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Nurse’s DUI down to reckless driving

Jason Cerbone · April 29, 2022 · Leave a Comment

She needed this DUI charge to go away because she is about to be a nurse. She was pulled over on I-16 leaving downtown for Failure to maintain lane by the Georgia Department of Public Safety (Trooper). The trooper saw that her eyes were bloodshot, and her speech slow and slurred. She told the trooper that she drank four hours earlier. She did field sobriety tests and then she was arrested for DUI less safe.

In the State Court of Chatham County her DUI was reduced to reckless driving. Her Failure to maintain lane charge was merged (aka dismissed).

Savannah DUI reduced for doctor

Jason Cerbone · April 27, 2022 · Leave a Comment

The doctor was charged with DUI less safe, Speeding, Failure to yield to emergency vehicle, Unsafe turning, and Impeding the flow of traffic by the Savannah Police. He was on I-16 and pulled over on Chatham Parkway at Grainger Honda.

In the State Court of Chatham County Georgia he plead the DUI down to reckless driving. The other four charges were dismissed.

You always plead them non-guilty.

Jason Cerbone · May 1, 2016 ·

Why don’t I just throw myself on the mercy of the court? You never do. You always plead them non-guilty.

At 8:30 p.m. John and his wife ate dinner at The Crab Shack on Tybee Island in Savannah, Georgia. They ordered one Tybee Tea, one Crabber cocktail, two pounds of snow crab legs, low country boil, and one side sausage. After that they headed back to the hotel for the night.

The Georgia Department of Public Safety’s Georgia State Patrol Officer clocked a black Mercedes heading westbound on I-16 going 73 m.p.h. in a 55 m.p.h. zone. The officer stopped John and walked up to his door. At the door the officer claims he smelled a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from John’s breath. The cop asked John how much he drank. John told him he had one drink three hours ago with dinner at the Crab Shack.

The DUI Nighthawk officer asked John to do some field sobriety tests to make sure John was safe to drive. John did them. They were the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, Walk and Turn, and One Leg Stand. Then the police officer asked John to blow in his hand held breathalyzer device on the side of the road. John tried to but the officer wrote in his report that John would not provide a valid breath sample. He arrested John for DUI less safe – 40-6-391(a)(1). He read him the Georgia Implied Consent Notice for Suspects age 21 or over and asked him to take a blood test. John said, “No.”

DUI less safe down to reckless driving

In the State Court of Chatham County, Savannah, Georgia we waited for the jury to be brought in by the bailiff. In the end there would be no jury trial. John plead his DUI less safe – 40-6-391(a)(1) charge down to the lesser charge of Reckless driving. The other charge for Driving under the influence (DUI) was changed.

Judgment: DUI less safe to reckless driving:

You always plead them non-guilty. DUI less safe to reckless driving - by Jason Cerbone - Savannah, Georgia DUI lawyer

2nd DUI down to reckless driving

Jason Cerbone · March 16, 2016 ·

This would have been his second DUI in five years. But, he was not under the influence of alcohol. So, he wanted to fight the DUI charge. We hired a DUI Field sobriety instructor. We were ready. The officer only did one of the three tests because my client had a leg injury. The officer did the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test. He did it wrong and we had him on the video. Not only did he do it wrong, but he did it three times. This is unheard of. The training manual says that if you are not sure if HGN is there, then it’s not there. Here, he wasn’t sure if it was there until he did it three times. Three times a charm. Reasonable doubt?

We filed a Motion to suppress the field sobriety tests in this case because they were given in violation of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, and in violation of O.C.G.A. § 24-9-20(a).

In Price v. State, 269 Ga. 222, 498 S.E. 2d 262 (1998), the Supreme Court held that custody existed when the police officer told the defendant that she would go to jail regardless of whether she performed the field sobriety tests. The Court held that the tests must be suppressed because the defendant was not warned of her right against self-incrimination under former O.C.G.A. § 24-9-20 [§ 24-5-506 off. Jan. 1, 2013].

In our case on the video, Defendant asked the Georgia Department of Public Safety Officer, “If I deny taking the tests you can take me to jail, right?” The officer replied, “Yeah, I can take you to jail for DUI, because I can smell it on you.”

So we moved the Court to suppress the field sobriety test done in this case because my client was not warned of his right against self-incrimination before he did the field test. But the motion was never heard. We were able to work out a deal the night before the jury trial. My client plead down to Reckless driving.

Judgment: 2nd DUI down to reckless driving

2nd DUI down to reckless driving - Jason Cerbone DUI lawyer

DUI gone. Failure to exercise due care instead.

Jason Cerbone · March 15, 2016 ·

My client was arrested for Driving under the influence – 40-6-391(a)(1-5) by the Georgia State Patrol. She was stopped for Failure to stop at a stop sign – 40-6-72. The police officer asked her if she had drank. She said she had one Captain and Coke at Jalepeno’s Mexican Restaraunt. That was all that was needed to set the cop off.

