Archive for June, 2010

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Lindsay Lohan to wear Alcohol Monitoring Device

Posted on Jun 28, 2010

Once again, the scourge of irresponsible drinking has raised its ugly head among celebrities. However, this particular case shows the long-term consequences of a previous alcohol related conviction and how irresponsible alcohol consumption is considered a serious issue.

Lindsay Lohan Taunts Her

Lindsay Lohan has been ordered by a Beverly Hills judge Marsha Revel to be fitted with
an alcohol-monitoring device and to subject herself to random drug and alcohol testing at least once per week. The ruling stemmed from a violation of her terms of probation in a previous alcohol related conviction. She was scheduled to attend a court hearing regarding that case which she ended up missing without any valid reason.

Judge Marsh Revel makes an example out of Lindsay Lohan

Far too often, celebrities flout the law, especially when it comes to alcohol related cases. However, Lindsay Lohan came up against the wrong judge who was fed up with the trivial nature by which these celebrities treat these cases. So when Lindsay Lohan missed her scheduled court appointment, she lost all grounds on which she could argue for leniency. Though previously confident just hours before her re-appearance in court that she has no reason to worry, during her sentencing, the judge was very explicit in setting out the terms for her to remain out of jail as she decided she would make an example out of her by assigning her to wear an alcohol monitoring bracelet.

Lindsay Flouts the Law

After missing her court appointment, one of the main reasons for being assigned the alcohol-monitoring device is that she told the court that she missed her flight due to her passport being stolen while in Cannes. However, celebrity tabloids ran pictures and stories of her partying during her stay and not showing any sign of worry about her pending court hearing.

Lindsay Lohan gets her Monitoring Bracelet

At the Los Angeles court hearing, Judge Marsha Revel ordered Lindsay Lohan to wear device known as SCRAM. The device is used to constantly monitor an individual’s blood alcohol content through the skin and perspiration. The device checks if the individual has consumed alcohol and sends a report back to its nerve center online. A profile is then developed to determine if the individual has violated the condition of their bail. In Lindsay’s case, the judge further informed her that if she attempts to remove the device, she would get at least six months in jail.Apart from the inconveniences caused by the device, wearing the alcohol-monitoring device should be easy for Lindsay as this would be her second stint with the device. Previously she voluntarily wore the device while serving a previous DWI and attending rehab.

Lindsay Lohan’s Attorney Pleads for Leniency

During the sentencing hearing, despite still arriving ten minutes late as result of the crowd that gathered outside the court house, Lohan’s lawyer pleaded with the judge not to enforce the SCRAM device as it would seriously interfere with several contractual commitments for movie and photo shoots. However the judge was unmoved and carried out the sentencing.

Celebrities and DWI, Celebrity DWI10 Comments »Alcohol Monitoring Device Lindsay Lohan SCRAM

DWI Laws for Minors in Kansas: What Happens After the Hearing?

Posted on Jun 24, 2010

Kansas DWI laws prohibit you from operating any vehicle within the state if you are a minor and are under the influence of alcohol. According to the DWI ‘per se’ law, you will be prosecuted for DWI if your BAC is of 0.02 or more. You can be charged under both the per se DUI provision as well as the operating the vehicle under the influence provision of the Kansas DWI statute. In the case of ‘per se’ DWI cases, the prosecution need not prove impairment during trial.

If you are a juvenile above 14 years old but below 18 years old, you will be charged with a DWI and tried in an adult court instead of a juvenile court. If you are involved in a DWI, you will be sentenced for a period of ten days in a juvenile detention facility. The court will either revoke or suspend your driving privileges. If you are convicted, your sentence can increase up to one year. Your license might not be suspended; instead you might get restrictions on the driving privileges.

However, if you are a minor and are involved in a DWI in Kansas, it is unlawful. When arrested for suspected DWI, the enforcement officer will tell you take a breath or blood test. If your BAC is found to be 0.02 or more, you will not face any criminal penalties instead only your driving privileges can be suspended. If the BAC is between .02 and .08, then your license will be suspended for 30 days for the first offense and one year on any subsequent occurrence. If your BAC is at 0.08 or above, your license will be suspended for a period of one year.

Administrative Hearing

If you are arrested for a DWI and you are a minor you will face serious consequences. To avoid an automatic suspension of driving privileges, you must request an administrative hearing within 10 days of the day you were arrested for suspected DWI. The administrative hearing can be requested in order to challenge the suspension of your driving privilege at the court.

When an administrative hearing is requested, it is better if your Kansas DWI lawyer is present to help in requesting it. If the court decides to grant you a hearing, it will give you a permit to drive provided you have surrendered your driver license at the DMV of Kansas. The permit enables you to drive until 15 days after the decision from the hearing is mailed to you. However, if you fail to request for a hearing or are unable to request for the hearing within 10 days from the date the Notice of Suspension is issued to you, your hearing will be denied. Then you will not be able to appeal in the future. An inability to request a hearing will lead to the suspension of the license commencing on the 15th day after the arrest.

What happens after the Administrative Hearing?

If you lose the administrative hearing, your driver license will be suspended depending on your previous five-year driver record. The license will be suspended effective 15 days after the final order of the hearing officer being mailed from the Department of Revenue to your address. If you are convicted during the past five years for any kind of alcohol-related law enforcement offense, you will be revoked for one year. However, if there had been no earlier conviction during the past five years, then the suspension will be for 30 days. The 30-day suspension is followed by a 60-day restricted driving privilege. If the suspension is upheld at the administrative hearing, you can petition the circuit court for further review.

DWI Laws, Kansas DWI LawsNo Comments »DWI Laws Kansas DWI Laws

Alcohol Abuse Surpassed PTSD in Troops

Posted on Jun 21, 2010

A recent study has shown that about one in eight returning soldiers suffers from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, other reports have shown that soldiers who were deployed in warzones were the most affected with alcohol abuse than PTSD. Post-traumatic stress disorder was less of a problem than alcohol related cases among both service men and women.

Alcohol abuse more of a problem for American Troops

Researchers from King’s College London said that, alcohol abuse levels are 22 percent more likely in the troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan than the troops having stationed at peace areas. Researchers also found that more than 13 percent of the soldiers consume alcohol in quantities much above the safe level for human health. The study, conducted on the British soldiers found British troops both men and women with more stable mental health conditions than their American counterparts where rates of post-traumatic stress disorder were found to be much higher.

Mental health problems increased in American servicemen and women

The findings, published in The Lancet medical journal, show that rates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health problems have remained stable since 2003. This contrasts with American troops returning home from warzones, where a tidal wave of mental health problems has been reported in recent years.

Overall, approximately 13 percent of the respondents said that they were drinking alcohol in excessive quantities as defined by researchers as hazardous, according to the World Health Organization’s Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (Audit).

Shorter tours of duty for British troops compared to American troops

The researchers noted that Britain’s Army, Navy and RAF personnel however, served shorter tours of duty than their American counterparts, which “by luck or design” may have a protective effect on their mental health. The researchers noted that British troops served 6 months less compared with 15 months tour of duty for American troops.

No rise in post-traumatic stress

Nicola Fear, an author of the study from the college’s Academic Centre for Defence Mental Health, said that troops deployed to war zones, such as those from the Territorial Army, were more vulnerable to mental health problems than regular servicemen and women, while alcohol abuse were more amongst the frontline troops. She also found that rates of PTSD remained low among both groups, however, and that overall the mental and physical health of the Armed Forces was generally better than that of the general population.

“We are not seeing this tidal wave of mental health problems as was predicted and has been seen in the US,” she said.

Alcohol Abuse1 Comment »Alcohol Abuse Health