(Photo/Logan Kirkland)
Following a rise in population, driving under the influence arrests are at a high in Oxford compared to recent years, which has required local law enforcement to become more equipped to deal with drivers under the influence.
An average of 10 to 20 DUI arrests are made every week in Oxford, according to Oxford Police Chief Joey East. He said the student population has grown the most over the years; however, the age range of individuals charged with DUIs has varied.
“We have two guys who do nothing but dedicate 12 hours a day to work DUIs,” East said. “They don’t answer calls; they do nothing but ride around and work traffic while looking for people under the influence of alcohol to try and take care of it. Right now, the number is high because of the group of officers who are more attentive to it, unlike a few years ago when I patrolled.”
While the DUI arrests in Oxford continue to grow, University Police Department reports show little change in DUI arrests over the years.
Thelma Curry, UPD captain of support operations, said the use of taxi services has helped lower the amount of DUI arrests made by UPD officers.
“Compared to the number of bars downtown and the accessibility of alcohol, the numbers could be a lot worse on campus,” Curry said. “They are bad enough though. One is bad, but compared to our student population; the number could be a lot higher. The Oxford policemen have their hands full downtown.”
With the concentration of bars on the Square, the Oxford Police Department has developed a routine in monitoring the area, especially on high population nights.
“We’re not looking to arrest people. We don’t have the manpower to do that,” East said. “On average we have about four to eight people patrolling the area of the Square at bar closing. So if we were all out and working traffic, I think that number would at least double. If you get arrested on the Square on the weekend, you have to be really doing something.”
The penalties for DUI charges range in severity, depending on the case, but every DUI results in a suspended license. First-time offenders will face up to 48 hours in jail, along with a fine. They also must complete a four-week class called Mississippi Alcohol Safety Education Program. Victor Carmody, a Jackson-based attorney, said college students are his primary business throughout the year. Carmody is the only attorney in Mississippi who is certified by the National College of DUI Defense, which is a non-profit organization Carmody said has some of the most experienced DUI lawyers in the country. Unlike many attorneys, Carmody was a police lieutenant for seven years, prior to becoming an attorney.
“I’ve seen both sides of Mississippi DUIs, and I know there are so many jobs today that are affected by a DUI charge,” Carmody said. “It so adversely affects the students that we as attorneys refer to it as a roadblock to the future.”
According to Carmody, not all DUI cases make it to trial. The attorney’s first job is to find all of the evidence and see if trying the case in court will help the person who is charged.
“If you take a test for law enforcement such as a Breathalyzer, you are signing a confession that you are drunk,” Carmody said. “They are doing these tests to gather evidence to use against you in trial.”
A new state law that would allow certain DUI cases to be dismissed by the court is set to take effect on Oct. 1, 2014. In order for a person to become eligible for case dismissal, they will first have to plead guilty to the DUI charge. The record showing that the individual plead guilty to a charge will still be on the individual’s record. However, the actual charge will not be viewable by the public.
“I can tell you that applications for law school, pharmacy school, military and so on will have those records where you plead guilty to a charge. It won’t help you,” Carmody said. “Having said that, it will help some people under certain circumstances. It will definitely allow those who have received a DUI the ability to get accepted into an undergraduate program.”
This new law would also require individuals to install an ignition interlock device on the vehicle. This is a device that requires the driver to blow into the machine in order to be able to crank the car. In order to prevent other bystanders from blowing into the machine to start the ignition, the device takes a picture of the driver while he or she is blowing into the machine.
“The machine analyzes your breath to see if you are impaired and should not be driving,” said Tammy Childress, vice president and executive director of Correctional Counseling of Mississippi Court Watch, a company with several DUI prevention programs. “It will even beep while you are going down the road, and you have to pull over and within 60 seconds and give a ‘rolling test,’ which means it tests you while you are operating the vehicle.”
Although this particular law will only be effective in Mississippi, DUI charges do face varying court processes among different states.
“Many states do not have the same appellate procedures as Mississippi,” said Clark Trout, Oxford criminal defense attorney. “In Mississippi, the individual has a right to appeal the case to the circuit court and the conviction is basically set aside. The individual gets another trial on appeal.
“The appeal process in most states does not allow the suspension of the judgment and the punishments start after conviction and are carried out in the home state even though the convicted has been set aside by the appeal in Mississippi.”
Although DUI statistics in certain areas are at a high, many Mississippians are working to not only punish drunk drivers, but also provide treatment.
Our theory is that if a person has a true alcohol problem and they go to jail for a DUI, then they will still have that same alcohol problem when they get out of jail,” Childress said. “We try to help people with their alcohol problem so that they can avoid jail and avoid losing their jobs or having to drop out of school. We just want to help save their lives and prevent them from taking others by getting behind the wheel intoxicated.”
