Travis In Austin

You will be very happy with XTi's I didn't realize you were getting those as well. I can bring over the DX-38 at some point with the new settings from Roy and you can compare for yourself to see if it is worth it, works for your situation. Travis

That is a potentially a winable case, that kid needs to see someone who knows how to handle DWI cases before he does anything. Travis Travis, Could you say more about the issues here relating to a potentially winable case? The main point is that you can tell nothing, absolutely nothing from the number .13 (if it was .13) It if is .013 he has a pretty good civil rights case against the law enforcement agency since he is well below the legal limit. It it was a .13, he is 1 1/2 times over the legal limit if they don't have a split limit system in some states .04/.08. There are a whole host of things that can cause a braeth test of .13 where the blood test would be well below .08. Are they required in that jurisdiction to offer a blood test if you test over an .08? If so, did they? How long was the test after the arrest? Does he have a medical condition that is know to cause false high positives on the Intoxizlyer 5000 ( I think that is what they use there, but it may be the Drager), such as GERDS or is he diabetic. Has he recently fasted or been on a high protien diet, both documented to cause a false high on breath testing equipment. Was he rununing a fever, etc., etc., etc. That is just a few issues relating to just the Intoxilyzer. Then he may have technical defenses available, cause to request field soberity tests, then probable cause to arrest after those coordination tests, then proper warning about taking or refusing the breath test, etc. All I am saying, before we cart this poor kid off to rehab, or to try and "help" him, maybe he should consider letting someone who knows what they are doing take a look at it so he can know what his real options are. Not the family lawyer who wrote the will, not his brother-in-law who practices real estate and personal inury, because they ask what the test is and tell him to plead guilty just the same as any goofball off the street, but someone how specializes in DWI. It may be he was a drunken fool, and he was lucky and he needs help. Or, it may be that a cop who makes overtime with every DWI arrest was a little over zaealous and there is a problem with the machine or the test, he gets the case reduced, and learns a valuable lesson after all. Win or lose, after they pay my fee, most of my clients have learned a lesson and they don't need "help" thank you very much. That is 95% of them, never see them again but here get updates from friends and family they refer. Unfortuantely, 5% are repeat clients and then we try and get them some help when appropriate. The thing is that he really needs to talk a lawyer who knows what he or she is doing in that area, and it requires a specialist. Travis

You don't know this guy was drunk. If he blew a .013, which I doubt, he is not drunk, it's less than an half a beer. If it is a .13 it still means nothing, that number means nothing without knowing about 100 other things. Does he have GERDS, was he around solvents in the last 24 hours, when was the machine calibrated, serviced, was any rf present during the test, was he running a fever, what dental work does he have in his mouth, etc., etc. He drove home after drinking, I didn't see anything about the number of drinks he had, over what period of time, what he ate, when, etc., etc. All we know right now is that he was pulled over for speeding, blew in a device that won out on a low bid, and has a co-worker that assumes he was "trashed." And from this it is sad? He needs help? Yeah lets send him to rehab on the company's dime, or thier insurance carrier's dime, 30 day program, with pay, oh no lets make it court mandated so it's our dime, 10,000 to 20,000 grand, company is required to pay his wages while he is in rehab. No, he should pay it himself, if he can't afford it he should be jailed until he can pay it. Naw, lets save time and money, let's just shoot him. Better yet, let's deport anyone, citizen or not, who has gets arrested for DWI, or has a drinking problem. Let's make it Canada's problem Better yet, lets outlaw alcohol all together, why didn't we think of this before. Give real harsh prison sentences to anyone caught with booze in there house. We can train a bunch of booze sniffing dogs, something like those beautiful dogs like J4Knee has. Govt. can search your house when it wants, so long as it is random, they are only looking for booze, and they don't profile. And booze and driving, life without baby. When the prisons get too full, start executing 'em. My god, what are we thinking, this guy had something to drink, don't know how much, but we know it's something, and he had the audacity to drive home. Who does he think he is? He wasn't even born here by golly, we'll show him. That stuff he had to learn to become a citizen, like a nation of laws, not men, right to a jury trial, presumption of innocence, right to counsel, forget that. Were going to show you how good we are at identifying what is wrong with you and then we are going to fix you. Oh, by the way, first rule: The more you say you don't need fixing, the more fixing you really need. Y'all are turning someone who is a U.S. Citizen and got arrested for drinking while he is driving home after getting pulled over for speeding without knowing how much he had to drink, into someone who needs help. He needs help alright, he needs a good lawyer to protect him from all the do gooders who want to help him. Charlotte has two very good DWI lawyers there that I know of, I sure hope Winchester's co-workers can get hooked up with one of them so that they can tell him some facts, what he is or isn't looking at based on all of the facts of the case, his situation in life, etc. Although my suggesting he seek the best possible legal advice when his liberty, and possibly job are at stake, I can see the drawbacks of this and where someone would want to turn to a bunch of audio experts instead. I mean, I know hen I have a tax problem first thing I think of is, ask about it on audio forum. When I feel a mass under my skin that I suspect is cancerous I ask about it on the audio forum, when I need some good investment advice for a secure retirement I ask about it on the audio forum, when I need some good advice about speakers, I ask my urologist, and that's no [bs], I really do. Travis

