Federal judge in Michigan gets caught driving SUPER DRUNK gets 19 months paid time off (Page 1 of 2)
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Posted: Yesterday 12:44:03 PM EDT
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Geeze https://www.woodtv.com/news/michigan/report-super-drunk-judge-to-take-another-year-of-paid-leave-for-counseling/ GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A Michigan judge who has been off the job for seven months will reportedly spend another year on paid leave while he undergoes counseling related to a drunken driving arrest. The Detroit News reports Thomas Ludington, a federal judge in Bay City, will undergo alcohol counseling and remain on paid leave for “one more year.” Ludington took a leave of absence from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in February while his case played out in court. He was arrested on Oct. 3 in Emmet County for drunken driving, but the case didn’t come to light until The Detroit News broke the story months later. The 72-year-old judge allegedly struck two traffic signs and crashed on a rural road near Petoskey. Michigan State Police troopers who responded to the scene found that he was “clearly intoxicated.” Bodycam video from the troopers showed Ludington sitting in the car even after officers arrived and told one trooper that he “wasn’t sure why (the airbags) deployed.” After getting out of the car, he appeared to have a hard time understanding or following police instructions. When asked how much he had to drink that night, he hesitated for a second before he said, “Uh, nothing tonight.” The trooper showed him the damage to the right side of his vehicle and told Ludington that someone had called dispatch and reported seeing him strike two signs about a mile before the crash. Ludington told the trooper that he had no memory of that. The trooper then tried to administer three sobriety tests that Ludington failed, the video shows. When he was asked to pick a number between 19 and 21, he answered “15.” It also took the trooper multiple attempts to get a reading on the preliminary breath test because Ludington couldn’t understand the instructions, the video shows. At that point, he was placed under arrest. “You are very clearly intoxicated. I’ve got the odor of alcohol coming from you even though you say that you haven’t had anything to drink today. You were involved in a motor vehicle accident and you’re unable to follow simple instructions or take any of the tests that I’m offering you here,” the trooper said. He eventually registered a .27 blood-alcohol level, well above Michigan’s legal level of .08 and above .17, the “super drunk” threshold that constitutes a separate range of penalties. Ludington took a plea deal in May, which dropped the “super drunk” charge in exchange for pleading no contest to a misdemeanor charge of operating while intoxicated. As a first-time offender, he was sentenced to six months of probation. Federal judges are given lifetime appointments. Ludington was appointed in 2006 by former President George W. Bush. He handles civil and criminal cases at the federal court in Bay City. In order for a federal judge to be impeached, Congress must pass a motion with a simple majority in the House of Representatives and a two-thirds majority in the Senate. |
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72 years old not only should he probably not be driving, he shouldn't be on the bench either.
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Originally Posted By Raccoonwhisperer: I thought you were being dramatic when you said "SUPER DRUNK", but after reading that, it's a legitimate legal definition! I remember back in the 90s and early 2000s they had those breathalyzer vending machines in bars so that people could ensure that they were under the limit before driving home. I’m pretty sure they took them out because people were using them to challenge each other on how drunk they could get. |
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Originally Posted By xerxes2695: .27 and not puking or passing out, that guy gets hammered every day. 
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What a fucking embarrassment, I bet not one of the elected federal officials in Michigan is calling for termination of his job either. Yes I know it takes a lot and a DUI by itself likely isn't going to rise to the level required. The Two-Step Impeachment ProcessTo remove a federal judge, Congress must use the official impeachment process. As most users on Quora agree, this is a very strict and rare procedure:The House of Representatives: The House must investigate the judge and pass "articles of impeachment" (formal charges of wrongdoing) by a simple majority vote.The Senate: The Senate holds a formal trial. To convict and officially remove the judge from office, a two-thirds majority vote of the Senators present is required. Valid Grounds for RemovalImpeachment is limited to severe criminal or ethical misconduct. Valid reasons include:BriberyTreasonPerjury (lying under oath)Serious fraud or corruption. |
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Originally Posted By byron2112: Fucking government protects government. I've been injured on the job before, up here after light duty runs out in a couplea months by law they send you home on disability... 60% pay..  |
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Originally Posted By Morgan321: I'm a little confused by the article.... is being "superdrunk" good or bad? I'll get superdrunk if it gets me a 19 month paid sabbatical where I have to go to a glorified AA meeting for an hour per day! Near GOAT |
