Mistakes Mentioned In Mayor's Daughter's DWI Trial
POSTED: Tuesday, February 6, 2007
UPDATED: 6:11 pm CST February 6,
2007
HOUSTON -- A Harris County deputy constable who helped in the driving while intoxicated arrest of Mayor Bill White's daughter admitted to making at least nine mistakes out in the field that night, KPRC Local 2 reported Tuesday.
Deputy constable Michael Bilbrey was called as backup when a rookie pulled over Elena White, 17, last July.
White was arrested in the 9800 block of Memorial Drive after a deputy spotted her driving without her car's headlights on.
Deputies said Elena White failed a field sobriety test and refused to take a Breathalyzer test. She was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated.
Bilbrey testified that Elena White failed his field sobriety test but admitted he made mistakes when conducting them. One of them was a police strobe light that caused a glare on the videotape of the arrest.
The trial was delayed on Tuesday morning while the state edited two dash-cam videos.
The videotapes show contents of a backpack Harris County Constable Precinct 5 deputies found when Elena White was stopped on suspicion of driving while intoxicated on July 31.
Officials said a hookah pipe and strawberry-flavored tobacco were in Elena White's backpack. Defense attorneys said they did not want the jury to think it was used for anything other than tobacco products.
The jury panel is made up of three men and three women.
A first-offense DWI is classified as a Class B misdemeanor punishable by probation or up to two years in jail and a fine. The offender's license can also be revoked for up to one year.
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