Fight A DUI

The Kent County Times has an article about political fighting caused by a paperwork snafu that led to the dismissal of several cases involving breathalyzer refusals.

 paperwork snafu that caused the Traffic Tribunal to dismiss several breathalyzer refusal cases has escalated into a war of words between Speaker William Murphy (D- Dist. 26, West Warwick, Coventry, Warwick) and Rep. Robert Flaherty (D-Dist. 23, Warwick), a possible leadership challenger.
About 10 cases where suspected drunk drivers refused a breathalyzer test, including at least one that was a client of Flaherty, who is a lawyer in private practice, were dismissed after it was learned some police departments allegedly gave them the wrong information about the consequences of declining the test.

The heart of the matter involves a $200 assessment for each offense that would be paid to the Department of Health. However, not all police departments received the updated information, causing some defendants to receive paperwork without notification of the new assessment. The confusion apparently contributed to an ongoing disagreement between local political figures, the details of which can be found at the link above.