A man that failed to appear for his DUI trial not only had a previous criminal record but also a record for failing to remember how many children he has or paying any child support. At his sentencing he was told it was time to grow up, become a father and pay for his crimes, as reported by the Republican Herald.
H.B.S., 30, failed to attend his DUI trial in December in the Schuylkill County Court. When he did appear on January 25 before Judge Charles M. Miller he was sentenced to 18 months to five years in prison.
Miller told H.B.S. “You're a danger to society. You're out there driving drunk. That conduct seems to be your method of operation.”
In ordering that H.B.S. also pays costs and fines – $1,725 in fines, $300 for the Substance Abuse Education Fund and $60 to Schuylkill Medical Center-South Jackson Street – he had taken into account H.B.S.’s criminal past.
H.B.S. has a record that includes burglary, resisting arrest and in dealing heroin. Miller added, “That's just a total lack of responsibility. Any lesser sentence depreciates the seriousness of this crime.”
On December 7 – the court date that H.B.S. failed to keep – he was found guilty of DUI, driving without a license and failure to drive at a safe speed.
H.B.S. was involved in a DUI one-vehicle accident that occurred, per state police, at a ramp between Interstate 81 and Route 39 in Kline Township at 11 p.m. on September 26, 2010. Police reported that H.B.S., while behind the wheel of a white Pontiac Bonneville, lost control. He drove the vehicle from the entrance/exit ramp, off a Jersey barrier, finally coming to a stop in a field of grass.
Police reported that H.B.S. had a blood-alcohol level of 0.23 percent. He was arrested on December 17 – after a bench warrant had been issued on December 12.
Miller has three children with L.D., who asked the judge to sentence him to county instead of state for his prison time. She said that it would be easier for her children to visit him at the closer county facility.
But when Miller learned that H.B.S. had failed to pay child support, and referred to having two children instead of three, the judge was not swayed. Miller said, “It does not ring true to me. You're really not a stand-up father. It's about time you grew up and started being a father. I think you're hiding behind the skirts of a good woman.”
Assistant District Attorney Thomas J. Campion Jr. recommended imposing a state prison sentence, and Miller agreed. Campion said, “There was an accident, it appears he's got a very serious drug addiction.”
Campion commented to reporters after the trial that he had understood that the reason H.B.S. missed his first court appointment was because he did not know it was taking place.
If you are fighting charges of DUI, DWI, OUI or OWI contact a DUI attorney that specializes in this type of defense. The proper attorney can help you avoid jail time and heavy fines.