Results tagged “police officer” from DUI Lawyers & Attorneys News

A New York police officer has pleaded not guilty to vehicular manslaughter for running over a woman who was trying to hail a taxi cab.

Officer Andrew Kelly was off duty when he fatally ran over 32-year-old Vionique Valnord in Brooklyn on Sept. 27.

According to the police report, Kelly was driving with another off-duty police officer and three civilians when he struck Valnord. First responders to the scene stated that Kelly's breath smelled of alcohol, and that he was slurring his speech.  Kelly refused to take a breathalyzer test. After submitting to a court-ordered blood test seven hours later, his blood alcohol concentration was zero.

In court, Kelly stated that he was not drunk, but simply did not see Valnord when the light turned green. However, reports from the scene indicate that when Kelly was asked if he had been drinking he originally said no, but then said, "not really."

Kelly, who has since been suspended from the NYPD, now faces charges of vehicular manslaughter and driving while intoxicated.  If convicted, he could lose his position as a law enforcement agent and be sentenced to up to seven years in prison, fines, probation, and driver's license suspension or revocation.

The New York Police Department is currently investigating whether there was a cover up.

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A Chicago police officer has been accused of allegedly making dozens of false DUI arrests.

A civil case against officer Richard Fiorito claims the veteran officer engages in a pattern of false arrests and then perjures himself in court testimony in order to rack up more than 300 DUI arrests each year, according to a report by ABC 7 news. Some of the plaintiffs also claim that Fiorito targeted them because of their race, and because they were seen leaving a bar.

Jon Erickson, attorney for the 21 plaintiffs, argued that Fiorito has an incentive to place so many people under arrest, and that it does not have anything to do with protecting innocent drivers on the road. Erickson is arguing that Fiorito is motivated by money.

"The more DUI arrests he makes, the more times he has to go to court, more times he goes to court, the more money he makes," said Erickson. 

Every time Fiorito goes to court he makes time-and-a half.

Fiorito is currently being investigated by the Cook County state attorney's office, and the grand jury has been hearing testimony from witnesses who claim Fiorito placed them under false arrest.

One of Fiorito's victims is Susan Kolinek, who was ordered by Fiorito to take a field sobriety test even though she told Fiorito that she could not follow his verbal instructions because she was deaf.

Fiorito ordered her to perform the tests anyway, and later told her, "You're not deaf, you're just drunk." Kolinek's DUI charges were later dismissed.

In a different case, Fiorito ordered a driver to perform standard field sobriety tests. Fiorito wrote in his police report that the driver was so intoxicated that he was unable to perform any of the tests.  However, video surveillance shows the driver performing one of the best one-leg stand tests Erickson has ever seen.

Fiorito's attorneys claim the allegations are "false, unfounded, and patently frivolous."

Until the investigation is complete and formal charges have been filed, Fiorito can still be found on the streets of Chicago making DUI arrests.

Criminal charges are expected to be filed soon by the state attorney's office.

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