This is great stuff. Seriously. You can watch what appears to be HD quality video dash-cam footage of granny (albeit a young granny) performing FSTs (roadside sobriety exams) in her bikini here. (Note that the video is not complete and is a news “snipit”; still it’s good stuff and would make any any a producer / director proud.)
That up there is Patricia Ebel, a 49 y/o Grandmother to a 10 y/o grandson.
And that up there is Pat being arrested for a DUI accident in Naples with her 10 y/o grandson in the car. Pat was driving her 10-year-old grandson home after a day at the pool on Friday , April 17th, 2015 when she crashed her luxury black BMW 5-Series into a car that was stopped at an intersection in Naples, Florida. Although Pat’s car was totaled, neither Pat nor her grandson was injured in the crash, but the driver of the car that Pat hit was taken to the hospital (albeit with non-life-threatening injuries). After being captured on video staggering as she failed all field-sobriety-tests Pat wisely refused to take a breathalyzer test. Naturally she was arrested anyhow.
The stills are classic but do not do the video justice. Pat was charged with DUI accident with physical injuries, penalties for which will be enhanced for her having had a child in the vehicle at the time. She may not have physically injured her grandson but she didn’t do his psyche any good either. Still, before she was taken away by police to be booked, her grandson ran up and hugged her.
Apart from both the handy-dandy chart above and regardless of whether or not she is ultimately acquitted, Florida’s official DMV.gov posted DUI and Administrative Suspension Laws can be viewed here and Pat is in for a turbulent and expensive ride. Why? Not because she had a bad car accident; rather because the cops smelled booze on her. “But for” the odor of alcohol an accident is just an accident (i.e. “an unplanned and spontaneous occurrence); however, tack on booze and the “accident” becomes a 1st degree misdemeanor (subjecting the driver to 364 days in jail plus a plethora of uncomfortable and mandatory collateral penalties). And if you throw a kid into the mix then you are looking at an even more aggressive prosecution and a likely significantly less compassionate Judge who wields some degree of discretion when it comes to sentencing.
That said, the State still must PROVE that Pat was DUI, and the fact that she had an accident alone won’t suffice. In fact, the accident may play in Pat’s favor (being disoriented and unable to focus on FST’s is a reasonably foreseeable side-effect of walking away from any significant accident) but still she has an uphill battle. The cops will swear that they smelled booze. They will say that she caused the accident. They will say (and the video will either confirm or dispel) that she was not in control of her “normal faculties” and that she “failed to perform to standards” on the FST’s (again, the video will either confirm or dispel their testimony). The cops will repeat whatever statements that they attribute to Pat and will do all in their power to demonstrate that they took an impaired driver off of the road. And, again, they will do all of this because they smelled alcohol when they came into contact with Pat. (Although there are “bad” cops out there the overwhelming odds – and the overwhelming majority of police – are that the cops smelled booze and were not looking to arrest Pat for her car accident.) The lesson: Don’t drink and drive, even if you are not impaired. You may beat the rap but you won’t beat the ride; accordingly, if the cops don’t smell booze then they’ll almost always give you your ticket and send you on your way.
When it comes to the subject of drinking and driving, the best advice that you are ever going to hear is: “Don’t do it! Get a DD (Designated Driver), not a DUI”.
Be smart{er than Patricia Ebel}: Don’t drink and drive ESPECIALLY WITH YOUR KIDS / GRANDKIDS IN THE CAR, but, if you do, just say “NO{thing}”, don’t blow (in FL your 2nd subsequent refusal is a crime) and call me stat at 305-381-8686, 305-798-2220, **ARRESTED, **305DUI, **MIAMIDUI, **MIAMILAW or **HABERLAW.
Michael A. Haber, P.A.: Providing creative, effective and zealous criminal defense litigation services primarily in SoFlo since 1991.
At Michael A. Haber, P.A. “Its all about reasonable doubt”!
Michael A. Haber, Esq. is prepared to speak with you about your case!
Cell: 305-798-2220; Office: 305-381-8686; Toll Free: 1-888-SHARK-8-1
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THIS BLOG POST (AS ARE ALL OF HABERPA BLOG POSTS) IS A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT WHICH IS PRIMARILY DESIGNED, BY WAY OF REAL WORLD EXAMPLE, TO ASSIST THE GENERAL PUBLIC IN AVOIDING CONDUCT WHICH COULD FORESEEABLY RESULT IN ARREST AND PROSECUTION!
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