For many people who choose to take the wheel after drinking, their greatest fear is that they will get pulled over and arrested for DUI. In fact, the stakesare much higher, and driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs can be deadly for not only the driver, but anyone he or she encounters along the way.It seems that no one actually believes he or she could be responsible for a fatal DUI accident, and most people who drive after drinking think theyare "okay to drive," or merely "buzzed, but not drunk." When a fatal accident results, the impaired driver must live with not only the guilty of makinga reckless decision that ended in another person's death, but also the consequences of criminal conviction of manslaughter or murder.
Even though a fatal DUI accident is not an intentional homicide, the courts have determined that a person who chooses to drive under the influence of alcoholor drugs makes an informed decision that disregards the sanctity of life.
In most cases, causing a fatal DUI accident is considered to be first degree manslaughter. A first DUI offense is a misdemeanor, and a homicide that occursin the commission of a misdemeanor is one of the definitions of manslaughter.
If the DUI is a second or subsequent offense, however, it is a felony. For that reason, a fatal accident during a second or subsequent DUI is charged assecond degree murder, or a homicide that occurs during a felony other than those violent felonies that would warrant a first degree murder charge.
In either case, the penalties are steep: first degree manslaughter carries a minimum sentence of 4 years in prison. Second degree murder carries a minimumof 10 years.
As one Tulsa man found out, the sentence can be much longer than the minimum.
John Michael Freeman, 27, was found to have a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.22 percent--nearly three times the legal limit--when he drove thewrong way on the Broken Arrow Expressway, crashing into and killing a 63-year-old man. A detective who witnessed Freeman in the minutes before thecollision said the driver also appeared to be talking on the phone. He says that he tried to get Freeman's attention by keeping pace with the vehicle,flashing his lights, and honking, but Freeman never braked before plowing head-on into the other vehicle, sending both cars airborne and killing thedriver of the other vehicle.
Freeman pleaded no contest in November 2014, and a month later, on December 9, he was sentenced to life in prison--far longer than the 4-year minimum requiredby law.
Now, a year later, Freeman finds some relief from the harsh sentence. In a judicial review of the sentence, Tulsa County District Judge James Caputo amendedFreeman's sentence from life in prison to a 15-year split sentence requiring 5 years in prison followed by 10 years of probation. He is additionallyordered to participate as a guest speaker with Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) for the duration of his probation, to obtain drug and alcohol assessmentand follow a treatment plan as long as deemed necessary, and attend AA meetings throughout the term of probation.
