Drunk Driving DUI Law

An attorney for a 47-year-old Columbus man accused of driving under the influence after falling asleep in the drive-through lane of a local fast-food restaurant has asked a judge to suppress evidence that led to his client’s arrest in early-April.

Platte County Court Judge Frank Skorupa took under advisement Thursday a motion to suppress evidence in connection with the DUI arrest of Gregory Wells just after midnight April 5.

The first-offense DUI is a Class W misdemeanor, with punishments varied depending on whether a defendant is given probation or not. Both punishments include license revocations, with ranges of 60 days to six months, along with fines.

Defense attorney William Kurtenbach’s motion asked the judge to throw out evidence gathered through statements made by the defendant, along with the results of a blood test and any observations made by the arresting officer stemming from the incident. The defense motion cites a lack of “probable cause” to make the arrest and argues that the defendant’s statements were not “freely and voluntarily” made.

On the night of the incident, Wells told the arresting officer that he was “tired” and had had about a half dozen beers at a local restaurant earlier in the evening, according to an arrest affidavit filed in the case by Columbus Police Officer Brian Hunke.

The defendant showed impairment during field sobriety maneuvers and failed a preliminary breath test prior to the arrest, Hunke’s statement said. Wells had a recorded blood alcohol content of .142 on the breath test. The legal limit is .08.

Wells’ criminal case in county court is running on a parallel track with a lawsuit filed in early-June in Platte County District Court. The suit is seeking a review of the state agency’s revocation ruling.

The defendant’s driver’s license was revoked by the Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles in May following an administrative license revocation hearing. A 90-day revocation was scheduled to begin May 17.

Wells’ civil action triggered a state law that provides for an automatic stay of the DMV revocation until the district court has concluded its review.

The lawsuit contends the agency’s findings, interpretation of the law and final ruling were unsupported by evidence presented at the revocation hearing.

Only a handful of local defendants annually chose to appeal to the district court over the loss of a driver’s license in the DMV’s administrative proceedings since 2006.

Six local cases have wound up in district court so far this year. Four local cases were appealed to district court in 2006.
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