Georgia Drunk Driving Articles

Georgia DUI Charges Against NASCAR Team Owner Dropped

Billy Ballew had been arrested for drunk driving in Atlanta before a race.

The Henry County Solicitor elected to drop the charges against NASCAR team owner Billy Bellew. Ballew was stopped on the Atlanta Motor Speedway grounds last March by a Henry County sheriff’s deputy. The officer spotted a mixed drink in the vehicle and, after Ballew refused to submit to a breath test, an arrest for driving under the influence in Georgia was initiated.

The county solicitor elected not to press GA DUI charges after learning that Ballew had not been driving erratically and the deputy did not indicate that he had detected alcohol. The solicitor indicated there was not enough evidence to justify the traffic stop.

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NASCAR Team Owner Charged with Georgia DUI

Billy Ballew was on the Atlanta Motor Speedway grounds with a mixed drink in his car at the time of the GA drunk driving arrest.

NASCAR team owner Billy Ballew was arrested for driving under the influence at Atlanta Motor Speedway. He was driving a friend from his condo to the passenger's motor home when he was stopped. Both the condo and the motor home are on the property of the Atlanta Motor Speedway. Ballew acknowledged that he had a mixed drink in his vehicle and then refused to submit to a breath test.

The Henry County Sheriff’s Department reported that the officer arrested Ballew around 7:45 Wednesday night. Ballew was booked at county jail on charges of drunk driving in Georgia. Ballew strongly contests the arrest, saying the officer was “an irate cop” wearing a 'Security' cap.

A former stock car driver and team owner in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, Ballew is well known in truck racing circles. He has used a series of high-profile drivers over the years, including John Andretti, Kyle Busch, Geoffrey Bodine and Martin Truex Jr.

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Head of University of Georgia Math Department Has GA DUI Dismissed

Joseph Fu had been arrested for drunk driving even though his blood alcohol level was below legal limit.

The Athens-Clarke County State Court dismissed the charge of driving under the influence in Georgia that had been filed against the head of the UGA math department. In an agreement reached last week, Joseph Fu entered a plea of no contest to reckless driving. He was found guilty of driving the wrong way on a one-way street.

Fu was charged with drunk driving in Georgia following a traffic stop for turning onto a highway exit ramp in the wrong direction. His blood alcohol content registered .057%, which is below the .08% legal threshold for intoxication in Georgia. Police still charged Fu under its ‘DUI Less Safe’ policy, which allows an officer to subjectively charge someone with DUI whenever alcohol is present and impairment is suspected.

Fu paid a $750 fine for court costs and was sentenced to 12 months probation and 20 hours of community service.

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Arrests for DUI in Georgia Way Down

Drunk driving arrests and alcohol related accidents much lower over holiday.

The Georgia State Patrol is reporting much fewer incidents of drunk driving and accidents across the state during the New Year’s holiday. No one died during the New Year’s festivities, and arrests for driving under the influence in Georgia were down 25% from last year. The total number of vehicle accidents was nearly halved, making it one of the safest holidays in memory.

State troopers attribute the reduction to a weakened economy, the fact that the holiday fell in the middle of the week and the impact of safe driving and anti-Georgia DUI messages.

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Budget Cuts Slow Processing of Georgia DUI Cases

Georgia's State Crime Lab in Augusta has huge backlog due to cuts in operating budget.

Due to budget cuts and consolidation of forensic and medical examiners locations, The Georgia Bureau of Investigation crime lab in Augusta has been forced to service an additional five new counties. That brings the total number of counties under its jurisdiction to 19, straining blood testing at the lab. That in turn has affected the processing of evidence in cases of suspicion of driving under the influence in Georgia.

The average processing time for a blood test was four to five weeks before the additional caseload was assigned to the Augusta lab. Now the average is 12 weeks, with some cases taking as long as 25 weeks. Prosecutors can not proceed with cases of Georgia DUI without toxicology results and the criminal justice system has slowed dramatically.

The budget cuts that lead to the increased workload at the Augusta facility were due to a shortfall in state revenue that has been described as “the worst..ever seen.”

If you have been arrested for GA DUI you need to hire an experienced Georgia DUI Lawyer.

Grants Provided for Two Georgia DUI Programs: Nighthawks and ALS

Grant from the Georgia Governor will fund two State Patrol programs that target GA drunk driving: Nighthawks and ALS.

The Georgia State Patrol has received a grant from the Governor's Office of Highway Safety to fund two DUI related programs. One is the 'GSP Nighthawks' which focuses on drunk driving identification and enforcement and the other is an ALS initiative that helps officers provide testimony during driver's license suspension hearings. Both Georgia DUI programs were started in 2004, and the new funding assures to their continuation in the coming year.

GSP Nighthawks is a team of officers that has received specialized training in the identification of a suspected drunk driver. Nighthawk patrols focus on DUI enforcement in Fulton, Cobb, DeKalb, Gwinnett and Clayton Counties in the Atlanta metro area. The state troopers have arrested 679 motorists for drunk driving in Georgia so far in 2008. Last year the team made a total of 1,054 arrests for drunk driving. The Nighthawks Task Force has been recognized internationally as the best DUI enforcement initiative in North America.

The ALS program prepares troopers for license suspension hearings. Under Georgia DUI law the state may seek to administratively suspend a motorist's driver's license following an arrest for DUI. This is a separate action from the criminal DUI case which is addressed through the court system. The motorist is afforded the opportunity to challenge the suspension by requesting an Administrative License Suspension hearing. The Georgia State Patrol program provides training, legal assistance and even legal representation to officers for the hearing. The program also conducts research and helps with the filing of motions relevant to the license suspension.