As a great american once said, "the 9 most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'" Ronald Reagan (GRHS)

LOL, never had that reponse, but something close "on backorder." It is usually along the lines of "over priced, behind schedule, outdated, worthless, useless, etc." I have never had a postive response. Helps if you ask someone who served in the military, or works for the state. Travis

Well now I know for sure that you don't have any real coona$$ in you if you are against drinking in driving.[] Do you know why the roads are so bad in LA? Because they were one of the last hold outs on passing an open container law and from going to 21 for drinking age. They were willing to turn away fed highway funds. The reason why they would not pass an open container law (law that makes it illegal for driver or passenger to have an open container of alcohol in the car) and I'm not kidding you, they thought it would destroy cajun culture if they were not allowed to drive from place to place on Sat and Sun a.m. if they didn't have a beer in their hand. Travis

If a police officer stops a speeder and notices that he's "completely trashed", how and why would he ignore that? Freedom of movement is a great right, but if a person puts himself and others at great risk in the course of exercising that right, he should no longer use that means of movement and instead take a bus or taxi, where he's less of a danger to himself and others. Thursday night he was coming home from a downtown at 1:00 in the morning and was stopped for speeding. Blew a .013 on the breathalizer. Completely trashed. As well, at that time of night, there are lots of people trying to make it home from bars in varying states of drunkenness and the police are likely looking for any signs of impairment. This guy was speeding. We don't know if that was the only thing about his driving that drew the officer's attention. As someone pointed out already the number is probably .13 because you are not trashed at a .013. By way of reference the "legal" limt is .08 in every state now. A .013 is a blip on the radar. Even if the number is .13 it does not mean he was "trashed." There is probably a video of him doing the field soberity tests so that is going to be one way to know. The number from the Intoxilyzer means NOTHING. It is a machine, purchased by the govt. One of the questions I ask of potential juror's is finish this sentence: If theGovt. bought it, it has to be "blank", now fill in the blank. It is not specific for alcohol (think about that for a minute), it's has technology less advanced then your microwave (eprom chip), having a fever, or naturaly high body temprature will cause it to read high, chewing on white bread and blowing into it, without any alcohol in your system will cause it to read positive for alcohol, if you are a painter you should never blow because you are going to read positive all day every day, etc., etc. etc. Don't ever take a number the Govt gives you and assume it is accurate. All we know about this co-worker, fellow citizen, child of God, is that he was pulled over for speeding and a machine that the Govt bought and maintains spit out a piece of paper that says .13 (or .013) on it. What does language have to do with anything? Here is the biggest fact of all which you all really have to sit back and consider. The U.S. is the land of the FREE and the home of the brave, right? In Canada they have more rights and more protections on a DWI arrest then we do in the United States. I don't advocate drunk driving one iota, if you are drunk then you should pay. Islander, you live in the land of the free when it comes to DWI. Travis

