State v. Mr. S (DMC No. 17092) – Felony Vehicular Second Degree Murder (.158 BAC) Involving a Wrong-Way Head On Collision with a Motorcycle on the Freeway – Reduced to Manslaughter (with 11 years and 9 months of actual DOC) – Maricopa County Superior Court (Case No. 2020-140159)
Arizona Department of Public received a 911 call regarding a vehicle travelling in the Wrong Way direction on State Route 101 in Phoenix. Next, they received a second call which indicated the vehicle had struck head-on with a motorcycle in the HOV lane. When the Police arrived, the motorcyclist was dead, and Mr. S was found and questioned. When they found him, they claimed that he had slurred speech, watery and bloodshot eyes, and provided a Preliminary Breath Test with a .183 Blood Alcohol reading. Mr. S was then put through a battery of Field Sobriety Tests, and his behavior seemed to be “off” according to the Officer. Ultimately he was arrested and taken down the Police Station, where he provided two more breath samples, which resulted in a .141 and .138 BAC. His blood was then drawn, which revealed a .158 BAC.
DM Cantor was retained shortly after Mr. S’s accident, and we immediately secured the services of an Accident Reconstructionist. The Accident Reconstructionist’ report indicated Mr. S was travelling 56 miles per hour (the actual speed limit), and it appeared that he did not realize he was travelling in the wrong direction on the freeway. In our investigation, we had pulled the video surveillance of the bar that Mr. S was attending, and it appeared that he walked out of the bar with another gentleman without any staggering, stumbling or anything else that would make him appear to be impaired. Mr. S had a fairly high drinking tolerance, and he felt that he may have been drugged that night, because his driving behavior did not match his Blood Alcohol Content.
Although we ran various chemical tests on his blood, no other drugs were found. However, it was possible that if he was slipped a drug, it may have dissipated before his actual Blood Test with the Police. Because of this possibility, and because of our Mitigation Expert preparing a report, we were able to conduct a Settlement Conference, which resulted in an offer to a Reduce Charge of Manslaughter with a range of 12 to 16 years in Prison. Ultimately, Mr. S was sentenced to 14 years in DOC at a rate of 85.7%, along with a 3 month early “kick-out.” This means his actual sentence was only 11 years and 9 months DOC and he will be free at age 39, and have decades of freedom in front of him. Originally, he was facing a potential 21 years in Prison.