Statistics indicate that one third of traffic fatalities in Georgia can be attributed to alcohol impairment. The objective of the GSP Nighthawk and ALS programs is to reduce that figure.

You should never drink and drive. Just because you have been arrested for drunk driving doesn't mean your guilty. If you have been charged with drunk driving in Georgia you will need to hire a DUI lawyer in Georgia that can represent you on your DUI criminal charge and your ALS hearing.

College Football Player Charged with Georgia DUI

University of Georgia player charged with drunk driving hours after game.

Brandon Wood, a backup defensive tackle with the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team, was arrested early Sunday morning for drunk driving in Athens, Georgia. Wood had played in the team’s win over Vanderbilt Saturday afternoon.

Wood said he was picking up his girlfriend and her friends from downtown Athens. He left his parking lights on while waiting and forgot to turn on his headlights during the drive back to east campus. After being stopped for driving while lights are required by campus police around 3:40 am Sunday morning, Wood was charged with driving under the influence in Georgia.

Head coach Mark Richt said that Wood, while 21 and of legal age to drink, made a “bad error in judgment”. The Georgia Athletic Association policy says that an athlete who commits a first-offense violation of alcohol rules will be suspended for 10% of the season. Wood, a red-shirt sophomore who has played in all seven of Georgia’s games this year, will not be playing in the upcoming game against LSU.

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New Law Increases Penalty for Georgia DUI

Legislation calls for felony charges for repeat offenders.

The General Assembly passed legislation earlier this year increasing the consequences for driving under the influence in Georgia. The new rule aims at severely penalizing repeat drunk driving offenders.

Starting July 1, a fourth arrest for Georgia DUI within 10 years will be filed as an automatic felony. The first two offenses will be misdemeanors and the third will be an aggravated misdemeanor with increased fines. If found guilty, a felony arrest can result in a jail sentence of one to five years.

First time offenders will also be affected by the new law. In addition to enrolling in a driving program, paying fines and completing community service, those charged with drinking and driving in Georgia must undergo an evaluation for alcohol abuse and attend a treatment program.

A state representative hopes the penalties will keep Georgia DUI offenders from making the mistake again.

If you have been arrested for drunk driving in Georgia you need a qualified GA DUI Lawyer.

Driver in Dramatic Rescue Charged with DUI in Georgia

Atlanta man Richard Sissons had crashed through seventh floor parking garage barrier.

Yesterday the news media flashed images of a dramatic rescue taking place in Atlanta. Richard Sissons reportedly had passed out and crashed through the steel cables that created the edge barrier of a Buckhead area parking garage. Only a few cables were preventing Sissons’ Ford Taurus from dropping 200 feet to the street below. Inside the vehicle, Sissons was motionless after having hit his head on the steering wheel.

Firefighters first determined that Sissons was alive and then lowered a man upside down to break through the passenger window, enter the vehicle, place a harness around Sissons and lift him to safety. A fire captain said the rescue was “one for the history books”, as he reflected on the probability that the cables could have given way at any time or the car simply dislodged and fallen.

Sissons, 36, was taken to a nearby hospital and treated for a shoulder cut. He was determined to be intoxicated and was charged with Driving Under the Influence in Georgia and damage to property. Police suspect that Sissons was speeding in the parking structure before losing control and crashing through the cables.

Tags: Richard Sissons

Georgia Supreme Court Says NO to Blood Tests

Court Strikes Down Mandatory Blood Tests for DUI

By BILL RANKIN 10/6/03

Atlanta Journal-Constitution Staff Writer

The Georgia Supreme Court today declared unconstitutional a provision of the state DUI law that requires drivers involved in serious accidents to take blood tests.

The "implied consent" statute allows police to ask a driver involved in a serious accident to take a blood test, even when there is no indication the driver was intoxicated or impaired. A refusal to take the test results in a suspension of driver's license and can be used against the driver in court.

The provision applies only to accidents that result in fatalities and serious injuries, which can include broken bones or loss of consciousness.

Atlanta lawyer Bob Chestney said the decision will affect many cases and have far-reaching impact.

"It's a bright day for the Fourth Amendment in these days we're living in where it's too popular to think that security is more important than personal liberty," Chestney said. "It's refreshing to see our Supreme Court buck that trend. It's a victory for personal freedom from government intrusion."

The court's ruling does not affect another aspect of the DUI implied consent law, which requires drivers to submit to blood tests when an officer finds evidence a driver was intoxicated or impaired.

Chestney's client, Carey Don Cooper, was involved in a two-vehicle collision on Aug. 11, 2000, in Barrow County. During the crash, the driver of the pickup sustained a broken arm.

After a trooper read Cooper the implied consent notice, Cooper agreed to take a blood test, which found traces of cocaine. Cooper was convicted of the misdemeanor offense and appealed that he had been subjected to an illegal search.

In a unanimous ruling by Justice Harris Hines, the Georgia Supreme Court agreed.

"While the state's interest in guarding the welfare and safety of its citizens with the perils caused by intoxicated drivers is beyond dispute, it is clear that a primary purpose of [the implied consent law] is to gather evidence for criminal prosecution," Hines wrote.

"No matter how important that purpose may be, it does not create a special need to depart from the Fourth Amendment's requirement of probable cause; otherwise it could be argued that the state's interest in securing evidence in any situation of potentially serious conduct would justify dispensing with any finding of probable cause," Hines said.

Winder lawyer Billy Healan, who also represents Cooper, said his client faced a 15-day jail sentence, a $1,000 fine and a year on probation. Healan said that at Cooper's trial there was no evidence that his client was impaired.

"This is an important ruling," Healan said. "The police should have reason to believe someone is under the influence before being allowed to test them."

Tags: Court Rulings