Not if I'm his lawyer he's not done, and not if he gets someone in his area who knows what he's doing. Thank god for the right to a jury trial. I had a .12 breath test jury trial today as a matter of fact, two word verdict. Rack em! Travis

Has my vote, right after those suggested by JaksonBart his are, how you say, "Top Notch." Travis

That is a potentially a winable case, that kid needs to see someone who knows how to handle DWI cases before he does anything. Travis

I have a brand new DX 38 in the box, never been opened, that has never been opened that you are welcome to borrow until you find yours. Travis

Yes the whole kit and koboodle

Don't know if this counts, but just bought a reel to reel tape, Paul Butterfield, one of my favorite Bay Area Bands.

Peugeot 1 and 2????? Incredible, I don't thing they have won in a decade, and for them to beat Audi was quite impressive. Corvette is 1 and 2 in GT 1, with Corvette Racing finally winning the big one. Travis

You could have borrowed my 402/69's to see what you thought. Mine are sitting in garage, I haven't had time to deal with them yet. Guess I need to get going on that. What part of Austin are you in? What cross-over are you going to use? I have the settings for DX-38. Travis

What a great article. Gee whiz Amy, what have you been doing to get all of the print media press lately? I too was very interested in the information about Dave Wilson and his owing a K-Horn, wanting a meeting Mr. Klipsch, etc. Very nice, Travsi

I would suggest you repost this under the 2 Channel forum here and you should get lots of help. Travis

I don't think it cost your state anything close to that, that was the problem for your county. The commissioners were worried that it was going to cost the county $1,000,000 if it had to go to trial. It didn't have to go to trial. I believe the Douglas said the only expense he requested was for a new laptop, about $2,400 I recall, the county rejected his request for a plasma t.v. The county belongs to a joint fund that pays attorneys fees for death penalty cases, there was a 10,000 deductable for that, and the fund paid his defense counsel $400,000. As far as the federal case, all of us federal taxpayers paid for that, but most are sunk costs. There really isn't too much additional expense other than the costs of experts for both sides. That is the problem with these kinds of cases, it is hard to sort out the political banter from the facts. Your paper seems to have some very good reporting on this and discussed what the costs were. If you were getting your info from TV media they tend to lead with headlines like: Duncan trial likey to cost County millions. That then gets turned into talk around town that the county has spent millions. Like I said, I don't have time to go through all of those articles, there are about 50, including court documents, audiotapes, etc. If you really want to figure out where the blame lies and what the breakdown, if any, was in this case I suggest you start by reading all of those articles, and reviewing the other information. As hard as it is to beleive, elected officials like county prosecutors, county commissioners, and state judges will try and spin things so as to not look responsible for anything that the voters may tend to blame them for like delay or expense. In the criminal justice system that leaves only defense counsel, the defendant, or the press to shift blame to. I was able to glean a lot from just 3 articles, but I kind of know what to look for having handled some of the most high profile cases in Austin. It is interesting to hear people's comments about cases that have received a lot of media attention, they really don't have any clue about what the facts are, but I woldn't expect them to unless they were in court everyday, like the jury, and the judge, and the lawyers. It's funny when they try to argue with you about what was said or done until they find out you were the lawyer on the case. Travis

