Drunk Driving DUI Law

SILVER CITY – Anthony Sierra, 36, dubbed a “poster child for DUI” by District Court Judge J.C. Robinson because he has racked up 11 driving-under-the-influence offenses, had his probation revoked at a hearing Thursday and will spend nine months in the county detention center or a state jail facility.

The hearing, which originally had been planned for April, was bumped up because a postponed trial freed up the court schedule. It was a culmination of Sierra’s latest run-in with the law on Feb. 11. In that incident he was pulled over for allegedly speeding, which in itself was a violation of his probation, but he also reportedly told the officer who pulled him over that he had consumed a 40-ounce bottle of Hurricane beer earlier that day. Documents show that Sierra was given a field sobriety test, which he passed. But consuming any alcohol would be a violation of his probation.

“You were lucky enough to pass the field sobriety test or that would have been 12 offenses,” Robinson told Sierra at Thursday’s hearing.

Where Sierra would be serving his nine-month sentence would be at the discretion of the state Department of Corrections and the county detention center. Sierra will be eligible for “good time” credit, which allows inmates to be released early in exchange for good behavior.

When Robinson learned that Sierra had two children, ages 12 and 13, he asked Sierra, “Imagine if you got a call and you learned that your kids had been killed by a drunk driver.”

“That would be horrible,” Sierra said, adding that his children are now living with his parents. “They are in a good environment.”

Sierra told the judge that he had started drinking when he was 14.

After he graduated from high school, “I started taking the wrong path,” he said.

“The consequences are too much,” Sierra said. “I need to stop now. I make no excuses for my behavior.”

Sierra said that recently he had been attending classes and was doing well until his recent run-in with the law.

“I slipped back,” he said.

Robinson told Sierra that for “18 years you haven’t been responsible for yourself, your children, you’ve been disrespectful to your parents. You make the decisions – only you can change your life,” the judge said.

Sierra said he wants to return to school after he gets out of jail and study chemical dependency. While he said he knew the subject matter was ironic, Robinson told him, “You have a lot of experience with that. You should get a Ph.D. just for signing up.”

“I’ve heard all the stories,” Robinson said of those who have gotten into trouble because of alcohol and drug use. “I’ve heard all of the wailing and the gnashing of teeth, all about how they say they are going to change. But how many actually change? Why don’t you become a member of that group of the very few who actually do.”

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