Circumstantial Evidence of DUI Conviction Upheld by Wisconsin Supremes

Bruce Vielmetti at the Journal Sentinel writes about the conviction for DUI based solely on circumstantial evidence:

Gregg B. Kandutsch was bombed when police arrested him at his wife's home in Wausau in 2006. He wasn't driving, or even in a motor vehicle, and no one saw him driving to get there. So how did prosecutors convict him of his fifth-offense drunken driving?

They relied on circumstantial evidence, the kind commonly used to prove many other crimes but extremely rare in drunken driving cases. Kandutsch appealed, but on Tuesday the Wisconsin Supreme Court upheld his conviction. Kandutsch was done in by the electronic monitoring device he was wearing while on probation for other offenses. It showed he left his mother's house in Rib Mountain about 15 minutes before he was arrested in Wausau. Jurors concluded he must have driven himself there.

Creative DUI Sentencing

Arelis R. Hernández, a reporter at the Orlando Sentinel, has this profile of Judge Carmine Bravo (pic) who has undertaken to systematically address drunk driving sentencing:

You've seen them before: the lollipop-shaped markers along state roads adorned with fake flowers, fading photographs or discolored stuffed animals.  As you drive by, the words "Drive Safely" come into view in bold, blunt letters. Perhaps you slow down a bit. Maybe you stop texting. You might place a second hand on the steering wheel.

It's more likely you won't pay any attention at all. But hundreds of Florida families wish you would. And if you drive drunk, recklessly or commit repeat traffic offenses in Seminole County, Judge Carmine Bravo will make sure you start noticing.