Judge Berates Trooper Following DUI Arrest

A Connecticut judge could face misconduct charges over disparaging comments that she allegedly made to police who arrested her on suspicion of DUI in October.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving Downsizing Offices

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is downsizing offices in seven states: Wisconsin, Washington, Oregon, Indiana, South Carolina, Arkansas and New York.

Speaking about its Wisconsin operation, Heidi Castle, vice president of communications for MADD, said, "Unfortunately, it is bad timing," Castle said. "It really has to do with the economy. Like most other nonprofits, we're feeling the problems with the economy."

Judge Who Pled Guilty to DUI Still Earning Her $150,000 Salary

Secret discipline of $150,000-a-year DUI judge could take two years:

She quietly pleaded guilty to drunken driving and was sentenced on the day President Obama was inaugurated.

But it may be another two years before Cook County Judge Sheila McGinnis is disciplined by the authorities who oversee Illinois judges - if they discipline her, according to the executive director of the Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board.

McGinnis on Tuesday dodged a potential one-year jail term when she admitted drunkenly crashing her Chevrolet sport utility vehicle into the back of a family-of-four's minivan May 9 in Tinley Park....

Judge Edward Burmila fined McGinnis $1,000, ordered her to complete an 18-month probation stint, to attend counseling and to attend a victim impact panel during a brief hearing at the Markham courthouse.

The sentence was normal for a first-time offender, Burmila said.

But McGinnis, a cousin of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, continues to draw a $150,000 judge's salary from the county. She was transferred from a criminal courtroom to administrative duties at the Daley Center after her arrest last summer....

A SouthtownStar survey of Illinois Court Commission records shows that not one of the eight Illinois judges investigated for DUIs since 1973 has been removed from the bench for even one day.

Owasso Councilman Charged with DUI

KTUL.com:

An Owasso councilman was arrested just after 3 a.m. by Owasso police on suspicion of DUI. Councilor Dee Jay Gall was taken to the Tulsa County jail on complaints of DUI, speeding, carrying a handgun and interfering with a police officer.

Victim Impact Panels Become Part of DUI Sentencing

Ward County program has DUI convicts listen to victims' stories:

Montana Man Arrested for 8th DUI

Missoulian.com:

A 38-year-old Pablo man was arrested for his eighth drunken-driving offense early Wednesday after a sheriff's deputy spotted him driving with his headlights off.

Steven Lee Rodriguez was allegedly driving his truck slowly through a parking lot on West Broadway when he was stopped by an officer. According to charging documents, Rodriguez smelled of alcohol and appeared intoxicated. His eyes were red, glassy and bloodshot, and his speech was slow.

Rodriguez admitted he had been drinking, and a background check of his name revealed seven prior DUI convictions.

Rodriguez also had a felony warrant out of Lake County for $20,000. That warrant, issued after his seventh DUI, is based on a petition to revoke the sentence that Rodriguez received after his sixth DUI.

Rodriguez refused to perform field sobriety tests on the roadside, records state, and was transported to the jail. After failing a walk-and-turn maneuver, Rodriguez stated “I'm drunk,” according to records.

California New Year DUI Arrests Down, Traffic Deaths Rise

DUI arrests on California highways were down during the New Year's holiday reporting period according to the California Highway Patrol. Statewide, the CHP made 986 DUI arrests compared to 1,082 arrests last year during the same period. The CHP's maximum enforcement period began New Year's Eve and ended midnight Sunday.

CHP reported the number of traffic fatalities in collisions was 19 deaths compared to 15 last year.

Actor and Writer Sam Shepard Charged with DUI

UPI is reporting that writer and actor Sam Shepard has been charged with DUI in Illinois.

Sam Shepard, the writer and actor who won a Pulitzer Prize for his play "Buried Child," was charged with drunken driving Saturday in Illinois.

Police in Normal, Ill., stopped Shepard for speeding at about 2 a.m., the Bloomington Pantagraph reported. Lt. Mark Kotte said Shepard drove his Chevy Tahoe over the curb as he came to a stop.

"The way he pulled up upon the curb, it appeared he was driving under the influence," Kotte said.

Shepard was released from the McLean County Jail Saturday after posting bail.

Shepard told police he had been at a bar, Fat Jack's, in Bloomington, Ill., and was on his way to a Best Western hotel in Normal when he was pulled over. Tyler Holloway, who owns the bar, told the Pantagraph Shepard has stopped there several times while driving between his home in Kentucky and Minnesota and Montana.

Teenager Reports Herself for Drunk Driving

The Associated Press is reporting on the unusual case of a teenager who called 911 and turned herself in for drunk driving.

Police get calls about drunken drivers all the time, but rarely do they come from the alleged offender. A 17-year-old girl in Bismarck called 911 on New Year's Eve "to report herself driving under the influence," police Lt. Randy Ziegler said. "I've never heard of such a thing happening, and neither has anyone here."

The girl told authorities her location shortly before midnight Wednesday and officers found her in a parked car near downtown, Ziegler said. She failed a sobriety test and was arrested for failing to have control of her vehicle while intoxicated.

The girl, whose name was not released because of her age, was not cited for drunken driving, Ziegler said.

"Her keys were in her purse and she was parked," Ziegler said. "She did tell us that she had been driving around for hours."

Heather Locklear's DUI Case Dismissed

Heather Locklear's DUI charge was dismissed Friday after Locklear pleaded no contest to reckless driving in a Santa Barbara courtroom. Reckless driving is a lesser offense than DUI in California.

Locklear had originally been charged with misdemeanor driving under the influence of prescription drugs in September. Locklear was reportedly stopped by police after she was seen "driving erratically" in a parking lot.

According to MSNBC, as a result of the plea, Locklear must pay a $700 fine, attend a 12-hour drug education program and be placed on three years probation.