Taimoor Rana is seasoned criminal defense attorney specializing in DUI related cases. He shares his expert legal opinion here « Woman gets 18 years Imprisonment for DUI death
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- The blood-alcohol level of Taylor was .22%. On Friday Circuit Judge Roger Clark sentenced Shirley Cumberland Taylor to 18 years in prison for DUI that has caused the death of William H. Kelly.
Kelly, who was Taylor’s neighbor, was walking with his wife when Taylor’s northbound pickup changed its direction across Mark West Road and he was struck by her pickup. At that time he had been holding his wife’s hand in a driveway that was located on the opposite side of the road as they waited for the truck to pass.
Kelly, 51, died on spot at the night of Jan. 8, 2008. He was the owner of a construction business.
Taylor, 52, had been stopped by Two Miles North, a Gulfport bar, after going shopping. She was going towards her home at around 7 p.m. and she was just seconds away from turning into her driveway off Mississippi 53.
It has been said by Assistant District Attorney Chris Schmidt that when her blood level was checked it was found to be .22, which is more than twice the legal limit of 0.08.
Kelly’s family was willing Taylor to receive the maximum penalty i.e. 25 years. The minimum penalty for DUI is five years.
The judge had taken into consideration all the facts of the case, Taylor’s age, health, criminal history and statements that has been made after the incident, as said by Schmidt. Schmidt says that in 1992 Taylor had two misdemeanor DUI convictions but she had no prior felony convictions and she suffers from Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. On July 9, Taylor was found guilty at trial.
It was testified by Taylor that she was blinded by a light and it had been thought by her that she had struck a trash can or a deer. Kelly’s wife was holding a flashlight and he had been wearing light-colored clothes and a vest that has got reflective strips.
The speed limit on the road is set to be 30 mph. A black-box device from Taylor’s GMC truck has been used by the prosecutors to show she was driving 52 mph five seconds before the accident. It has been showed by the device that she accelerated to 57 mph just one second before she struck Kelly. Schmidt told that it’s the first time the DA’s Office has had that type of device available as an evidence.
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