Tampa DUI Lawyer Blog

A jury in the Tampa suburb of Clearwater deliberated for three hours before finding Jeremy Rettman was responsible for the death of his 21-year-old friend, Patricia Blankenship.  Rettman was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his conviction of boating under the influence manslaughter.  Rettman's blood alcohol at the time of the accident was twice the level at which a driver is presumed impaired when his 16 foot Hydrosport collided with another boat on Lake Tarpon.  Rettman had a long record of arrests for driving related offenses including DUI, reckless driving and driving with a suspended or revoked license.

When Rettman's boat collided with the other boat, Blankenship was badly injured by the boat's propeller, which slashed her chest and nearly severed her arm.  Blankenship died 10 days after the accident.  Penny Barnett, Blankenship's mother, expressed the family's grief after the verdict.  "There's no one who wins here.  This is not closure, by a long shot.  There is no closure."

The issue of who was driving the boat became a critical issue in the trial.  The prosecution argued that Rettman's daughter Amanda, who was 10 at the time, was steering while Rettman operated the throttle.  The defense contended no evidence was presented to show Rettman was the person driving the boat at the time of the accident.  The defense pointed out that Justin Shields, who owned the boat, was on the boat at the time of the accident.  Rettman's daughter testified that both Shields and her father were standing next to her at the time of the accident.  She also testified that Shields was the one who was operating the throttle at the time of the accident.

Barnett expressed sympathy for Amanda.  "I bless his family and my heart just goes out to his family.  My main concern is for Amanda.  I've never blamed her, not once.  I hope she can get on with her life."

Continue reading "Intoxicated Man Sentenced to 15 Year Sentence for Fatal Boat Crash" »

A Tampa man, plead guilty to DUI manslaughter and was sentenced to 15 years in prison, after he hit and killed a 84 year old, decorated World War II Army veteran.  He had been set to start trial, but pled guilty on the eve of the trial.

The vehicle struck a scooter on the left side and wedged it underneath the right front bumper of the pickup truck he was driving.  The driver's blood-alcohol level of 0.348 was four times the legal limit under Florida law.  According to police, who already had a 1992 driving under the influence conviction, traveled 146.6 feet before reacting to the crash.

Commenting on the seriousness of such cases, the assistant state attorney who prosecuted the case said; "There are so many of these cases, and judges are consistently giving maximum-term sentences on DUI manslaughter.  The judges in Pinellas County are not going to tolerate people driving drunk and hurting and/or killing people."

The victim was a World War II army veteran who took part in the invasion of Normandy.  He went into the army as a private in 1942 as a member of the 101st Airborne Division, air dropped into enemy territory in the dark of night after midnight on June 6, 1944.  The plan was for the soldiers to land 10 miles inland from Omaha beach pending the arrival of reinforcements.   Many of the soldiers in the unit landed off target and got separated while some drowned in the English Channel.  He was shot in the leg and received the Purple Heart and was awarded a Bronze Star with a V for valor.

The daughter of the victim commented on the sentence, "It keeps a lot of people safe.  I'm pleased.  He's 61 now and suffered a stroke through his alcoholism.  He'll never walk out of prison."

When faced with serious DUI charges  that include manslaughter, it is imperative to retain experienced and aggressive DUI Criminal Defense lawyers to conserve your constitutional rights and compass the best possible outcome.

Musca Law provides experienced DUI and Criminal Defense Attorneys who investigate exhaustively to build an effective case for their clients. Do not plead guilty to any DUI charge. You do not have to answer any questions outside of your name and address. You do not have to state that you were drinking. You do not have to be subjected to any form of sobriety testing from breathalyzer to roadside field tests. Simply be polite, provide accurate documents and call Musca Law. Being arrested does not mean that you will be convicted!

After being convicted of DUI manslaughter a woman filed a motion for a sentence reduction. It had been previously reported that the State convicted the defendant of DUI manslaughter that resulted in the fatal accident that killed a 34-year old woman. It was reported that the victim had not been wearing a seatbelt at the time of the collision.

The driver that caused the accident reportedly fled the scene on foot with her unharmed 4-year old daughter.

Field sobriety tests were conducted which revealed that the suspect was in fact under the influence of alcohol.  However, the breathalyzer test showed a blood alcohol level of .05, below the legal limit of .08.

