Chicago DUI Lawyers Report: BAAID Devices Send DUI Drivers Back To Jail

Been arrested for a DUI in Chicago? You’re not alone. However, the choices you make from here on out, especially your choice of Chicago DUI Lawyers, can greatly impact the outcome of your case. For example, did you know that persons arrested on DUI charges on or after January 1, 2009, who wish to still drive, may only apply for a Monitoring Device Driving Permit (MDDP)?

The MDDP requires defendants to only drive cars on which a breath alcohol ignition interlock device (BAIID) is installed. The driver must provide a breath sample into the BAIID prior to starting the vehicle and at random intervals throughout his or her trip. The BAIID uses advanced technology to read the driver’s blood alcohol content (BAC). Unless you choose to fight your Statutory Summary Suspension, you must blow into this device each and every time that you start your car!

Many clients often ask our Chicago DUI Lawyers “Why fight the DUI charges if I can get a breath device and still use my car”? The reason is that these breath devices (BAIID) will monitor your alcohol content each and every time that you use them. What happens if you are found to have alcohol in your system, even if you are not legally intoxicated? Ask Jim Leyritz. Former major leaguer Jim Leyritz was arrested and jailed after a judge revoked his bond for violating his release by having alcohol in his system – alcohol detected by his BAIID device!

Jim Leyritz jailed for violating terms of release

FORT LAUDERDALE (AP) — Former major leaguer Jim Leyritz was arrested and jailed Friday after a judge revoked his bond for violating his pretrial release on a DUI manslaughter charge, authorities said.

Prosecutors filed a motion earlier in the week in Fort Lauderdale seeking to have Leyritz jailed as he awaits trial.

Authorities say a system in Leyritz’s car that he has to blow in before starting it, and periodically while driving, recorded that he consumed alcohol four times since the device was installed in April 2008. He is not allowed to drink alcohol under the terms of his release.

Leyritz’s trial is tentatively set for May 25. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in prison. He has pleaded not guilty.

His attorney, J. David Bogenschutz, said Friday his client’s arrest stems from a misunderstanding. He filed a motion Friday afternoon seeking to have Leyritz released pending an emergency hearing.

Bogenschutz said that as part of Leyritz’s pretrial release, he initially had to submit to multiple daily alcohol tests on a home device. That order was changed in April 2008, allowing Leyritz to drive but only if the breath device was installed in his vehicle.

At that point, according to Bogenschutz, officers charged with monitoring Leyritz told him they would no longer be supervising him.

“So he believed at that point, because he now had a machine in his car, it was OK to drink, but that he’s just not going to be able to drink and drive because the car is going to turn off,” Bogenschutz said.

Bogenschutz said Leyritz has used the vehicle breath device some 4,000 times with only four registered alcohol incidents. He said that since the latest incident in January, authorities have made it clear to Leyritz that he is still not allowed to consume any alcohol — and Leyritz hasn’t.

“He really shouldn’t be held responsible,” Bogenschutz said. “It’s a little disturbing.”

Ron Ishoy, a spokesman for prosecutors, acknowledged that officers in charge of supervising Leyritz assumed his monitoring had concluded in April when the device was installed in his vehicle.

“That assumption was incorrect,” Ishoy said Friday. “It is the state’s position that Mr. Leyritz was to remain on pretrial release and not consume alcohol.”

Authorities said Leyritz was drunk on Dec. 28, 2007, when he ran a red light in his sport-utility vehicle in Fort Lauderdale and crashed into another car, killing 30-year-old Fredia Ann Veitch.

Authorities said toxicology reports indicated that Leyritz’s blood-alcohol level three hours after the crash was 0.14%. The reports also indicated that Veitch, too, was drunk, with a blood-alcohol level of 0.18. Florida’s legal limit is 0.08.

The 45-year-old played for six major league teams and last was in the majors in 2000, ending his 11-year career. In 1996, he homered for the New York Yankees in Game 4 of the World Series against Atlanta. The homer made it 6-6, and the Yankees won in 10 innings. New York took the series in six games for its first title in 18 years.

The Law Offices of James E. Fabbrini have years of experience protecting people charged with DUI. From first time DUI offenders to felony DUI, our Chicago DUI lawyers have successfully fought DUI charges in Chicago and the surrounding areas.

Protect your freedom, avoid trouble, and save yourself money. Contact our office today. All consultations are absolutely free. Call us at (312) 494-3131 or e-mail us your questions at [email protected]