies as extreme DUI in Arizona.

Taurasi was stopped around 2:30 am for speeding and drifting outside of her traffic lane. She admitted to having had "a few" drinks at a club. She has entered a plea of not guilty to DUI, and is scheduled to appear in court again on July 22nd.

Previously I posted that former candidate for Travis County District Attorney, Mindy Montford was charged with public intoxication following an incident with Austin Police Department. After listening to music at a downtown club, Montford was in a vehicle driven by Noel Didear, a band member. Didear hit a pole in an alley and moved the car 10 feet. Police arriving at the scene elected to charge Didear with suspicion of driving while intoxicated in Texas, as well as leaving the scene of an accident for moving his vehicle.

Montford attempted to advise her friend of his rights though the officer ordered to her back to the car. She had been sitting in the car for 20 minutes when police said they were going to charge her and another passenger with public intoxication. The dashboard camera indicates that the officer did not perform any tests or investigate Montford for intoxication.

Continue reading "Friend of Mindy Montford charged with DWI in Austin, but not formally filed" »

Shock jock Howard Stern's sidekick Artie Lange was arrested Friday afternoon for suspicion of driving while intoxicated in New Jersey. Lange was involved in a minor auto accident in Toms River New Jersey. During an accident investigation, law enforcement officers elected to charge Lange with DWI.

Lange was one of the original cast members of the comedy television show MADtv. He replaced Jackie Martling on the Howard Stern Show, and has been known to talk about his challenges with drug abuse on the show. Many of his stories were compiled in his best-selling book 'Too Fat to Fish'.

Eddie Mekka, best known by his character Carmine Ragusa - aka The Big Ragoo - on the television sitcom Laverne & Shirley, was arrested for drunk driving in Las Vegas over the 4th of July holiday weekend. Mekka was reportedly in an auto accident around 12:30 pm last Friday. During their investigation, police administered field sobriety tests and then charged Mekka with driving under the influence in Nevada. Thankfully there were no injuries as a result of the accident.

Considering the recent DUI arrest of Joyce DeWitt form 'Three's Company', there seems to be a trend here of old sitcom stars getting arrested for drunk driving. Even as celebrities, they should get their day in court, and hopefully their drunk driving defense lawyer will help them through the process.

Two days before Sahel Kazemi shot and killed former Tennessee Titans quarterback, Steve McNair, police arrested her for DUI. Kazemi was stopped driving a Cadillac Escalade that McNair had given her for her birthday. According to the arrest affidavit, Kazemi had bloodshot eyes and alcohol on her breath. She refused a breath test and told an officer "she was not drunk, she was high." Kazemi was charged with drunk driving. McNair was in the passenger's seat of the Escalade but was not charged with anything. He later got Kazemi out on bail.

Police recently released this video of Kazemi's DUI stop.

Police are speculating that Kazemi was having financial troubles and that she thought McNair was seeing another women. Though the questions surrounding this will never be answered, the rumors will continue to fly.

Off duty officer causes scene at restaurant, leading to his arrest over the 4th of July holiday weekend.

Police in McAllen, Texas had to arrest a fellow officer Sunday night for drunk driving. Around 10 pm, Alex Alvarez reportedly was intoxicated and bothering female customers at a Chili's Bar & Grill, and the manager of the restaurant attempted to arrange for a taxi ride. Alvarez refused to wait and at one point grabbed the eyeglasses off the manager's face. Security cameras then captured the 14-year veteran with the McAllen Police Department get in his red pick-up truck and attempt to drive off. He forgot, however, to remove the security device locking his steering wheel and he backed into the manager's parked vehicle.

When officers responded to the scene, Alvarez repeatedly asked them to let him drive home. He initially denied having an altercation with the manager until witnesses recounted the events. At that point Alvarez apologized to the officers for having to arrest one of their own. He refused to submit to a breath test at the police station, and was charged with suspicion of driving while intoxicated in Texas. If found guilty of DWI, he could be fined up to $2,000 and sentenced to jail for up to 180 days.

