November 30, 2012 (Press-News.org) Fatal Massachusetts DUI accidents illustrate penalties for drunk driving
Two Massachusetts drunk driving accidents earlier this year show the potentially severe penalties awaiting those convicted of driving under the influence in the state. These penalties increase dramatically when a driver, passenger or pedestrian is injured or killed in an accident involving intoxication. A recent example involved Jay Franklin, of Upton, Massachusetts, who was driving in Westfield when he was involved in an accident while driving with three passengers. The crash occurred early on Friday just before 1:00am when Franklin hit a tree stump and his car overturned. One teen was killed, a local high school student who has since been graduated posthumously. Two other passengers in the car were injured in the crash but have since recovered.
Franklin pled not guilty to three charges stemming from the incident: motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation, operating under the influence of liquor and manslaughter by a motor vehicle.
Another recent accident occurred in Worcester. Adam A. Bard was hospitalized following a crash on Oct. 24 at an intersection. Police at the scene believed that Bard sped through the intersection when it struck a pickup truck. The pickup truck flipped onto its side, while Bard's Audi smashed into a nearby building. The pickup truck driver was killed and Bard was rushed to the hospital. Bard is facing numerous charges, including manslaughter by a motor vehicle. Bard had recently recovered his license after a one-year suspension of operating under the influence.
Sentencing for drunk drivers in fatal accidents
The devastating nature of a severe accident involving drugs or alcohol have consequences for all parties that will last years. Besides the obvious horror of being in such an accident, if prosecutors can prove that a driver negligently operated a motor vehicle on a public roadway and caused the death of someone else, he or she may be guilty of motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation, which is classified as a misdemeanor. This calls for at least a 30-day minimum sentence and a maximum of two-and-a-half years.
Felony charges can also result from causing the death of another person while driving drunk. In order to prove felony charges, the driver must have been reckless, not just negligent. However, conviction for this charge carries a much stiffer penalty, with a mandatory sentence of two-and-a-half years in jail, and up to 15 years.
Both convictions also result in steep license suspensions. A felony motor vehicle homicide may mean a license suspension of 15 years.
Seek immediate help
Because the potential sentencing that results from a tragedy such as motor vehicle homicide, it is absolutely necessary the accused to seek the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney to protect his or her rights.
Article provided by Spring & Spring
Visit us at http://www.springandspring.com
Fatal Massachusetts DUI Accidents Illustrate Penalties For Drunk Driving
Two Massachusetts drunk driving accidents earlier this year show the potentially severe penalties awaiting those convicted of driving under the influence in the state.
2012-11-30
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Massachusetts Increasing Its Monitoring Of Prescription Painkillers
2012-11-30
Massachusetts increasing its monitoring of prescription painkillers
Massachusetts' Online Prescription Monitoring Program collects prescribing and dispensing information for prescription medications that are subject to abuse, such as painkillers and stimulants. The idea behind reporting is to prevent the same person from obtaining controlled substances from multiple sources and to track doctors and pharmacies that have a tendency to "overprescribe" potentially abusive drugs.
Essentially, the PMP program looks to reduce the number of "doctor shopping" ...
Unnecessary Medical Tests And Treatments Can Harm Patients
2012-11-30
Unnecessary medical tests and treatments can harm patients
Have you ever called your doctor because of a small concern only to be sent through a barrage of testing before even being seen by the physician? Have you ever been told by your doctor that you received unnecessary treatments because of a false positive on a test? If so, you are like many Americans who have been subjected to overtreatment by their physicians.
While, on the surface, receiving unnecessary tests may seem like erring on the side of safety, they can actually have harmful consequences for the patient. ...
Four Tips For A Better Co-parenting Relationship After Divorce
2012-11-30
Four tips for a better co-parenting relationship after divorce
For couples with children, divorce does not end a relationship but instead changes its focus. Although they no longer relate to one another in the context of marriage, in order to provide the best possible care for their children, divorced parents must learn to forge a new relationship as co-parents. The following tips may help smooth the transition for divorcing parents and help them provide a stable, healthy environment for their children.
Model mutual respect
Particularly in the immediate aftermath ...
Nevada's Drug Courts Celebrate 20 Years Of Success
2012-11-30
Nevada's drug courts celebrate 20 years of success
In the twenty years since its inception, the Nevada drug court program has become widely regarded as one of the state's most successful tools for helping to keep people out of prison. At a ceremony marking the anniversary of Nevada's drug courts, Nevada Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Cherry said that no other court program "has had such a positive impact on the criminal justice system, the prison system and crime in general than Nevada's drug courts," the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported recently.
The ...
Post-divorce Parenting: How To Make It Work
2012-11-30
Post-divorce parenting: How to make it work
A divorce is a difficult process for everyone. But when going through a divorce with children, some of the most challenging work happens after the divorce. You and your former spouse need to negotiate how you will parent separately as co-parents.
