Commonwealth v. Coakley

By Judge Lydia Calvert Taylor

This matter came before the Court on January 30,2001, for trial de novo on an appeal from the General District Court of charges of driving under the influence (DUI), second offense, and refusal. The Defendant, when queried, declined to have the two severed, but rather asked to have them tried at the same time. The evidence having been heard, the Court took the matter under advisement for resolution, after briefs on either side, of three legal issues: (1) Was the Defendant’s arrest for DUI lawful under Virginia statutes and the U.S. Constitution? (2) If the arrest…