Judge Confronts DWI Guy Trying to “Leave the Country in 3 Days”
Judge Confronts DWI Guy Trying to “Leave the Country in 3 Days”
Judge Corners DWI Defendant Over Plan to Flee the Country to Teach in Ukraine
Preview: A routine DWI arraignment took a bizarre and tense turn when a defendant announced he planned to board a flight to Ukraine on Monday to teach English and the Bible. Despite facing up to six months in jail, a suspended out-of-state license, and strict random testing conditions, the persistent traveler tried to argue his own case, leaving the judge stunned.
The Traffic Stop and the Travel Plans
The courtroom drama unfolded during an initial probable cause hearing for a defendant charged with driving while intoxicated. According to the state’s account, an officer initiated a traffic stop after observing the vehicle swerving across lanes and failing to maintain a single path. Upon contact, officers noted slurred speech, glassy eyes, and a blood-alcohol test result, alongside the defendant’s admission to consuming a glass of wine and taking Valium.
However, the legal details of the traffic stop quickly took a backseat to the defendant’s impending travel schedule. When the judge outlined the standard conditions of bond—including a strict prohibition on consuming alcohol or illegal drugs and mandatory random testing—the defendant immediately raised an unexpected hurdle: he claimed he could not comply with local check-ins because he was leaving the country in a matter of days.
“I have to leave the country to teach Bible and English in Ukraine on Monday,” the defendant declared, insisting he had been planning the trip for months and intended to remain abroad for seven months.
A Judge’s Warning on Logistics and Law
The courtroom reaction was swift and skeptical. The judge pointed out the impossibility of managing an open criminal case while fleeing the country for nearly a year, warning that simply taking off would result in an immediate warrant, a revoked bond, and severe complications at international borders.
“You can’t represent yourself and be gone for seven months, it don’t work like that,” the judge cautioned, strongly urging him to hire an attorney over the weekend to navigate the complex logistics.
Adding to his mounting legal troubles, a review of the defendant’s background revealed an out-of-state California driver’s license that appeared to be suspended except for employment purposes. Because his monthly retirement income and teacher stipend cleared federal poverty guidelines, the court denied his request for a public defender, telling him he earned too much to qualify for free representation.
Signed Conditions and a Narrow Window
As the hearing concluded, the judge ordered the defendant to sign affidavits agreeing to stop driving and to abide by the mandatory bond conditions, while granting a standard 30-day reset to secure private legal counsel. Though the defendant pushed back on how random drug and alcohol screenings could possibly be managed from overseas, the court made it clear that Ukrainian classrooms would have to wait if he wanted to stay out of a local jail cell.
