Many of our clients have much more at stake than just the court-imposed penalties for an impaired driving conviction. Often, the far greater consequence is on their professional reputation. There may not be a better example of this than our physician clients. Not only do doctors face potential sanction by the state medical board if convicted of such an offense, they also face the loss of hospital privileges. Even worse, the stigma associated with such an offense can shake the faith of patients and scare off future employers. Simply put, an impaired driving conviction has career-ending potential for doctors.
This is the situation our client, MR, found himself in when charged with his first-ever impaired driving offense. Although highly-regarded, and with more than two decades of impeccable care under his belt, MR found himself facing a professional setback that he couldn't imagine. Initially, MR's chances of avoiding a conviction on the original charges seemed quite slim, given the initial allegations. Witnesses had observed MR's car swerving all over the road, striking a yield sign, and ultimately rear-ending another driver. On top of that, MR performed very poorly on the field sobriety tests...on camera. A subsequent blood test revealed the presence of several impairment-inducing prescription medications. Despite the very damning evidence, however, MR had a viable defense. As it turns out, MR's nighttime medications were mistakenly placed in the morning compartments of the pill tray laid out by his wife. He had inadvertently taken them in the morning before driving to work, believing he had correctly taken his morning pills. In short, MR had a defense of involuntary intoxication. But getting the prosecutor to believe MR's claims turned out to be no easy task. In fact, it took Dennis Melowski more than a year. Finally, however, Dennis won the prosecutor over as the case was gearing up for trial. And it was an outcome that was definitely worth the wait for MR. Under the terms of the plea agreement, the impaired driving charges were dropped, in exchange for MR's plea to a reduced charge of Reckless Driving. Aside from paying fines, MR suffered no license loss and completely avoided any type of drug or alcohol related impaired driving conviction. Most importantly, he is facing no professional repercussions and his outstanding reputation is still fully intact. Needless to say, he is thrilled with the outcome.
