Tennessee residents may be familiar with country music artist Randy Travis. In 2012, he was stopped for DUI, and during the traffic stop, footage was taken of him naked and speaking incoherently. Travis had attempted to block Texas authorities from releasing the footage, but a federal judge denied that request. Travis’s lawyer claimed that the footage should be kept private under rules related to health records.
The lawsuit claims that Travis, who has since suffered a stroke and is unable to speak coherently, cannot defend himself and put the incident into proper context. The attorney general in Texas said the video would be altered because Travis was nude. In denying the request, a judge found that Travis would be unlikely to win his case. A motion is likely forthcoming to the 5th Circuit in an effort to have that ruling stayed.
If an individual is charged with a DUI, legal and professional challenges may follow. For instance, it may be possible for footage from a traffic stop or of a person being taken into custody to be released to the public. This could result in an offender being terminated from a job or having a tarnished reputation in the community. However, it is possible to have a DUI charge reduced or thrown out.
An attorney could do this by suppressing evidence such as footage from a traffic stop. It may also be possible to assert that a driver was experiencing a medical problem at the time of a traffic stop. That may be used to explain why a person has bloodshot eyes or slurred speech. If successful, an individual may be offered a plea deal or win an outright acquittal on the drunk driving charge.
