Personal Injury Law

Drunk driver relies on obesity to avoid DUI conviction in Illinois

By Hurley, McKenna & Murtz

A 49-year-old man charged with aggravated DUI and improper lane was acquitted on charges of drunken driving and improper lane usage after arguing to the trial judge that his obesity prevented him from successfully completing field sobriety tests. After Downers Grove, Illinois police pulled the man over for suspected drunken driving, the man, while polite and respectful, was unable to perform the standard field sobriety tests, which included standing on one leg for 30 seconds and a straight line heel-to-toe walk. The driver allegedly apologized to police when he could not complete the tests.

The man, who was 6 feet tall and weighed 260 pounds, argued in the DuPage County Circuit Court that fat to perform the field sobriety tests properly. At the end of the trial, the judge ruled that the trial evidence created reasonable doubt which prevented a conviction.

This story was reported by Jennifer Golz in the The Herald News.

Full post as published by Illinois Car and Truck Accident Lawyer Blog on August 15, 2007 (boomark / email).