He ordered her out of the car. Next came the field sobriety tests. Halfway through the Walk and Turn test my client stopped and asked the police officer if she could take off her flip flops. The officer allowed her. Then, bare foot on the cold dark road she tried these exercises for the first time in her life. Now if she misses touching her heel to toe by half an inch, she will fail the test. She was barefoot on the road at night, being investigated by a cop for DUI. Is it any wonder that she failed?

DUI down to Failure to exercise due care in the Recorder’s Court of Chatham County

We worked together and were able to keep this case in the Savannah Recorder’s Court of Chatham County. At the preliminary hearing the District Attorney allowed this case to be plead down to the charge of Failure to exercise due care. My client was happy. What else matters?

Judgment: DUI gone. Failure to exercise due care instead.

DUI gone. Failure to exercise due care instead.

DUI charges changed to reckless driving for actress

Jason Cerbone · February 6, 2016 ·

She was driving a Jeep Wrangler on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd in Savannah, Georgia and was pulled over by the Georgia State Patrol. She didn’t know why. The police officer later wrote in his report that she failed to maintain her lane by traveling over the center line twice with her left side tires. The officer got her out of the Jeep. He said he noticed a strong odor of alcoholic beverage coming from her breath and person. The cop asked her how much she drank, and she told him two drinks. The officer asked her to do field sobriety tests. She did them. She was arrested. She agreed to take the blood test. She took it and later got her results and she was under the limit. But they found drugs in her blood from the test.

In the State Court of Chatham County Georgia, they charged her with O.C.G.A. § 40-6-391(a)(4) DUI less safe (alcohol and drugs); O.C.G.A. § 40-6-391(a)(2) DUI less safe (drugs); O.C.G.A. § 40-6-391(a)(1) DUI less safe (alcohol); O.C.G.A. § 40-6-48 Failure to maintain lane; and O.C.G.A. § 40-6-391(a)(5) Driving with unlawful blood alcohol level. After saving her driver’s license we focused on her criminal case. About a year later we negotiated a good deal with the District Attorney’s Office and she plead guilty to Failure to maintain lane, and Reckless Driving.

Judgment: DUI charges changed to reckless driving for actress

Rincon DUI Breath Test Reduced for Aerospace Project Engineer

Jason Cerbone · December 10, 2015 ·

David is an Aerospace Project Engineer. His job title doesn’t go well with a DUI. He was willing to fight his DUI charges at all costs. I was happy to help him. The best thing that he had going for him was that when he was arrested for DUI, he was cooperative and treated the DUI officer well. The police officer even wrote in his DUI arrest report that David, “remained very cooperative and respectful throughout the entire investigation.” So, we had that going for us, which was nice.

David was driving home and was lost in Rincon, Georgia. He was new to town and lived in Port Wentworth, Georgia. The Rincon Police Officer was behind David on South Columbia Avenue. The police officer saw David fail to maintain his lane twice and pulled him over in the Walmart parking lot. The police officer asked for his license and David already had it in his hand for him. The cop wrote in his report that he noticed a “strong odor of alcohol emitting from the vehicle, observed a thick mumbled speech, and glassy bloodshot eyes.” The Rincon Police Officer asked David where he was coming from. David said, “Silverado’s,” a bar and grill in Port Wentworth, Georgia. The officer asked David to get out of his truck. David complied.

The officer asked David if he would do some field sobriety tests to make sure he was safe to drive. David said, “Yes,” and told him he used to be a police Officer for the Department of Defense. David was trained on how to give the Field Sobriety tests, which he was now asked to perform by the Rincon police officer. Another cop pulled up. The police officer gave David all three standardized field sobriety tests: the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, the One Leg Stand, and the Walk and Turn. David failed all three, naturally. The officer saw six of six clues on the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test. He found two of eight clues on the Walk and Turn and three of four clues on the One Leg Stand.

These field sobriety tests are a bad joke. You should never do them because you will fail and most likely the police officer will think you failed even when you did not. If the police officer asks you to do these exercises he already believes that you are under the influence of alcohol. So it is no surprise that he subjectively feels that you showed signs of being under the influence during your roadside agility tryouts.

The Rincon Police officer arrested David and took him to the Effingham Sheriff’s Office and gave him the breath tests on the Intoxilyzer 9000. David blew a .113 and was charged with O.C.G.A. § 40-6-391(a)(5) DUI – Alcohol 0.08 grams or more; and O.C.G.A. § 40-6-48 Failure to maintain lane. David called me the next day. About six months later we were in the Rincon Municipal Court in Bryan County and David got his DUI charge reduced to O.C.G.A. § 40-6-241 Failure to exercise due care. David is still working in the airline industry, and has no DUI on his record.