The suspect was arrested and charged with DUI manslaughter where she can face up to a maximum sentence of 30 years behind in prison. After entering into a plea agreement with the State she was sentenced to 13 years in prison.  A request was made for a reduction of her sentence, claiming that she did not fully understand the agreement and that her daughter would be without a mother. The judge in this case denied the motion.

DUI manslaughter is the unlawful killing of another without either intent to kill or reckless indifference to the loss of someone's life.  If a person is driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol and is the cause of accident that costs an individual his or her life may be charged with DUI manslaughter, a felony.

If you have been charged with DUI or DUI manslaughter you need to retain an attorney with legal experience coupled with hands on personalized service. Attorneys at Musca Law are reputable aggressive and can protect your rights.  Musca Law has helped countless clients fight their DUI charges with their knowledge and skills to obtain a winning verdict for their clients or negotiate with prosecutors to get their clients charges reduced for dismissed.

Continue reading "DUI Manslaughter Conviction; Offender Seeks Appeal Of 13-Year Prison Sentence" »

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Continue reading "Spring Hill DUI Manslaughter Case Resolved" »

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A Lakeland man has agreed to a plea deal that will close a long-running DUI Manslaughter case. Kenneth Delmar Stewart, now 38, was charged with five counts of DUI Manslaughter following an April 2006 car accident, says Tampa DUI attorney John Musca. Stewart was driving his truck at about 3:00 a.m. on April 21, 2006, when he apparently ran a red light, striking another vehicle driven by Emily Manzano, who was 61 years old. Manzano and all four of her passengers were killed as a result of the accident. All of those killed were in town for the wedding of Manzano's daughter, Cathy Manzano, on April 22. The police investigation determined that neither vehicle braked before impact. At the time of the accident, law enforcement officials determined that Stewart's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was 0.12 percent, legally impaired. Under the terms of the plea deal, Stewart will spend 25 years in prison and 10 years on probation.

DUI Manslaughter (codified at Florida Statute 316.193) is a crime that occurs when a person is driving under the influence of alcohol or another substance and, while operating the motor vehicle, "causes or contributes to causing" the death of another person or, in some cases, a viable fetus, according the Tampa DUI lawyers at Musca Law. To be "under the influence" of alcohol, the driver must have a BAC of at least 0.08 percent or, if lower, actually be impaired. For example, if a man driving 20 miles over the speed limit, with a BAC of 0.12, runs a stop sign and crashes into a vehicle driven by a woman who is eight months pregnant and had the right of way, killing her, the man could potentially be charged with and convicted of two counts of DUI Manslaughter. Each count is punishable by up to 15 years in prison, although that figure increases if the driver failed to stop or render aid.

Another serious Florida DUI Manslaughter case:

Read the original report here.

Travis Kelton Hill III, who is 20, was expected to go to trial for DUI Manslaughter next month, but a revised witness list has thrown a kink into those plans. Instead, his defense attorney has added an additional possible witness, a physician/toxicologist. The assistant state attorney will need to depose the new witness, which cannot occur until July 22 in Palm Beach County, due to the high caseload the office carries. The defense advised the court at a pretrial conference that they do not intend to identify any more witnesses between now and the trial. Another pretrial conference was scheduled for early August and the state plans to proceed with a jury trial sometime in September.

Hill was charged with DUI and negligent vehicular manslaughter following the death of Kristin Marie Dessingue, a 16-year-old resident of Coconut Creek. The pair were traveling in Hill's vehicle when he allegedly failed to properly complete a curve, flipping over the vehicle. Dessingue was ejected from the truck, as was Hill. Hill sustained injuries to his neck and back, while an additional passenger only suffered minor injuries. A hospital collected a blood sample from Hill which showed a blood alcohol concentration of 0.179 percent. State law presumes a driver is impaired at 0.08 percent, although actual impairment can be demonstrated in some cases where a driver had an even lower BAC at the time of a traffic stop or accident.

Judge Peter Estrada declined to impose additional requirements for Hill's pretrial release, such as random breath alcohol and urinalysis testing, because tips about Hill's behavior were coming from an anonymous caller. "Whoever's making these phone calls does not wish to come forward and give their name, so unless they do so, I don't think I have any authority whatsoever to have a hearing to determine whether or not they actually revoke Mr. Hill's pretrial release order and put him into custody pending his trial," the judge said.

The original article is available here.