DWI Felony Repetition – Not Guilty At Trial

Client was pulled over for speeding by Saginaw Police Department- going 80mph in a 40mph zone. As the client was pulling over, he struck a curb. When the officer approached the window he had an open container in his lap. He admitted the Modello beer in his lap was his and that he had drank 4 ½ beers. The officer pulled him out of the truck to perform standardized field sobriety tests. The client failed all three tests, which were recorded on the officer’s body wore camera and vehicle camera. When the officer ran his criminal history, he was notified that the client had 2 prior convictions for DWI and he arrested our client for a felony DWI with 2 or more priors. In the back seat of the cop’s car, our client refused to give a blood. A blood search warrant was obtain and his blood was taken. The results of his blood test were .175. The only offer the prosecutors made to our client was probation with a felony conviction. Because of his work, and the concern for his family, our client could not accept a felony conviction.

At trial in Tarrant County, Texas, Matt Peacock was able to get a 38.23 instruction into the jury charge as part of the law the Judge instructed the Jury to follow. This allowed the Jury to consider the legality of the stop as well as whether the State had proven DWI. After deliberating for only an hour, the Jury of 12 people returned with a verdict of NOT GUILTY.