NJ Man Pleads Guilty to 15th DUIMORRISTOWN, N.J. (July 1) – A New Jersey man whose driver's license has been suspended 78 times has pleaded guilty to his 15th drunken-driving offense.
Shaun Campbell of East Rutherford told a judge Tuesday that he had been drinking "quite a bit" of beer when he crashed his SUV head-on into a pickup in April. The truck's occupants, a man and his 4-year-old daughter, were not seriously hurt.
The 40-year-old Campbell's blood-alcohol level was .288 percent, more than triple the state's legal limit.
Authorities say Campbell's license has been suspended 78 times in 22 years. He still faces drunken-driving charges in two other New Jersey cities.
Prosecutors are seeking a maximum prison term of nearly three years at Campbell's sentencing in August. He will lose his license for at least 10 more years.
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Now, I know we've all been out drinking and then have driven home when we shouldn't have once or twice when we were young and foolish. Although serious, that is different.
This guy is 40 years old and his license has been suspended 78 times. That's not a typo. 78 times!! That is not being 'young and foolish', that is being a wreckless and dangerous alcoholic. He needs to go to detox first, jail second, and then be forced to work in a rehab center for people who have lost arms and legs in car crashes so he can be reminded every day how lucky he is not to be one of them.
Here's the part I don't understand: after is 20th, 30th, or even 40th license suspension, why did a judge even bother to reinstate his license? Shouldn't he have been put into one of those programs where your car is rigged up with a breathalyzer so it won't turn on if you're drunk?
Let's say this guy was responsible for a fatal car accident, after 78 license suspensions. Shouldn't the judges who reinstated his license the 77th time be held partly responsible?
Drunk drivers account for about 16,000 deaths each year in the US. Maybe 16,000 doesn't sound like a lot when you factor in the entire US, but imagine if your parents, siblings, other relatives, or friends were among the 16,000. Loosing someone you love to a senseless drunk driving crash is unacceptable because its 100% preventable.
Maybe 78 license suspensions doesn't mean enough. But what about the 15 DUI convictions? I mean, WTF??? Shouldn't the judge at the 4th or 5th DUI trial have noticed this guy had a problem?
I tell you, I just can't wrap my head around this...
Crush du Jour: Adrian Bellani
6 comments:
People who just can't stop drinking are more commonplace than you would imagine.
It's unfathomable that any judge would reinstate his drivers license after, oh, I don't know, say the third time!
I think any judge who heard cases 3 through seventy-seven should be removed from the bench and have a fine levied against them; a fine that gets progressivley higher for each asshat who let him go.
WHAT.
THE.
HELL????
I'm spending July 4th in NJ. I hope this fool isn't on the road.
XOXOXOXOXOXO
Glad to see that you eventually addressed what I was going to address and that is, "What's wrong with the judicial system that he was even out there on the road after his 4th or 5th, let alone his 78th? Maybe the prosecution needs to get their license to practice revoked?
I agree totally!
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