Back in the early morning hours of September 7th, 2015 Matt was arrested for repeat DUI with a BAC twice the legal limit. The arrest came when a McDonald’s employee called cops to tell them that a guy in the drive-thru appeared to be intoxicated. (No, that’s not Matt below… it’s just an illustration of a different drunken fool at a drive-thru window.)
Anyhow, when ‘ole Matt appeared at the Wellington District Court he reportedly told a judge that he was at a friend’s house for a barbecue on the night of September 6th. He claimed that he was at the barbecue for five (5) hours and that during that time he had only consumed two (2) beers. He testified that he had also eaten two (2) bowls of jello but swore that he was completely unaware that the jello had been made with vodka.
Not withstanding his “I was not aware of the vodka that I had consumed from the infused jello defense” Matt was convicted of his 3rd DUI. The conviction came not withstanding testimony from the the man who allegedly made the jello who claimed to have used minimal vodka, a claim which was refuted by a government witness who testified that Matt’s BAC was simply too high to be explained by two (2) beers and minimally infused jello.
In making his ruling the Judge reportedly said that “the only issue that [I have] to decide is whether Vibert had proved, on the balance of probabilities, that there was an element of involuntariness in hsi ingestion of alcohol and that Vibert had otherwise taken reasonable care during the evening.” On that “test” the Judge flatly rejected Matt’s claim that he had only consumed two (2) beers, further stating that “It was careless to have the jello without finding out why it was there when no children were present.” Apparently the New Zealand DUI laws are lenient as Matt was reportedly only sentenced on his 3rd DUI to perform 100 hours of community service and was also banned from getting behind the wheel for one year and one day.
Memo to the Folks: In Florida a 3rd DUI within 10 years of your last one is a 3rd degree felony punishable by up to five (5) years in state prison and carrying a minimum mandatory thirty (30) day jail sentence. A 3rd DUI outside of 10 years is a 1st degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 364 days in jail with no minimum mandatory (but note that the State will almost certainly not agree to a plea without jail time and a most Judges will follow suit). As to Matt’s “I was not aware of the vodka that I had consumed from the infused jello defense”, this is what we call “voluntary intoxication” (meaning that, where a specific or particular intent is required for a crime, if proven by the Defendant then a jury could consider whether the Defendant’s level of intoxication impaired her/his ability to form the requisite and specific intent to commit the crime), but in 1999 the Florida Legislature abolished this defense (see F.S. 775.051).
https://www.youtube.com/c/michaelhaberlaw / http://habercriminallaw.blogspot.com
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Top notch, very skilled, and highly attentive. Mr. Haber is a fantastic criminal defense attorney. 
- Thanks again. You are second to none when it comes to defending your clients. For that, I thank you
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