Judgment: Rincon DUI Breath Test Reduced for Aerospace Project Engineer

Effingham DUI blood test down to Driver to use due care

Jason Cerbone · December 9, 2015 ·

A Deputy for the Effingham County Sheriff’s Office was told to be on the lookout (BOLO) for a gray van who is a possible drunk driver (my client). The deputy got behind a grey minivan just north of McCall Road South on Highway 21 South. The Deputy wrote in his report that the van crossed a lane and then he pulled the van over. My client stopped at the deputy’s direction.

The Deputy wrote in his police report that at the window my client was difficult to understand. She said she had two beers that night, and she was also taking a prescribed medication. The Deputy asked my client to come outside and do some field sobriety tests. My client did as instructed. They did the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, the Walk and Turn, and the One Leg Stand on my client. She failed these exercises with flying colors according to the police officer’s report. They asked her to take a blood test and she consented. The Effingham County Sheriff’s Office arrested my client and charged her with DUI, DUI less safe, and Improper Display of License Plates.

In the State Court of Effingham County my client got a great plea. She plead guilty to Driver to use due care O.C.G.A. § 40-6-241. The charges for DUI, DUI less safe, and Improper Display of License Plates were dismissed by the Solicitor General.

Judgment: Effingham DUI blood test down to Driver to use due care

Effingham DUI reduced to Driver to use due care

Jason Cerbone · December 8, 2015 ·

Kira was driving on Highway 17 South in Guyton, Georgia. An Effingham County Sheriff’s Officer clocked her going 69 miles per hour in a 45 miles per hour zone. She turned off the road and parked in a driveway. The police officer parked behind her and turned on his blue lights. The police officer wrote in his report that he approached her car and Kira refused to look up and explained that she was lost, and continued to play on her cell phone. The officer smelled a strong odor of alcohol and a mint. He asked her if she drank. Kira said she had a few drinks but it shouldn’t be a problem. She continued to rationalize why the deputies had no reason to investigate any further.

The Officer asked her to step out of her Mercedes and do some field sobriety exercises to see if she was a safe driver. Kira did as commanded to do. The officer only did one of three Federal mandated tests. He chose to do the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (eye exercise) and he said that Kira showed clues. He didn’t write in his report which clues or how many clues he saw. She was arrested by the Effingham County Sheriff’s Office for Speeding in excess of maximum limits (69 miles per hour in a 45 m.p.h. Zone) – 40-6-181, and Driving under the influence – Refusal (1st offense) – 40-6-391(a)(1).

Driver to exercise due care – 40-6-241

“A driver shall exercise due care in operating a motor vehicle on the highways of this state and shall not engage in any actions which shall distract such driver from the safe operation of such vehicle.”She plead guilty to Driver to exercise due care – 40-6-241. It’s as if the DUI never happened.

Judgment: Effingham DUI reduced to Driver to use due care

Pooler DUI less safe dismissed

Jason Cerbone · December 7, 2015 ·

DUI Roadblock Checkpoint in Pooler

Gibson was driving home at 1:00 a.m. on I-16 going towards Pooler. He took the off ramp from I-16 West to Pooler Parkway. He saw there was a roadblock police checkpoint and he drove up to it. The Roadblock was run by the Georgia State Patrol DUI Law Enforcement. The officer walked up to Gibson’s window and immediately smelled a strong odor of alcohol on his breath. So, he told Gibson to get of his Lexus.

The DUI officer then set in and asked “How much have you had to drink this evening?” Gibson, said “Just a couple earlier.” The DUI police officer asked Gibson to take some field sobriety tests and he agreed. The Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test was the first one my client did. The police officer said my client showed six of six clues on that test. In other words, he failed the eye test. The officer held up a device with a tube and asked Gibson to blow in a preliminary breath test out there on the road. Gibson did not. He refused the Preliminary Breath Test. And that was it.

The Georgia State Patrol officer placed Gibson under arrest for DUI less safe (Alcohol) 40-6-391(a)(1). Next he cuffed my client and put him in the back of his patrol car on the Pooler Parkway. And then he told Gibson to listen up and he read him the Georgia Implied Consent Notice from the bright orange card. He asked Gibson to take a breath alcohol test. Gibson said, “No.” The Pooler Police had his girlfriend blow in the preliminary breath test and decided to let her drive Gibson’s Lexus home.

Gibson is a helicopter pilot and he got arrested for DUI less safe in Pooler. If he was convicted or plead guilty to this DUI less safe in Pooler, Georgia it would have been his second DUI within five years. He would be facing serious jail time among other things. In the Pooler Municipal Court at the Preliminary Hearing Gibson’s DUI less safe from the Roadblock was dismissed in open court. There were various problems with this arrest. The Police officer acknowledged the issues and the case was dismissed in front of the judge that day.