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Police charge DWI after 0.0 BAC reading, charges dismissed

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Swerving back and forth between dividing lines on a highway, driving too slowly, driving too fast, ignoring traffic signs; these are all things that an officer may cite for the reason that he suspected that the driver was intoxicated.

This may be enough justification for the intitial traffic stop, but an officer's observation of suspicious traffic behavior doesn't add up to sufficient evidence for a drunk driving conviction. Where evidence is lacking, an attorney will move to have the charges dismissed entirely -- as actor Jeffrey Wright recently experienced.

The actor has played an undercover operative in the most recent James Bond series and he'll now take on the role of an electronics expert in "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire," returning to the ring as a tribute alum.

Although he is a familiar face in the public eye, it wasn't his celebrity stardom that saved him from the consequences of a drunk driving conviction this month. He was arrested on April 27 when an officer pulled him over under the suspicion of drunk driving.

He was taken into custody and brought to a nearby police precinct. He was asked to submit to a Breathalyzer -- a request that he agreed to. After submitting to the test, he was charged with a DWI.

One little problem, said his attorney; the Breathalyzer reading was a 0.00 BAC. Even though it was taken after time had passed between the arrest and his booking, it was a big indication that there was insufficient evidence that he was intoxicated at the time of the stop. The court agreed and the charges were dismissed.

Source: NY Daily News, "'Hunger Games' actor Jeffrey Wright's drunk driving charges dropped due to lack of evidence," Shayna Jacobs, June 25, 2013

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