Friday, March 30, 2012

DWI "Not Guilty" for three time Iraq War Veteran!


Richard L. Duquette, TLC ‘2000 Grad. March 13, 2012

Attorney Duquette represented a law enforcement officer and three time Iraq war veteran in a .16 blood DUI case.  Pretrial investigation revealed that the MVRS (CHP – video) showed no bad driving.  Further, the lab methodology and results themselves were flawed.  Moreover, the handheld PAS (Preliminary Alcohol Screen) device was determined to have had the fuel cell (the engine of the instrument) replaced prior to arrest.  After a five day jury trial, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty on CVC 23152(a) – Driving impaired and 11-1 for not guilty on CVC 23152(b) – Driving with a .08 or higher blood alcohol level.  Post-trial, a PC 1385 motion/invitation to dismiss the charges was filed and the court ultimately dismissed the charges against Mr. Duquette’s client, thereby saving his career.  In closing, Mr. Duquette urged the jury to hold the laboratory to reliable testing methodology because their laboratory and the reliability of their results affect not only his client, but the community at large and hundreds of samples a year.

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