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DEL.ICIO.USPolice officer failed to turn in documentation
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/28/08
An Atlanta Municipal Court judge arrested on drunken-driving charges earlier this year will not lose his license for refusing to take a sobriety test because an Atlanta police officer failed to turn in paperwork documenting the refusal, the judge's attorney said.
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 Atlanta Police | ||
| Atlanta Municipal Court Judge Andrew Mickle, 58, was arrested March 24 in Atlanta on a drunken driving charge. | ||
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Judge Andrew Mickle would have had his license suspended for one year for refusing to take a chemical test of his blood, breath or urine during his March 24 arrest.
"For whatever reason, the officer never sent it in," defense attorney Steve Weiner said Friday. "That is fortunate for [Mickle]."
The Georgia Department of Driver Services, which enforces state laws and regulations relating to driver's licenses, would not confirm that the paperwork was not sent in to the department, general counsel Jennifer Ammons said.
But Ammons said she could confirm that Mickle still has a valid driver's license.
Ammons said motorists who refuse a chemical test have their licenses suspended, though they can appeal the suspension.
Ammons said she did not have statistics on how many people appeal their suspensions and how many people get the suspensions overturned.
When a motorist refuses a chemical test and is arrested on a DUI charge, the arresting officer is supposed to send a form to DDS documenting the refusal, Ammons said. The license suspension goes into effect 30 days after the arrest.
It's not clear why the officer who arrested Mickle, Malcolm Kempton, did not submit the paperwork.
An Atlanta police spokesperson, Eric Schwartz, said Monday afternoon that Kempton was unavailable for comment.
Schwartz said he did not immediately know what happened with the case, but said he would contact Kempton's supervisor to get the details in response to an inquiry from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
More than four hours later, when pressed for a response, Schwartz offered a short statement by e-mail: "We are investigating the case administratively to see if all proper steps have been followed."
Mickle, meanwhile, has not yet gone to court for the DUI charge. A judge has not been appointed to the case, though a prosecutor has, Weiner said.
After Mickle's arrest, the Municipal Court and city solicitor's office recused themselves, asking the Atlanta Judicial Circuit for an independent judge and prosecutor.
Mickle, a Municipal Court judge since 1992, was arrested after getting into an accident with another motorist on his way home from a restaurant.
The accident, near Oakland Cemetery, wasn't his fault, but Mickle admitted to police that he had "one too many drinks" and failed several field sobriety tests that involve physical tasks but no chemical analysis, according to an Atlanta police report.
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Comments
By Big Boy
Sep 2, 2008 12:13 PM | Link to this
Can you spell C-O-R-R-U-P-T-I-O-N.
We knew the police were, now we know some Judges are!
By outraged
Aug 6, 2008 1:42 PM | Link to this
I find it extremely hard to accept that this Judge is being treated with so differently that the average person.
It was very convenient that his paperwork "never turned up", and also in the initial story I read that his car was driven home for him. When is this unfair treatment going to stop. What about the young man or woman who is stopped for the first time. Is their job not as important as the Judge's?. Isd it O.K. to ruin their life, but NOT the Judge. It is scandal that his case is being handled in this way.
By outraged
Aug 6, 2008 1:40 PM | Link to this
I find it extremely hard to accept that this Judge is being treated with so differently that the average person.
It was very convenient that his paperwork "never turned up", and also in the initial story I read that his car was driven home for him. When is this unfair treatment going to stop. What about the young man or woman who is stopped for the first time. Is their job not as important as the Judge's?. Isd it O.K. to ruin their life, but NOT the Judge. It is scandal that his case is being handled in this way.
By rob
Jul 31, 2008 1:28 PM | Link to this
It is not the good ole' boy network in this case. It is not that the officer was not trained at the APD acadamy. It is not the status quo that; 50% of the cases concerning form 1205 are not turned in at other agencies.
State law requires the form to be turned in. Period. This is learned behavior from the officers peers. It is accepted at the Atlanta police Department that court time and subpeonas are optional. It comes down to laziness.
