I Was Charged with Intoxication Manslaughter During COVID-19. Now What?

During these strange and confusing times, everything we know about procedures and precedents has changed. Facing criminal allegations is stressful enough without the uncertainty of how your case may be handled in court, especially if those allegations might involve felony charges. Is your trial even able to take place? Does this pandemic change the way you could be charged or sentenced?

Choosing the right criminal defense attorney is only part of the battle. These are important questions that need answering, both to prepare you for what may lie ahead and to ease your state of mind.

Standard defenses for intoxication manslaughter still apply

Intoxication manslaughter is a second-degree felony. You can be charged with intoxication manslaughter if you are driving under the influence and kill another driver, passenger, or pedestrian.

It is crucial to understand that the prosecution only needs to prove that your mental and physical faculties were altered and diminished due to the use of alcohol or drugs. The role of your defense attorney is to prove that wasn’t the case or that the victim’s death was not the direct result of your intoxicated driving. Proving the latter is trickier, but it could result in some or all of your charges being reduced or dropped, depending on the circumstances. The defenses your criminal defense attorney will most likely consider include:

• Insufficient proof that you were the driver
• Tests being administered incorrectly or by an uncertified police officer
• Unauthorized or invalid testing equipment
• Lack of direct knowledge of your “normal” faculties at the time of the incident (and therefore cannot judge whether yours were altered and/or diminished at the time)
• Intoxication as the result of being unknowingly, involuntarily drugged
• Too much time passing between the incident and the breath test for the results to be conclusively related

This all depends on the details of your case and the allegations against you, of course. Your attorney will work with you to dismantle the prosecution in any way they are able.

How the pandemic could affect your criminal case

The biggest concern regarding how the pandemic might affect your case is time. The current official guidelines for court proceedings during COVID-19 state that if jail or prison time is a possible punishment, you cannot be tried remotely (such as over a video conference or by phone). This is meant to ensure your trial is as fair as possible considering the severity of the possible sentences. However, you should be aware of the downsides to this.

For example, due to the nature of the pandemic, it may be several weeks or even months before it is safe enough for your trial to take place in person, which means you could be spending all that time in jail. Not only that, but the details of your case may fade from the memories of all involved, which can affect any witness testimony — and even your own. This can lead to certain defenses no longer being viable. However, this works both ways in that it may affect the prosecution as well, which your attorney can use in your favor.

It is essential to recognize that these times are truly unprecedented. Because of how unique the situation is, our courts are still figuring out the best way to handle trials in person. There were months where no trials whatsoever took place leading to an extensive backlog, which only further complicates processes. Officials are constantly looking for new and better methods to implement to ensure a fair and just trial for every citizen, so it is important to be patient — as understandably frustrating as that may be. There have been a few mishaps, including a trial during the summer of 2019 with an almost-laughable amount of errors, delays, and hurdles, but that means the courts now know better what needs to be avoided and how to work around it.

All in all, this is largely information for your attorney to worry about. At Mary Beth Harrell Law Firm, our experienced and knowledgeable Killeen criminal defense attorneys will stay with you every step of the way, no matter how long it takes, with offices in both Killeen and Copperas Cove. We will keep you informed and work tirelessly to ensure you get the fair trial you deserve. Intoxication manslaughter is not without its defenses, and we will employ them to their fullest extent. For more information on how we can help, call us today at 254-680-4655 or fill out our contact form.