Accepting different parenting styles
You and your former spouse may have very different styles of parenting. Remember that you probably cannot change the way your co-parent is parenting, so you need to learn to accept it. Your children may actually benefit from experience two ...
Tips for Co-Parenting After a Pennsylvania Divorce
2012-11-30
Tips for Co-Parenting After a Pennsylvania Divorce
In many cases after divorce, people would like nothing more than to never talk to their ex-spouses again. Those who have children cannot simply ignore their ex-spouses after divorce, however. Under many Pennsylvania child custody arrangements both parents spend time with the children. Therefore, parents need to learn how to have a relationship with their ex-spouses that allows them to raise their children together. People can follow steps to make co-parenting after divorce more successful.
Focus on the Child
Parents ...
Steep Fines For Underage Drinking Under New Pennsylvania Law
2012-11-30
Steep fines for underage drinking under new Pennsylvania law
In an effort to reduce underage drinking and public intoxication, Pennsylvania legislators teamed up with law enforcement agencies in college towns across the state to develop a new underage drinking law that is set to go into effect on December 24, 2012. The new policy is meant to send a strong message to college students and others under the age of 21 by imposing heavy fines on those who are caught violating the state's liquor laws.
Under the new law, the maximum fines for public drunkenness or underage ...
Chicago Enacts New Firearm Law -- Again
2012-11-30
Chicago Enacts New Firearm Law -- Again
Lawmakers in Chicago turned their attention to gun control once again recently after months of frequent shootings in the summer of 2012. The Chicago City Council amended the Chicago gun ordinance in late July, the latest in a string of changes that aim to strike a balance between public safety and personal freedom.
Frequent Change in Chicago Gun Law
Chicago lawmakers outlawed the sale and possession of handguns in 1982, and the ban remained in place for nearly three decades before it was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court ...
Distracted Driving in Georgia: More Than Just Cellphones
2012-11-30
Distracted Driving in Georgia: More Than Just Cellphones
Cellphone use and texting while driving have gotten a great deal of media attention in Georgia and around the country recently, and for good reason: Texting while driving increases the risk of accidents by a factor of 23, according to a study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, and the risky habit has grown alarmingly widespread in recent years. But while cellphones remain a growing threat on Georgia roads, they are far from the only source of dangerous distractions for drivers.
Georgia Distracted ...
Potential Pitfalls of Group Benefits Coverage Under ERISA
2012-11-30
Potential Pitfalls of Group Benefits Coverage Under ERISA
If you have group medical, disability or life insurance coverage through your employer, chances are good that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, more commonly known as ERISA, sets administrative standards and claim hurdles for that coverage. ERISA does not mandate employers to give coverage, but rather sets standards for private pension and employee benefit plans if one exists.
Some people question how effective ERISA actually is in the face of sub-standard coverage or when an insurance claim ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
SwRI, U-Michigan engineers create more effective burner to reduce methane emissions
Dental implants still functional after forty years
A hot droplet can bounce across a cool pan, too
Synthetic microbiome therapy suppresses bacterial infection without antibiotics
New mouse study: How to trick the body's metabolism
Rates of population-level child sexual abuse after a community-wide preventive intervention
Rural-urban disparities in cervical cancer incidence and mortality among US women
Tele-buprenorphine initiations for opioid use disorder without in-person relationships
Researchers reveal key mechanism behind bacterial cancer therapy
Who carries and uses Naloxone in the U.S.?
Complete breakdown of Plexiglas into its building blocks
New study suggests a shift in diabetes testing after pregnancy to improve women's health
FOME alliance pioneers VR innovation in management education
Evidence expanding that 40Hz gamma stimulation promotes brain health
Teaching kids how to become better citizens
Pusan National University researchers develop a novel 3D adipose tissue bioprinting method
Scientists use AI to better understand nanoparticles
We feed gut microbes sugar, they make a compound we need
One of the largest psychotherapy trials in the world has implications for transforming mental health care during pregnancy and after birth
It’s not just what you say – it’s also how you say it
Sleep patterns may reveal comatose patients with hidden consciousness
3D genome structure guides sperm development
Certain genetic alterations may contribute to the primary resistance of colorectal and pancreatic cancers to KRAS G12C inhibitors
Melting Antarctic ice sheets will slow Earth’s strongest ocean current
Hallucinogen use linked to 2.6-fold increase in risk of death for people needing emergency care
Pathogenicity threshold of SCA6 causative gene CACNA1A was identified
Mysterious interstellar icy objects
Chronic diseases misdiagnosed as psychosomatic can lead to long term damage to physical and mental wellbeing, study finds
Omalizumab treats multi-food allergy better than oral immunotherapy
Sleep apnea linked to increased risk of Parkinson’s, but CPAP may reduce risk
[Press-News.org] Fatal Massachusetts DUI Accidents Illustrate Penalties For Drunk DrivingTwo Massachusetts drunk driving accidents earlier this year show the potentially severe penalties awaiting those convicted of driving under the influence in the state.