When recruits leave the APD training facility as fully sworn officers, they are WELL aware that court and subpeonas are MANDITORY. When they get to their zones they are taught the opposite and fall into line. PERIOD.
The officer should be suspended for 10 days or fired.
By rob
Jul 31, 2008 1:28 PM | Link to this
It is not the good ole' boy network in this case. It is not that the officer was not trained at the APD acadamy. It is not the status quo that; 50% of the cases concerning form 1205 are not turned in at other agencies.
State law requires the form to be turned in. Period. This is learned behavior from the officers peers. It is accepted at the Atlanta police Department that court time and subpeonas are optional. It comes down to laziness.
When recruits leave the APD training facility as fully sworn officers, they are WELL aware that court and subpeonas are MANDITORY. When they get to their zones they are taught the opposite and fall into line. PERIOD.
The officer should be suspended for 10 days or fired.
By rob
Jul 31, 2008 1:28 PM | Link to this
It is not the good ole' boy network in this case. It is not that the officer was not trained at the APD acadamy. It is not the status quo that; 50% of the cases concerning form 1205 are not turned in at other agencies.
State law requires the form to be turned in. Period. This is learned behavior from the officers peers. It is accepted at the Atlanta police Department that court time and subpeonas are optional. It comes down to laziness.
When recruits leave the APD training facility as fully sworn officers, they are WELL aware that court and subpeonas are MANDITORY. When they get to their zones they are taught the opposite and fall into line. PERIOD.
The officer should be suspended for 10 days or fired.
By rob
Jul 31, 2008 1:28 PM | Link to this
It is not the good ole' boy network in this case. It is not that the officer was not trained at the APD acadamy. It is not the status quo that; 50% of the cases concerning form 1205 are not turned in at other agencies.
State law requires the form to be turned in. Period. This is learned behavior from the officers peers. It is accepted at the Atlanta police Department that court time and subpeonas are optional. It comes down to laziness.
When recruits leave the APD training facility as fully sworn officers, they are WELL aware that court and subpeonas are MANDITORY. When they get to their zones they are taught the opposite and fall into line. PERIOD.
The officer should be suspended for 10 days or fired.
By rob
Jul 31, 2008 1:28 PM | Link to this
It is not the good ole' boy network in this case. It is not that the officer was not trained at the APD acadamy. It is not the status quo that; 50% of the cases concerning form 1205 are not turned in at other agencies.
State law requires the form to be turned in. Period. This is learned behavior from the officers peers. It is accepted at the Atlanta police Department that court time and subpeonas are optional. It comes down to laziness.
When recruits leave the APD training facility as fully sworn officers, they are WELL aware that court and subpeonas are MANDITORY. When they get to their zones they are taught the opposite and fall into line. PERIOD.
The officer should be suspended for 10 days or fired.
By rob
Jul 31, 2008 1:28 PM | Link to this
It is not the good ole' boy network in this case. It is not that the officer was not trained at the APD acadamy. It is not the status quo that; 50% of the cases concerning form 1205 are not turned in at other agencies.
State law requires the form to be turned in. Period. This is learned behavior from the officers peers. It is accepted at the Atlanta police Department that court time and subpeonas are optional. It comes down to laziness.
When recruits leave the APD training facility as fully sworn officers, they are WELL aware that court and subpeonas are MANDITORY. When they get to their zones they are taught the opposite and fall into line. PERIOD.
The officer should be suspended for 10 days or fired.
By rob
Jul 31, 2008 1:26 PM | Link to this
It is not the good ole' boy network in this case. It is not that the officer was not trained at the APD acadamy. It is not the status quo that; 50% of the cases concerning form 1205 are not turned in at other agencies.
State law requires the form to be turned in. Period. This is learned behavior from the officers peers. It is accepted at the Atlanta police Department that court time and subpeonas are optional. It comes down to laziness.
When recruits leave the APD training facility as fully sworn officers, they are WELL aware that court and subpeonas are MANDITORY. When they get to their zones they are taught the opposite and fall into line. PERIOD.
The officer should be suspended for 10 days or fired.
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