A woman who lost her job as a sheriff's deputy in Virginia Beach after a January 2009 arrest for driving under the influence has been sentenced to six years in prison after a subsequent DUI collision just two months later. Twenty-four year-old Lisa Marie Schettler, of Virginia Beach, is said to have been intoxicated when she collided head-on into a car carrying Donald and Elaine Gay in March 2009.

Schettler registered a BAC (blood alcohol content) of 0.44 on the night of the collision and maintains that she has no recollection of the events leading up to the accident or the incident itself. Schettler collided with a Ford Flex carrying the Gays after her vehicle crossed a double yellow line on March 9th of last year. Both Schettler and the couple were injured in the accident on Birdneck Road in Virginia Beach.

Judge Edward W. Hanson, who handed down Schettler's sentence, commented on the incident leading to the former law enforcement official's arrest:

"This is a tragic case. Such reckless disregard for others demands serious punishment."

Schettler pled guilty to one count each of "driving reckless under the influence where the victim was permanently impaired" and "DUI second conviction within five years." Judge Hanson sentenced her to five years for the DUI and an additional year for the second offense charge. A year and a half of the sentence was suspended pending supervised probation and ten years of good behavior, and Schettler's license was revoked. A DUI arrest is a serious charge carrying long-term consequences. Especially in circumstances where a previous DUI charge has occurred, finding an experienced Virginia DUI lawyer can help procure the most favorable outcome for your case.

This article is presented by The Law Office of Price Benowitz, LLP, serving Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC. For more information, please visit our Maryland DUI Lawyer and DC Criminal Lawyer websites.

A man who led Henrico County police on a high-speed chase through Richmond that caused the death of a pastor from Church Hill has been sentenced to 13 years in jail. Twenty-seven-year-old Darryl Harris was pursued by officers at speeds estimated at 90-100 mph during the incident on residential streets in Richmond's East End. Richmond's Commonwealth's Attorney Michael Herring called the man's actions "beyond reckless."

The incident, which began when Harris fled a police checkpoint on March 24th, has raised questions about the merits of chasing suspects at high speeds in areas considered to be residential. Of police speeds during the chase, Herring said:

"I don't want to render an opinion on whether they were driving recklessly."

"No citizen wants any car -- even a police car -- traveling through a residential area at speeds north of 90 mph. People also, though, expect the police to catch criminals."

After fleeing the checkpoint, Harris' car slammed into a pickup truck driven by Apostle Anthony Taylor, who was ejected from his vehicle and crushed by it. Harris pled guilty in Richmond on July 14th to hit-and-run, aggravated involuntary manslaughter and felony eluding police as well as entering guilty pleas in Henrico for Ecstasy possession and possession of a firearm while in possession of a controlled substance. Under the terms of a plea agreement, Harris received 10 and a half years for the charges in Richmond and two and a half years for the Henrico charges for a total of 13 years in prison. Prosecutors in Richmond withdrew charges of driving under the influence second offense and second-degree murder in exchange for the plea.

Both Herring and Harris' Virginia criminal lawyer commented to the press about the decision to reach the plea agreement. Herring conceded that convincing a jury to convict the man on a second-degree murder charge might be difficult considering that police retained Harris' license and could have located him without giving chase. Harris' lawyer said the case "posed a risk for going to trial."

This article is presented by The Law Office of Price Benowitz, LLP, serving Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC. For more information, please visit our Maryland DUI Lawyer and DC Criminal Lawyer websites.

Occasionally, charges are filed due to behavior that is not intentionally criminal, but where negligence or recklessness has lead to prosecution.

A recent fatal boating accident in Hampton has prosecutors examining whether to file charges, and against whom, after the death of 35-year-old Elizabeth Elliott in a boating accident. Elliott was aboard a 20-foot boat with several adults and her seven-year-old son when the accident occurred. The unnamed child was reportedly at the boat's wheel when the vessel struck a pier. According to Virginia Marine Resources Commission spokesman John Bull, Elliott was seated at the front of the boat when she was thrown from the craft and suffered severe head and chest trauma.

After the incident, Bull told press that it is not against the law in Virginia for a child to pilot a boat. As a Virginia criminal attorney is well aware, adults responsible for the consequences of a child's actions are not exempt from prosecution. Bull told press that an adult present at the accident could be charged with reckless boating. Bull said:

"We are trying to find out what chain of events, what mental process, resulted in the decision to allow this 7-year-old to operate a boat in a narrow channel of the Hampton River.

"It's still an open-ended question whether laws were broken."

Virginia Marine Police are investigating the incident and the results of the investigation are expected to be complete by the end of this week. Starting in 2011, people aged 20 or younger will be required to complete a boating safety course prior to operating a boat.

This article is present by The Law Office of Price Benowitz, LLP. For more information please visit our Maryland Criminal Lawyer and DC Criminal Lawyer websites.

A two-year-old boy has died and his father is under arrest for driving under the influence after a single car crash on McCann Road in Washington County, Virginia. Twenty-six-year-old Philip Derek Watson was driving his 1993 Toyota Tacoma on State Route 788 in Damascus on July 15th when the vehicle veered off the left-hand side of the road and struck a culvert, flipping over and sliding on its roof. The car then collided with a mailbox and a tree.

