Bill a Response to Fairfax Judge Who Threw Out DWI Cases
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As Virginia law stands, when a general district court judge finds a law unconstitutional, prosecutors cannot appeal the ruling. This particularly vexed Fairfax prosecutors, who felt they had no recourse when General District Court Judge Ian M. O’Flaherty began ruling this summer that he would not automatically presume someone was drunk when he or she had a .08 blood alcohol level, as state law instructs. O’Flaherty has allowed a defendant’s blood alcohol level into evidence but also considers the person’s driving performance and behavior on roadside sobriety tests. And then, on at least six recent occasions, he has found defendants not guilty. He cited a 1985 U.S. Supreme Court ruling to support his opinion that relieving the state of its burden of proof, by presuming a key element of the crime, is unconstitutional in criminal law. Source : pqasb.pqarchiver.com |