Posted on 04/15/2008 11:16:46 AM PDT by COUNTrecount
Blumenthal fined $900, had license revoked for 10 months
NASHUA – Sen. Hillary Clinton campaign adviser Sidney Blumenthal slipped into Nashua District Court to plead guilty and be sentenced last month, three weeks earlier than scheduled.
Blumenthal, 59, of Washington, D.C., was arrested in Nashua on Jan. 7, the day before the New Hampshire primary, accused of speeding while intoxicated on Concord Street.
Blumenthal and his lawyer, Ray Mello, of Nashua, had negotiated a plea bargain with police prosecutors last month. Notice of the deal was filed March 20, and the court scheduled a plea-and-sentencing hearing Friday.
The district court is a busy place, however, and last-minute scheduling changes are common – especially with plea bargains, which are quick and easy for the court to accommodate. Plea bargains are routine; the vast majority of DWI cases and criminal cases in general are resolved by similar deals.
Blumenthal had been charged with aggravated DWI, because police charged he was speeding at about 70 mph in a 30 mph zone.
Blumenthal declined to take a breath or blood test and did not show any obvious signs of impairment during booking at the police station. Blumenthal didn't slur or sway, and he and the officers were all models of politeness, a video of the process shows.
More on this topic Read Nashua District Court records of Sidney Blumenthal's sentencing.
Asked about any drug or alcohol use, which is part of the routine questioning before detention, Blumenthal said, "I had some wine at dinner."
It was Blumenthal's first arrest, ever, he told police.
Booking videos and other police reports are generally a matter of public record once a case has been closed; The Telegraph requested a copy of the video Friday afternoon and got it Monday morning.
Blumenthal was brought to a cell after booking and later released after posting $200 bail.
Blumenthal pleaded guilty March 28 to a standard, misdemeanor DWI charge. He was fined $900, and his driver's license revoked for 10 months. Blumenthal can seek to get his license restored after 120 days, however, if he completes and alcohol education program in Washington, D.C., court records show.
Blumenthal also agreed not to contest a six-month administrative license suspension, which was already in effect, police have said previously. Capt. Peter Segal said the plea deal is typical for a first-offense, aggravated DWI charge.
Blumenthal is an unpaid adviser to Clinton, actively involved in her presidential campaign, according to his lawyer. Blumenthal also was an adviser to former President Clinton. He was in southern New Hampshire on the eve of the primaries but got lost on the way from dinner to his hotel, he told police.
Sgt. Michael Masella spotted Blumenthal's rented Buick heading north on Concord Street in the area of Greeley Park at about 70 mph on the night before the New Hampshire primaries, police reported. Masella and officer Christopher Ditullio stopped Blumenthal near the Henri Burque Highway and arrested him after performing a field sobriety test.
Speeding to make sure all those illegal voters get to the polls?
Translates to: "We didn't make changes to accomodate him and help him avoid being photographed at his sentencing. Really! We're not kidding!!"
The court finds the defendant is in denial about his substance abuse problem .
Congrats, Sid, on your first bust!
Remember, on the way home tonight, drive as fast as you can!
Huh?
Fifty percent of first time health professionals stopped for DUI turn out to be alcoholics. If the breathalyzer is > .12, the rate rises to almost 80%.
Source: Indiana Board of Medical Licensure.
seems like a cookie cutter minimums to a first DWI. No special favors, no special hurt.
same as anyone else APPARENTLY.
I live not far from where Speedin’ Sid Vicious got nabbed. 70mph there is absolutely insane, even if sober. What an irresponsible man.
Hillary really looks like she’s enjoying that beer, doesn’t she?
Check the expression of the guy standing behind her. ;-)
That may or may not be her drinking coach.
You know that Sid is surely back driving already. No doubt he is on the Patches Kennedy, I-don’t-live-in-a-PA-small-town recovery plan.
So.....how did they determine that he was intoxicated? The article says that ‘he displayed no obvious signs of intoxication’ and he also declined to blow or give blood.
So he must either have failed the field sobriety test or they took blood from him at the station. Neither of which is mentioned. It’s not like they take away your license simply for speeding. And the ‘aggravated’ part is not explained beyond the 70 in a 30 zone (which just seems excessive but not aggravating). Anybody who has ever been pulled over in NH might be able to clarify.
since you are a local, any idea what the ‘aggravated’ part of the charge entails? How did it get from a straight up DWI to the higher charge?
And did somebody locally report how they determined that he was drunk?
From what I have read, they upped the charge to aggravated DUI because he was driving recklessly - 70 in a 30.
Local papers reported on his arrest several days after it happened, and after Hillary turned on the waterworks in NH (remember that? seems like ages ago with the Hillary/Obamanation circus...)— they said he failed a field sobriety test, and refused the breathalyzer - automatic DUI.
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