A South Carolina man was recently arrested and is facing charges for an alleged DUI incident. The penalties for a DUI conviction vary, typically based on the number of offenses on a person’s record and any other circumstances specific to the charge at hand, but typically include fines and/or jail time. On top of the DUI charge, this individual supposedly had children in his vehicle at the time of his arrest and is also charged with placing those children at risk.
A 51-year-old man was pulled over by an officer in Kershaw County earlier in the month. The officer claimed the individual exhibited behaviors of impairment and failed a field sobriety test. A Breathalyzer test was not completed, and specific details regarding this individual’s claimed behavior were not reported. The driver in question apparently had three children in his vehicle at the time of his arrest, only one of which was his child.
The accused was taken to the Kershaw County Detention Center. He is facing multiple charges for the incident, including driving without a South Carolina driver’s license, child endangerment and DUI. It is unknown if bail was set in this case. It is not clear when the man is due in court.
The charges filed against this individual — if a conviction is actually secured — can come with an array of penalties, including loss of driving privileges, court ordered community service and jail time. Questions over maintaining custody or access to his child may also be raised. Gaining access to police records in order to identify officer intent, and to ensure proper protocols were used before making an arrest, may produce valuable information that could benefit the accused during court proceedings. Fighting these charges in a South Carolina criminal court may require some creative legal strategizing, where appropriate, in order to seek a favorable outcome that will hopefully allow this individual to get back to his family as quickly as possible.
Source: wistv.com, “Man driving 3 kids charged with DUI, child endangerment”, Jason Old, Aug. 6, 2014