DUI less safe

DUI dismissed for Marine

Jason Cerbone · December 3, 2012 ·

Jake is a former United States Marine. He was awarded two Good Conduct Medals while he served our country. He was arrested by the Savannah Chatham Metropolitan Police Department for Driving under the influence (DUI) less safe, 40-6-391(a); Failure to maintain lane, 40-6-48; Obstruction; False Report of Crime; and Leaving the scene of an accident.

My investigator interviewed the witnesses and got written statements for evidence for the DUI trial. We took pictures of the road. We hired a DUI field sobriety police expert to testify. I subpoenaed everything from the police officers. We got their police department protocols and policies manuals. We picked the day. We picked the court. We were ready.

The day before the trial the prosecutor told me he was dropping all the charges. In the Recorder’s Court of Chatham County, Savannah, Georgia, the prosecutor abandoned all charges and the DUI dismissed for Marine. He made a formal entry on the record declaring he will not prosecute the case further. No record. It may as well have never happened.

Judgment: DUI dismissed for Marine

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DUI down to reckless driving for student

Jason Cerbone · November 26, 2012 ·

She was pulled over for Speeding on I-16 headed out of Savannah. She pulled off the road immediately. She used her blinker to change lanes and get off the road and turned the blinker off before her car stopped completely. The cop walked up and banged on the back of her car and said “Mam’ get out of the car.” She does. She is manipulated into doing the roadside agility tryouts, (a.k.a. the Field sobriety tests). The cop gives them wrong and skips the last one and does the fourth thing first.

But this case went away early. Maybe because they didn’t want to deal with me that day. Or maybe because I am ticketed as a Red and am on the general blacklist. Fighting a DUI is a very complicated and beautiful operation. As complicated and as beautiful as always.

In the Chatham County Recorder’s Court of Savannah, Georgia, Auburn plead her DUI less safe down to Reckless Driving. The DUI is gone. She’s got no record. Thank God. I was not afraid to fight the DUI charges. But, am happy that the DUI was negotiated down to a plea of Reckless Driving. My girl has a clean driving record. Her record is full of a driving whiteness.

Judgment: DUI down to reckless driving for student

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Soldier Not Guilty of DUI

Jason Cerbone · November 14, 2012 ·

We had a DUI jury trial on a Monday morning and we won. DUI less safe Not guilty. Driving without headlights on at night: guilty. We were in the State Court of Chatham County, Savannah, Georgia. I knew what was coming. I dreaded it. I needed to stay calm and take it. I was ready.

I wore a three-piece navy suit, white shirt, black tie with three stripes going straight down, cufflinks made from real baseballs, and black Converse with white laces. On my table was a beat-up copy of “For Whom the Bell Tolls” by Ernest Hemingway. My iPad screen lock was a picture of UGA walking into a football game.

I asked the Judge to remove the witnesses from the courtroom. The judge had my investigator and Field Sobriety Expert sit in the hall until they testified. He let the cop sit at the prosecutor’s table from the beginning until the end.

The first thing I said during jury selection was, “Did anybody see the Georgia-Florida game? I am biased, I hate Florida fans, and if you are a Florida fan then I feel a certain way about you and there is nothing you can do about it. I am going to talk to you and I’m after your true feelings. There is no wrong answer. Just honest ones.”

They routed me during jury selection and interrupted me. They wouldn’t let me use the wireless presentation I made, nor the projector, or the Reasonable Doubt board during Voire Dire or Opening. They didn’t let me show the video of the scene that my investigator prepared.

I asked the Judge to let the Field Sobriety expert stay in the room and listen to the cop testify because there was no video of the Field sobriety tests, (a.k.a. Roadside Agility Tryouts, “RATS”.) Denied.

Had a complete cross-examination that I prepared on my iPad. But, the plan changed. The cop said things opposite to what he said in an earlier court hearing. So, I left my iPad on the table and crossed him straight from the red-bound transcript of the administrative license suspension hearing. I’d say: “Now today’s truth is….” and “Remember when we were in court on April 4, 2012?” “You swore to God to tell the truth?” Let me show you on page 22, line 25, you said: “….” True? This went on many times.

I got into evidence about 10 pictures from the investigation showing the cracked-up road. I got a copy of the most important page from the cop’s Field Sobriety manual into evidence. The page said that the validity is compromised if any of the field sobriety elements is changed.

I closed fast. Two minutes maybe. First words: “Before they can ruin your life” Objection! Sustained. They have an enormous burden of proof… Last thing: Picture of a racehorse on iPad, “Secretariat won beyond a reasonable doubt.” 7 seconds later. “Have they won beyond a reasonable doubt?…….No!” “I’m not calling the cop a liar, but he told you wrong things. I’m not even talking about it. You saw it. Josh is an innocent man. Let him go home. Find him Not guilty.” They did.

Judgment: Soldier Not Guilty of DUI

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DUI reduced to Speeding in Pooler

Jason Cerbone · December 5, 2011 ·

Speeding in Pooler

Thomas is a financial advisor from Massachusetts. He was traveling through Savannah with his family to go to Florida for a vacation. He was pulled over by the Pooler Police on I-95 for going 91 miles per hour in a 65 m.p.h. zone. The Pooler police officer wrote in his report that Thomas stumbled out of his car, and swayed back and forth. Thomas was arrested for the following misdemeanor crimes in Pooler, Georgia:

DUI alcohol 40-6-391(a)(5),
DUI less safe 40-6-391(a)(1),
Endangering a child while DUI 40-6-391(L), and
Speeding 40-6-181

He hired me to fight his DUI charges. I requested police reports, videos, and the whole nine yards. But, of course I got very little from the government. The day before court I get the video after driving out to the police station, and meeting with the officers for a couple of hours. The police officer agreed to drop the DUI’s and the charge of Endangering a child while DUI.

DUI reduced

Thomas plead down to Failure to use due care and Speeding. The Financial advisor got his DUI alcohol dismissed, and Endangering a child while DUI was dismissed. He plead guilty to Speeding and Failure to use due care in the Pooler Municipal Court.

Judgment: DUI reduced to Speeding in Pooler

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DUI jury trial win

Jason Cerbone · December 4, 2011 ·

The man, (we will call him Joe) was found not guilty of DUI in a Jury Trial in the State Court of Chatham County, Georgia.

Joe wakes up at at 5:00 a.m. and goes to work at 6:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. He’s a heavy machine operator for the City of Savannah. He cuts grass. A DUI conviction would take his commercial “CDL” driving license away forever. So, his job would be over. He’d have the label of a third DUI stuck on his record. He faced a statutory mandatory minimum of 90 days in jail. But a year is in the discretion of the judge. He hired me to fight the thing. We did. Fight or die. We won. Joe was charged with DUI less safe, (his third in lifetime), Speeding by moving radar, and open container violation. Friday afternoon around 4:00 p.m. I ask the judge for a continuance of my Motion hearing set for September 16th. He said “Jury trial on Monday. In the end, a good field sobriety expert witness had our back and rushed down for the trial. The DUI trial began on Monday and finished up on Tuesday. For the DUI charge he was found Not Guilty. Found guilty on Speeding and open container.

Judgment: DUI jury trial win

DUI jury trial win

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