Joanna M. Morgan is indicted on charges of DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, endangering the welfare of a child and a felony count of DWI (DWI with a child in the car, or "Leandra's Law"). Morgan is accused of driving drunk with a child under 15 in the car on Dec. 12 in the Town of Le Roy.
Ricky D. Newbould is indicted on charges of felony DWI and felony driving with a BAC of .18 or greater. Newbould is accused of driving drunk on Dec. 18 while in the Town of Elba.
Tamara L. Butler is indicted on charges of DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater and aggravated unlicensed operation, 1st. Butler is accused of driving drunk on Aug. 7 in the Town of Oakfield.
Charles W. Wilder is indicted on charges of felony DWI and felony driving with a BAC of .18 or greater. Wilder is accused of driving drunk on Oct. 24 in the Town of Oakfield.
I guess I was never aware
I guess I was never aware that DWI requires indictment?
Michele, It could be due to
Michele, It could be due to the charge of "felony dwi".
The felony charge could be added if the suspect has been convicted of DWI in the past 10 years,in NY State.
It could also be the Leandra's Law, I'm unsure of the legal pieces of that law.
It may only be applicable to
It may only be applicable to felony DWI. I believe the indictments are handed up via Grand Jury and bolster the DA's case.
Frank, I should have waited a
Frank, I should have waited a minute. I could have commented, 'ditto.' ...Just sayin'.
C.M. I suspected it was for
C.M. I suspected it was for prior convictions, and yes, it certainly favors the prosecution.
3 cheers for the legal drug.
I'm not going to get this
I'm not going to get this exactly right, but on a criminal charge you can be charged via Superior Court Indictment (SCI -- this is usually when you've reached a plea deal but before an grand jury indictment and you're basically admitting the charges). On a felony charge, you can have a felony trial (used to be called a pre-trial hearing) and if the judge finds evidence sufficient to support the charges, the case proceeds. Or you can waive a hearing and the case goes to the grand jury. That's on felonies. On misdemeanors (some of these DWIs are misdemeanors) they do wind up in front of the grand jury for whatever reason. Here's a big guess based on what I've observed -- if you've been charged but not prepared to accept a guilty plea, your case can go before a grand jury.