Read about Mr. Childress and the plea at:
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Montana woman guilty in Childress death
Fred Childress spent much of his time opposing the use of red light cameras in Oak Ridge. To enjoy life he rode his BMW motorcycle. He took a journey out west and tragically was struck and killed on the last leg of his trip after touring Glacier National Park. The woman who killed him had been drinking and went around a curve too fast. She has now pled guilty in Federal Court to involuntary manslaughter. Childress leaves behind a widow and many friends in Oak Ridge. I hope he gets to ride through heavenly skies, where there are no political issues and where there is plenty of room for every bike.
Does Supreme Ct Decision mean math chaos?
The Tennessee Supreme Court has released a new decision, State v Cooper. The case involves sentencing.
First the Court ruled that 2 convictions for one act of DUI should not happen. Cooper pled guilty to both DUI theories, over .08 and driving impaired. She committed one DUI and got 2 convictions. The Court remanded to fix that error.
The Trial Court ruled that Cooper serve 11/29 at 100% and that after 90 days she could apply for a furlough to leave jail and complete treatment. If she did not apply for the furlough, she would continue to serve. The Supreme Court remanded that sentence and informed the Courts to change their ways.
The decision seems to say she could not be furloughed or probated or placed on work release, if ordered to serve 100%. It sounds like the Court would have to sentence her to serve the percentage of 11/29 that equals 90 days. I think that is 24.7%
The sentence would then look like: 11 months 29 days suspended after service of 24.7% with the Defendant to attend treatment as a condition of probation. If she fails to attend and gets caught, she would then face a violation of probation charge.
The net effect is she gets out whether or not she intends to seek treatment, but then may face ramifications if anyone discovers she does not comply with the requirement.
Read the decision at:
Friday, March 4, 2011
Congratulations Trooper Class 311
44 cadets are now troopers after 18 weeks and 852 classroom hours of training. The new troopers will now receive in service training for 12 weeks. To see the 44 graduates and their assignments, go to:Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper Class 311
Lane found guilty of reckless Vehicular homicide in Chattanooga
The 26 year old man who struck and killed and left the scene has been found not guilty of Vehicular Homicide by Intoxication and DUI, but guilty of reckless vehicular homicide.
Jeremy Lane had finished work in the early morning hours at Chattanooga Billiards Club. Employees of the club testified he had been drinking and smoking pot. There was no blood test in the case. The victim was a wife and mother or two on her way to work.
Read the news account in the Chattanoogan at:
Ross Sentenced. Story tonight on WSMV
Danny Ross is going back to the pokey for 3 years. Ross was convicted of three counts of vehicular homicide by intoxication in 1993 and was released in 2004. Since he was released he has collected three more DUI convictions. He will be featured tonight on News Channel 4 in Nashville on WSMV.Read about it at:
http://www.wsmv.com/news/27080118/detail.html
Too close and Too fast
On VietNam Veterans Blvd at 7:00 a.m. on March 4th, 2011 the driver of the white car was speeding along at about 85 mph and getting within a couple feet of the cars in front of him. This type of driving, while not unusual, leads to frequent horrendous crashes. This guy and all who drive like him should plan on a short life expectancy or prison time when they kill someone. I hope he wasn't in a hurry to get to the gym and get fit.
I have a new slogan for our advertisements: "Don't drive like your britches are on fire and you are trying to reach a water bucket!" Think it will work?
8 years for Vehicular Homicide affirmed
Dennis Bizzoco wanted alternative sentencing instead of the 8 year prison sentence the Court had given him after a sentencing hearing. He had hit a mailbox while driving his Mitsubishi Montero with three passengers. He then over corrected and slammed into a vehicle driven by Jerry Martin. Bizzoco was speeding and had a Blood alcohol level of .17 and had marijuana in his bloodstream.
Mr. Martin and Brandon Bodifer perished. May they rest in peace. Kera Bowman and Heather Brownfield were seriously injured. May they quickly heal.
The Court affirmed the prison sentence. It also ruled that the DUI conviction had to be merged into the convictions for vehicular homicide and vehicular assault. Bizzoco will be eligible for parole after serving 30% of his sentence less good time credits that can add up to 16 days a month. In Tennessee 8 years can mean serving as little as 15 months or as much as 8 years.
The case is at:
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