A woman that took her DUI conviction back to court, in an effort to lessen her time in jail, saw some of her charges tossed out, but not the single one that will keep her in jail, as reported by CBS St. Louis.
M.W., 31, was hoping that an Illinois appeals court would lessen her 20-year sentence in regards to a 2009 alcohol-fueled car wreck that left four people dead.
On August 7 the Mount Vernon 5th District Appellate Court ruled that 31 of the convictions were redundant – charges of aggravated DUI – though M.W. had originally pleaded guilty in February 2010. Now that she's been in prison she has had second thoughts.
M.W. had first told the court that she was guilty of being drunk and smoking marijuana before the 2009 Memorial Day weekend crash in southern Illinois. She had driven through a stop sign and crashed into a Cadillac Escalade.
Killed in the crash were M.W.'s fiancé that had ridden in her vehicle, and three people in the Cadillac. Four other occupants of the Cadillac were injured. M.W. also sustained injuries.
M.W.'s blood alcohol proved to be .136 and well about the state's limit to operate a vehicle. Marijuana was also tested for and detected in her system.
It was concluded that M.W. drove 57 mph when she struck the Cadillac that was traveling at 31 mph. An accident reconstructionist said that M.W. made no attempt to halt her car before it crashed into the Cadillac.
M.W. claimed that she never intended to harm anyone, couldn't remember being drunk or smoking marijuana or even driving the car the night of the crash. At her sentencing hearing her attorney asked if she was the one driving the car and she answered, "I don't know because I don't remember, but science says I was driving so I take responsibility for it."
Prior to her sentencing, M.W. gave her probation officer another account of what had occurred. She said that she thought that her boyfriend had taken her car keys away as that was his habit when she had been drinking too much.
At her sentencing M.W. told the judge, "I don't know if it will reflect on my sentence, but I would like to say I'm sorry. I never meant for any of this to happen. If I could take it back I so would. If I could take everybody's physical and emotional pain away I would. I don't blame the families if they hate me. I am sorry. That's it."
The judge was not moved by M.W. Instead he decided that a minimum six-year sentence wasn't appropriate. Due to the "horrific nature" of the crash and M.W.'s disregard for the law the judge handed down the 20-year sentence.
Because M.W. tried to shift the blame from herself and onto her boyfriend the judge said that it demonstrated M.W.'s "limited acceptance of responsibility."
M.W. has five prior convictions for driving without insurance and three for driving with a suspended license.
Though M.W. pursued to withdraw her guilty pleas in the hopes of a shorter sentence, she remains jailed in the Logan Correctional Center.
If you have been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs contact a DUI attorney for help with your case right away!