Posted by the Charleston DUI Attorneys at Anderson & Schuster, Attorneys at Law, LLC. Our Charleston DUI lawyers defend drivers charged with DUI and DUAC in Charleston, North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Summerville, Goose Creek and across the South Carolina lowcountry. If you are charged with DUI, our Charleston DUI lawyers will discuss your DUI arrest with you free of charge.
A few days ago we told you about Thomas Ravenel's arrest for DUI in NY. He has since issued a statement that he plans to contest the DUI charge, saying he was not drunk when police pulled him over early Monday morning on Long Island.
“While I have never believed recreational drug use within one’s home to be something worthy of criminalization, when I was arrested on this charge in 2007 I was a statewide elected official,” said Ravenel. "As such, I should have exercised better judgment — which is why I apologized to the people of my state for letting them down. Of course I then did something few politicians ever do — I took responsibility for my actions and I paid my debt to society.”
“When I’m wrong I admit it — and make it right. That’s what Thomas Ravenel does,” he said.
“In this situation, however, I emphatically reject the allegations of intoxication and erratic driving. As I told the arresting officer — who I respect for doing his job — I had a beer at the club and a glass of wine prior to that at dinner. I was not drunk, and I look forward to making my case in court.”
A police incident report said Ravenel was stopped because he was observed crossing the solid white line and onto the shoulder, and had crossed the solid double line at the road center. Ravenel disputed that his driving was out of sorts. “I was driving fine,” he said. “I wasn’t drunk.”
In NY, police administer roadside breath tests as part of their DUI investigations. Ravenel's roadside test registered a 0.09. Such roadside tests are not admissible as evidence in a DUI trial.
Ravenel said he was taken to the police station for another test, but in the interim, he called his attorney in South Carolina to seek legal advice about the DUI arrest. That advice was not to take another test. Ravenel later said he regretted not taking another breath test. Ravenel said Tuesday that in hindsight, he should have taken the test because by that time he had sobered and would have passed a second test as legal for being behind the wheel.
The Charleston DUI Defense Lawyers at Anderson & Schuster, Attorneys at Law, LLC help those arrested for DUI in Charleston, North Charleston, Mt. Pleasant, Summerville, Goose Creek, Hanahan, Moncks Corner, James Island, West Ashley, Folly Beach, Sullivans Island, Isle of Palms, Awendaw, McClellanville and the surrounding areas. Contact our North Charleston DUI Defense Lawyers to discuss your case today.
Source: Charleston Post and Courier: Ravenel Plans to Fight DUI Charge
