Convicted DWI – Judge Cited In Traffic Accident
TOLEDO, OHIO—The Ohio Supreme Court Justice who was arrested for
drunk driving last year after she blew more than three times the state
limit of .08, has now been cited for failure to control her vehicle after
she crossed three lanes of traffic. Crashing nearly head-on into another
vehicle.
While other judges have had their law licenses suspended for
convictions for driving while drunk, Judge Alice Robie Resnick, 67,
received only a public reprimand from the judicial conduct panel, the
first issued against a sitting judge in 30 years.
Resnick had announced that she will leave office in December.
Now she’s been cited to appear Sept. 25 in Toledo Municipal Court on
the traffic citation resulting from the accident which occurred about
10:45 a.m. Tuesday in West Toledo. Police reports say alcohol and drugs
didn’t play a role in Tuesday’s accident but no field sobriety tests were
given.
The driver of the other car, Barbara Holmes, 74, of West Toledo, was
treated and released at a Toledo hospital on Tuesday but was admitted to
the hospital on Wednesday.
Resnick was not hurt and was transported to her home from the scene by
a police officer.
According to reports, the judge lost control of her 2005 Cadillac,
went left of the center of the highway and struck the 1999 Honda Accord
being driven by Ms. Holmes. Both vehicles were towed from the scene.
Resnick was arrested for DWI on Jan. 31, 2005 after other motorists
complained that she was weaving in and out of traffic. She drove away
from the state troopers as they were questioning her. They pursued her
and stopped her again, the stop captured on video camera. Upon
questioning by a police sergeant, Resnick is shown on camera admitting
that “I did have something to drink”. She tried to use the prestige of
her position, repeatedly asking not to be ticketed and mentions her
rulings as a judge, saying “My God, you know I decide all these cases in
your favor. And my golly, look what you’re doing to me”.
Resnick was reportedly driving to Columbus where she was scheduled to
hear cases the next day. Although she tested 0.216 in field sobriety
tests, she refused to take the official test at the police station. Under
a new state law, drivers whose blood alcohol content registers over 0.17
who refuse to take the test face mandatory jail time.
But not Resick.
Nor was she charged with fleeing or failing to comply with the order
of an officer, resisting arrest or other charges.
The special panel rendering the discipline against Resnick was
comprised of the chief justice of the appeals courts and the presiding
judge of all 12 appellate districts. Normally the Ohio Supreme Court
handles attorney discipline cases but the entire court was forced to
disqualify itself from hearing a case involving a member of the
court.
The judges found that Resnick’s conduct on Jan. 31 “which led to her
arrest and subsequent conviction of the offense of driving a motor
vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, violated Canon 2 of the
Judicial Code of Conduct which provides that ‘A judge shall respect and
comply with the law and shall act at all times in a manner that promotes
public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.
They said that “the day that the complaint was filed, Justice Resnick
filed her answer admitting each and every allegation of the complaint,
including the Canon 2 violation”.
Resnick pleaded guilty to driving under the influence in February and
completed a three-day alcohol intervention program in lieu of jail time.
She paid a $500 fine and had her driver’s license suspended for six
months. She said she’d had a relapse after 22 years of sobriety.
9-14-06
Source: http://www.northcountrygazette.org
