Driver Injures Woman in His 10th DUI

Though a man has had 9 previous convictions for drunken driving, he has admitted to a 10ththat involved injuring another driver and will be serving three to six months in county jail, as reported by the Times Herald. R.S. Jr., 58, pled guilty to DUI, highest rate, and reckless driving. Judge Cheryl L. Austin ordered him to begin serving his sentence on July 30. He is not allowed to get behind the wheel of a car in the interim.

The Assistant District Attorney said, "This is a guy that needs to be off the road. He's a danger to society. This is an example of how horribly wrong a DUI can be." Even though R.S. Jr. had numerous DUI convictions in the past, according to prosecutors they could only seek up to six months as the maximum jail term.

The Assistant Public Defender commented, "So it was a first offense and our office worked with him to get him in treatment to address his alcohol issues. He's taking the matter very seriously and he's been in outpatient treatment since January of this year. He's very remorseful for the accident and the hurt and pain he's caused the complaining witness. But he's taken steps, with our help, to address his alcoholism. It's our office's agenda to help people address their underlying problems in the hope that they don't come back."

Judge Austin ordered R.S. Jr. to pay a sum of $19,930 in restitution. The money is to cover the medical expenses incurred by the woman he injured in the head-on crash. R.S. Jr. had been driving with a provisional or occupational license at the time of the crash. Because of his type of license prosecutors were not allowed to move forward on the original charges – accidents involving personal injury while not properly licensed.

According to the victim, she was driving a Toyota Sienna in the northbound lane of Blair Mill Road when she saw a Chevrolet Camaro coming at her – the Camaro was driving south in the northbound lane. The victim did not have time to react and successfully avoid the collision. Lavenberg said, "He basically swerved directly into oncoming traffic. He slammed into the victim. There was nothing that could get her out of the path."

The victim appeared in court wheelchair-bound. She testified that after the crash it felt that her feet were on fire. The foot injury she incurred has left her with ongoing pain. According to the prosecution, she will be having medical treatment in the future. Police at the scene reported that R.S. Jr. was also injured in the crash. He had bloodshot eyes, the odor of alcohol was on his breath, and his blood alcohol content proved to be more than three times the state's limit of 0.08 percent to drive – R.S. Jr.'s was 0.29 percent.

The criminal complaint filed by Upper Moreland Police Officer M.S., reads that R.S. Jr. "was impaired to a degree that rendered him unfit to operate a motor vehicle safely."