What is this, DUI Month in the NBA or something? We had former player Charles Barkley get taken in last week, and Antoine Walker got popped earlier this morning. Now comes word from the Arizona Republic that Jason Richardson was accused by police of driving under the influence, during a traffic stop back on December 21st. This is where the Richardson incident differs from those involving Barkley and Walker. The report says that the officer merely accused J-Rich of driving under the influence, but didn't arrest him for it. He was stopped at 2:48 in the morning, after the Suns beat the Nuggets earlier that evening, and was "cited and released."
I'm no lawyer, but it seems to me if Richardson was really that intoxicated that the officer wouldn't have let him stay on the road long enough to drive himself home, right? Anyway, Richardson will have to make a preliminary appearance in court (which has yet to be scheduled), and he's reportedly hired an attorney who specializes in DUI cases to represent him.
Besides the odd fact that this traffic stop resulted in an accusation and citation of driving while intoxicated, but no arrest, the thing that's most surprising is that we're just hearing about this now. Either the Suns have a phenomenal relationship with the local authorities, or this was more of a routine speeding ticket-type stop than it was a serious DUI situation.
[HT: Ben's Suns Blog]
Comments (Page 1 of 1)
The same thing would have happened with Barkley had he done the breathalyzer.
In Arizona, they only take you in if you refuse the breath test and want blood. No matter what, you will get a ticket on the spot and your car is impounded.