Watson's toddler, Philip Ethan Watson, was strapped into a car seat at the time of the crash, but nonetheless died at the scene. The elder Watson, who was wearing a seatbelt, refused medical treatment despite having suffered "minor injuries." Watson was released from the Southwest Virginia Regional Jail on bond, and Virginia State police say the circumstances of the incident are under investigation and that further charges are pending.

The spot where the fatal crash occurred just before 2am that Thursday is already marked with a white cross from a previous fatal crash in the same location. The owner of the property where the cross was erected, Steve Lovins, commented on the stretch of road where a 16-year-old girl lost her life in a similar crash:

"It's 45 mph, but it might as well be 60," he said of the road. "I hate to see it happen, but I know they're going to."

Family and friends gathered at the Watson residence after the tragedy, and a woman present at the home would comment only to say that the incident was "devastating to everyone." Washington County Commonwealth's Attorney Dennis Godfrey told press that his office was still "fact gathering" to determine the circumstances surrounding the crash, and charges against Watson could be "enhanced." It is currently unclear whether Watson has been appointed or has retained a Virginia DUI attorney to face the charges against him.

According to Lovins, residents on McCann road are still "shaken" by the incident.

"It's a tragedy," Lovins said. "See all they can do, babies, is depend on you. They don't have any say in what happens to them. And look what happened to his one."

This article is presented by The Law Office of Price Benowitz, LLP, serving Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC. For more information, please visit our Maryland DUI Lawyer and DC Criminal Lawyer websites.

A busy Virginia DUI attorney is aware of the trepidation some clients feel when appearing in court to face charges of DUI (driving under the influence) or DWI (driving while intoxicated.). During a recent plea hearing in Augusta County, a man charged with driving under the influence was jailed and his bond revoked after the defendant was found to have a blood-alcohol level of 0.25 at his court appearance.

Sean A. Stanton, 34, planned to plead guilty at the June 16th hearing, according to his Virginia DUI lawyer. Stanton's lawyer explained that his client was "trying to calm his nerves" and believed he was "going to jail (that day)" after a probation officer smelled alcohol on him and a bailiff measured the man's blood alcohol content at three times the legal limit to drive in the state of Virginia.

Augusta County Judge Jay T. Swett ordered Stanton be incarcerated at Middle River Regional Jail in Verona and revoked the man's bond. Judge Swett addressed the defendant before he continued with the plea hearing:

"It was brought to the court's attention that you may be inebriated, that you're intoxicated," Swett said.

Stanton shrugged. "You can go on."

Stanton was charged following an accident on May 30th, 2009. State police say the defendant drove his 1997 Toyota Tacoma into three motorcycles, one with two passengers, on Route 250 in Deerfield. Stanton and the four motorcyclists were injured. He was charged with three counts of assault and maiming while driving under the influence and a single count of driving under the influence.

While awaiting trial or acceptance of a plea in a DUI case, it is important to be aware of the conditions of bail. An experienced Virginia DUI lawyer can advise you as to which circumstances or actions might cause bail to be revoked.

This article is presented by The Law Offices of Price Benowitz, LLP, representing clients in Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia. For more information, please visit our Washington DC DUI Attorney and Maryland DUI Lawyer websites.

A Fairfax criminal lawyer often has firsthand knowledge of the sobering statistics surrounding domestic violence and the military. The rate of deaths resulting from domestic violence incidents domestic violence incidents and resulting deaths are often far higher in military populations; and. Aa report from 2008 indicates that more than 150 cases of fatal domestic violence or child abuse in the US involving service members and returning veterans were recorded between the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and the 2008 report. A double homicide that first came to light on Monday, June 14th in Fairfax County seems to be a part of fall into that trend.

Retired Army lieutenant colonel Kenston K. Yi, 49, entered the emergency room at DeWitt Army Community Hospital on the Fort Belvoir Army base in Fairfax County shortly after 8 a.m. on June 14th. According to an affidavit by Fairfax homicide Detective Robert Bond, Yi initially told a doctor that he had taken the sleep aid Ambien and that he wanted to cause himself harm. Yi then requested a visit with clergy, and confessed to a minister that he had strangled his wife and daughter in their home in Lorton. Yi did not request a Virginia criminal attorney at that time.

Police investigated Yi's claims, and found the door to his apartment closed but not locked. Inside the apartment, law enforcement officials discovered the bodies of Hyon Yi, 47, and Joy Yi, 15. Autopsies performed on Tuesday indicate that the elder Yi died of blunt force trauma, while the younger Yi was asphyxiated. Police declined to provide specific details regarding the injuries suffered by the Yi women.

Kenston Yi retired from the Army in August after 30 years of active duty. He attended and graduated from West Point, and worked mainly in IT prior to his retirement. In recent years, Yi was part of the staff for the Chief Information Officer of the National Guard Bureau in Arlington, according to Army officials.

The retired Army lieutenant colonel did was not present at his June 15th arraignment, as he remained hospitalized after expressing suicidal thoughts. Yi did not have retain a Virginia criminal lawyer, and Fairfax Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge Teena Grodner assigned a public defender to his case. Because the victims are Yi's wife and daughter, the case is being heard in domestic relations court. Information regarding future court appearances for Yi is not currently available.

This article is presented by The Law Offices of Price Benowitz, LLP, representing clients in Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia. For more information, please visit our Washington DC Homicide Attorney and Maryland Homicide Lawyer websites.