Oscar I can understand your frustration about system as it relates to the case you mention in your quote above. I take this is the Duncan case, it must be, as the facts of the case are the worst of the worst. This case has apparently gone on for years, recently ending in the death penalty being imposed in the federal case last summer. The case is procedurally complex, and it is easy to see where news accounts could give the a wrong account of things. I don't know all of the detalis about the case, but from what little I read, it doesn't seem like there was any problem with the system with the exception of the time it took to get the case to trial. Some of the perceived problems with the criminal justice system we have discussed in this thread don't really appear to apply to the Duncan case. Just some quick observations, again, my knowledge on this case is very limited and it would take a whole summer to get up to speed on this case. This is the perfect case if you are in favor of the death penalty This would not be the case to choose as an example if you have complaints about the criminal justice system or criminal defense attorneys The defendant, Duncan, received the death penalty in federal court He pled guilty in the federal court in Boise and then the jury was required to determine whether there were aggravating factors and intent factors (a defendant cannot plead guilty to that in the federal system, it must be proven). Defense attorneys did not have anything to do with whatever any problems in the federal case, Duncan represented himself. The girl's father was adament that he did not want his daughter to have to testify, even if it meant not being able to go after the death penalty, and he made the County Attorney, Bill Douglas, very much aware of this fact Family of the other victims were equally adament that they wanted the death penalty even if it meant the girl had to testify Kootenai County Commissioners were getting very worried about what it was going to cost for a death penalty case, they were apparently pressuring Douglas to try and resolve the case without a trial Douglas (and this was a stroke of genius on this part, never seen this done before) worked out a plea deal where Duncan would plead to the state court charges of murder and kidnapping. Duncan received 3 consecutive life without parole sentences on the kidnapping charges, sentencing on the 3 state murder charges would be delayed until after the federal death penalty trial. If Duncan was given the death penalty in the federal case he would receive 3 more life without parole sentences on the state murder charges. If Duncan did not receive the death penalty in the federal case the Douglas would be free to go for the death penalty on the state murder charges if he wanted to. Idaho doesn't really enforce the death penalty, the last time someone was executed there I believe was in the mid 70s, and that person waived all rights to any appeal. This may be the reason why federal charges were filed and why the federal case was allowed to go forward. It is very unusual for the federal case to go forward first unless it involved a federal agent or federal property. It appears to me that system worked the way it was supposed to in this case (setting aside the issue of the penalty, I have been doing everything I can to avoid any discussion about that as it doesn't really pertain to the questions and concerns you raised earlier). The only trial that had to go forward were on the special issues on the death penalty, and the acutal imposition of the death penalty and those you can't plead guilty to. There has to be a trial on those issues. He pled guilty to everything else. He apparently has waived any appeal rights he has, his automatic death penalty appeal has been waived and he is probably headed for the federal death chamber in Indiana It appears that there was a lot of good newspaper coverage on the case, here is a link. I don't know what the tv news coverage was, or what quality it was. There could have been a lot of misinformation about things. Again, there were a lot of complex legal issues involved in tragic event, in two seperate proceedings, state and federal court. The victims were not in agreement over whether the death penalty should be sought if it meant the little girl had to testify, The County did not really want to foot the bill for the cost of a death penalty trial, and there were politics going on between the prosecutor's office and the County Commissioners. I can see where local tv media could play up a lot of sensationalism over these topics and somehow the system or defense attonreys would be where people would try and lay the blame. Here is a link to the paper where there is tons and tons of information. http://www.spokesmanreview.com/sections/duncan/ Travis

Double post

\That was an incredible video to an incredible song!!!! I had forgotten how those crowds line up along those race routes, they are insane. Some of that footage was of her team-mate Walter Rohrl driving, but it shows what it takes to be competitive in that type of racing, street, dirt, snow, no safety barriers, no safer walls, sometimes sheer cliffs to the left and right with certain death if you go off, and they are flying. What was amazing about that second video is the what happens if you go off the road to the right, and the fact that the sound of the car totally overpowers the sound of the helicopter. Travis

One of Mouton's Youtube links showing just a taste of her driving ability: Edit: Check out especially from 2:45 to 3:45 Travis