July 2011 Archives

Former Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Donte Stallworth has received yet another shot in the NFL following his 2009 arrest for DUI manslaughter in Florida. The Washington Redskins have reportedly agreed to terms with the 30-year old Stallworth following a disappointing season with the Baltimore Ravens.

Despite poor on-the-field performance and poor off-the-field judgment, Stallworth keeps getting second chances.

Matthew McNamara reportedly chose to kill himself in a Pennsylvania prison rather than face homicide by vehicle charges under Pennsylvania DUI law.

According to the Associated Press, McNamara died over the weekend after he climbed over the railing from the upper level of his cellblock and dove to his death at a central Pennsylvania prison. Surveillance cameras show that the 45-year old McNamara intentionally jumped over the railing to kill himself.

Believe it or not, a woman was arrested for a wheelchair DUI under Pennsylvania drunk driving laws during the early morning hours in a mobile home park in Middlesex Township.

According to The Patriot-News, police received a complaint at four in the morning of a woman crawling around a yard in the Country Manor mobile home park. When police arrived at the scene, 63-year-old Connie Lebo was sitting in her motorized wheelchair apparently drunk. She told police she had crashed her wheelchair.

Lebo's blood alcohol level was 0.16 (twice the legal limit) and she was charged with riding the wheelchair while under the influence of alcohol, reports the Patriot-News.

Pennsylvania is more or less landlocked. On a hot summer day, for those living in Philadelphia, you can either stay within state and drive seven hours to the less than picturesque Lake Erie, or you can cross the Ben Franklin and head to the Jersey shore.

So while Pennsylvania DUI laws are the main focus of this blog, a review of New Jersey DUI laws is also important as Philadelphians flock to Jersey to cool off during the dog days of summer.

Twenty-nine-year-old Philadelphia police officer Lee Marrero was arrested over the weekend for driving under the influence. This police officer DUI may cause more than just embarrassment for the five-year veteran as he has already been assigned to administrative duties at the police department pending the outcome of an investigation.

According to NBC, Marrero got into a car accident early Saturday morning. He was reportedly under the influence of alcohol when police arrived at the scene and he has been charged with a DUI. Marrero was off-duty at the time.

A judge reinstated the driving privileges for William John Bell as he awaits trial in the fatal DUI that killed Barbara Brown.

According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, in April, Bell was driving his Ford Excursion in New Britain Township when he veered his truck into oncoming traffic and slammed into Brown's car, killing the 50-year old woman.

Bell's blood-alcohol level was 0.225 two hours after the accident, reports the Inquirer. The legal limit in Pennsylvania is 0.08.

The DUI case of Pennsylvania state representative Cherelle Parker is set to begin this week and her attorney has already intimated that they may challenge her breathalyzer result.

In May, Parker was arrested on drunk driving charges after police caught her driving the wrong way on a one-way street. Parker was taken to Philadelphia police headquarters in Philadelphia where she apparently failed a breathalyzer test.

Two recovering alcoholics were killed by a suspected drunk driver in Bangor, Pennsylvania.

According to The Star-Ledger, Keith Michaelson and Michael Zadoyko were riding their motorcycles on Route 512 with a group of recovering alcoholics called the Last Chance Motorcycle Club.

As the group of seven motorcyclists rounded a bend, a retired New Jersey police officer, John P. Heaney III, reportedly struck the group head-on as he drove his pickup truck down the wrong lane of the highway.

Haeney had made too wide a turn and crossed over into the wrong lane, reports the Star-Ledger.

Over the July 4th holidays, residents can expect enhanced Pennsylvania DUI enforcement from state and local police.

Last year, the state actually saw a 17 percent increase in alcohol-related traffic fatalities over the July 4th weekend. According to Bucks Local News, there were 416 alcohol-related crashes and 29 deaths in 2010.

This year, the Pennsylvania Driving Under the Influence Association is partnering with officials and county DUI task forces to crack down on impaired driving across the state, reports Bucks Local.