Chicago prosecutors dropped DUI charges filed against Playboy's Miss May 2009, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. For those who don't "read" Playboy, which is a magazine famous for nude photographs of women, the former DUI suspect's name is Crystal McCahill.
Cook County Judge Thomas V. Lyons ruled last December that Miss May - I mean, Ms. McCahill - should not have been arrested, as this blog reported. But the ruling left open the possibility that prosecutors could still pursue their case, although they would have needed more evidence.
To recap, the buxom brunette was pulled over by police after she ran a red light. She actually admitted to having taken three shots of liquor before leaving her place of employment, a nightclub in the Chicago area. Police say she mumbled, had "red-bloodshot and glassy eyes" and reeked of alcohol.
She doesn't dispute that, nor does she dispute the results of a breathalyzer test indicating that her blood alcohol concentration was more than double the legal limit.
So are Playboy models regularly given a pass for violating the law? Not a chance.
It wasn't her provocative images that convinced prosecutors to drop the charges, but rather a series of procedural mistakes by the arresting officer, plus a little help from an astute Chicago DUI lawyer. It turns out she was not given a field sobriety test, nor was she given a breathalyzer test until after she arrived at the police station.
Failing to conduct the tests, the police did not have sufficient evidence to charge her with a DUI. She was not handcuffed and police say she technically volunteered to accompany the officer to the police station, but her lawyer successfully argued that his client believed she was under arrest.
Now that the dust has settled, Ms. McCahill only has to pay a $100 fine for running a red light.
Related Resources:
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Knowing When An Arrest Is Legal (FindLaw)
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Former Top DUI Cop Faces False Arrest Lawsuits (FindLaw KnowledgeBase)
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Consult a Chicago DUI Attorney (FindLaw)