As a DWI Lawyer in Austin, I find however difficult Officer Alvarez's immediate criminal situation is, his long-term concern if convicted of a DWI in Texas will be the probable loss of his police license. The Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards of Education typically suspends an officer's license for 10 years following a conviction for drunk driving.

Alvarez, 39, was arraigned in McAllen Municipal Court on Monday and released on $5,000 bond. He has been suspended without pay until the criminal charges are resolved.

Rowdy Roddy Piper, an eighties wrestling star, was arrested for driving under the influence in Los Angeles early Thursday morning. Piper was stopped by Los Angeles Police around 1:00 am and reportedly was administered several field sobriety tests before being charged with drunk driving at the Hollywood division station. His bond was set at $5,000.

Piper, 55, whose real name is Roderick Toombs, was a wrestling fixture eighties, playing the villain to Hulk Hogan. Piper was inducted to the World Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1995 and has alluded to a return to Raw or Smackdown. I am not sure how his recent drunk driving arrest will alter the decision to bring him back, but it seems that in Hollywood it is doubtful that a drunk driving charge will change the decision one way or the other.

Three's Company sitcom star, Joyce DeWitt, was arrested for drunk driving in California.

Joyce DeWitt was arrested for drunk driving in California on Saturday, July 4th. The actress, best known for her role as Janet Wood in sitcom series 'Three's Company', was stopped at 4:19 after reportedly driving past a barricade controlling traffic for an annual fireworks show. Witnesses say DeWitt, 60, parked, got out of her black sports car and asked a policeman standing next to his motorcycle for directions.

The El Segundo police officer observed the signs of intoxication and asked DeWitt to perform field sobriety tests. When she failed the tests, she was taken to a local jail and booked for suspicion of driving under the influence. DeWitt posted $5000 bond and was released around 1:20 am Sunday.

This latest celebrity DUI arrest is an example of many of the DWI arrests our firm has handled, where someone has neglected the obvious traffic signs. However, being a DWI attorney in Austin, we have also represented people who were not legally intoxicated who got stopped because they went the wrong way on a one-way street or did not see an obstructed stop sign. Whenever you are arrested for driving while intoxicated you should hire an experienced DWI defense attorney who can get you the best result for your case.

A settlement has been reached between the Minnesota Department of Public Safety and CMI of Kentucky, Inc. in the Intoxilyzer case. Defendants accused of driving while intoxicated in Minnesota will have access to the equipment's source code at the manufacturer's headquarters in Kentucky. In addition, the defendants and their DWI attorneys will have access to a printed copy of the source code in Minnesota. CMI also agreed to provide up to $50,000 for experts to review and defend the source code in DWI cases.

The Intoxilyzer 5000EN is the most common tool used by law enforcement agencies in Minnesota to test motorists' blood alcohol content or BAC. DWI defense lawyers across the country have contested the reliability of the equipment; a point borne out when an independent study showed the source code was written well below industry standards. Drunk driving defense attorneys have cited the constitutional right of a defendant to challenge accusations leveled against them, and that means having access to the source code to determine reliability of the testing equipment. Further concern was raised when it became known that CMI had periodically changed the code, without the knowledge of or input from the states that had reviewed and approved the equipment.

Continue reading "A Settlement Has Been Reached in Minnesota Intoxilyzer Case" »

Law enforcement agencies across Texas and the country are gearing up for intensive efforts to combat drunk driving during the Fourth of July holiday. Planned actions include saturation patrols, sobriety checkpoints (where legal) and targeted enforcement in areas known to have increased incidents of driving under the influence.

Everyone has a social obligation to know when they are impaired and to take precautions when engaging in alcohol consumption. That said, there has been a shift in law enforcement that suggests even the presence of alcohol is enough to warrant an arrest for suspicion of driving while intoxicated. Those with a blood-alcohol content below the legal limit are being charged with serious criminal offenses. It is important to know one's rights and to seek experienced legal representation if stopped for DWI or DUI.

Continue reading "Fourth of July Weekend to Bring Increased DWI/DUI Patrols Nationwide" »