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Originally Posted By JaredGrey: There is no justice to be expected. "It's a big club and you ain't in it" Just spitballing here but he has the age and time in service to retire but maybe not with full benefits. Dude was appointed in 2006, trying to get him to a full 20 years is my guess because he burned some leave somewhere. Not defending his actions but could be a sob story about a sick kid or wife and he crawled into a bottle to cope with it. |
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Originally Posted By Boognish: I remember back in the 90s and early 2000s they had those breathalyzer vending machines in bars so that people could ensure that they were under the limit before driving home. I’m pretty sure they took them out because people were using them to challenge each other on how drunk they could get. Can still buy one to use yourself. My brother uses one regularly. |
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Originally Posted By chupacabras: Blew a .27 and first time offense at age 72? That’s impressive. As the revenue of bars shrinks around the country due to Gen-Z drinking less than previous generations - unasked-for double pours are becoming the norm. There's at least 3-4 bars in Milwaukee my PI firm has found doing it now but the normal tendency is still for the system to blame the drinker. If you order a mixed drink - they serve and charge you for a double so they can increase their average order value and therefore their tips. 20 years ago this was (almost) never the case. The difference between 4-6 drinks and 4-6 double drinks over a couple hours for a typical man is easily a ~.1 vs a ~.27 due to the effect of how the body processes the same amount of alcohol per hour regardless of your BAC. The difference is that at a .1 you know you're drunk and so most normal people don't drive. At .27 for people who aren't chronic alcoholics you're zonked and don't even know you're on the road. Alcohol expectancy theory is the science behind the fact that if you believe you're drinking the singles based on past experience - you wouldn't actually realize you weren't until you were already blacked out. Not saying this is what happened with this judge - but a first time DUI at 72? I wouldn't be shocked. Michigan's drinking culture is pretty similar to Wisconsin's. |
| First time DUI is more lax here than that, and they hand the sentences out like candy. |
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Originally Posted By WantGrape: Geeze https://www.woodtv.com/news/michigan/report-super-drunk-judge-to-take-another-year-of-paid-leave-for-counseling/ GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A Michigan judge who has been off the job for seven months will reportedly spend another year on paid leave while he undergoes counseling related to a drunken driving arrest. The Detroit News reports Thomas Ludington, a federal judge in Bay City, will undergo alcohol counseling and remain on paid leave for “one more year.” Ludington took a leave of absence from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in February while his case played out in court. He was arrested on Oct. 3 in Emmet County for drunken driving, but the case didn’t come to light until The Detroit News broke the story months later. The 72-year-old judge allegedly struck two traffic signs and crashed on a rural road near Petoskey. Michigan State Police troopers who responded to the scene found that he was “clearly intoxicated.” Bodycam video from the troopers showed Ludington sitting in the car even after officers arrived and told one trooper that he “wasn’t sure why (the airbags) deployed.” After getting out of the car, he appeared to have a hard time understanding or following police instructions. When asked how much he had to drink that night, he hesitated for a second before he said, “Uh, nothing tonight.” The trooper showed him the damage to the right side of his vehicle and told Ludington that someone had called dispatch and reported seeing him strike two signs about a mile before the crash. Ludington told the trooper that he had no memory of that. The trooper then tried to administer three sobriety tests that Ludington failed, the video shows. When he was asked to pick a number between 19 and 21, he answered “15.” It also took the trooper multiple attempts to get a reading on the preliminary breath test because Ludington couldn’t understand the instructions, the video shows. At that point, he was placed under arrest. “You are very clearly intoxicated. I’ve got the odor of alcohol coming from you even though you say that you haven’t had anything to drink today. You were involved in a motor vehicle accident and you’re unable to follow simple instructions or take any of the tests that I’m offering you here,” the trooper said. He eventually registered a .27 blood-alcohol level, well above Michigan’s legal level of .08 and above .17, the “super drunk” threshold that constitutes a separate range of penalties. Ludington took a plea deal in May, which dropped the “super drunk” charge in exchange for pleading no contest to a misdemeanor charge of operating while intoxicated. As a first-time offender, he was sentenced to six months of probation. Federal judges are given lifetime appointments. Ludington was appointed in 2006 by former President George W. Bush. He handles civil and criminal cases at the federal court in Bay City. In order for a federal judge to be impeached, Congress must pass a motion with a simple majority in the House of Representatives and a two-thirds majority in the Senate. He blew a .27. Impressive. |
z - Deplorable Neanderthal Garbage per liberal media.
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Originally Posted By WantGrape: Geeze https://www.woodtv.com/news/michigan/report-super-drunk-judge-to-take-another-year-of-paid-leave-for-counseling/ GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A Michigan judge who has been off the job for seven months will reportedly spend another year on paid leave while he undergoes counseling related to a drunken driving arrest. The Detroit News reports Thomas Ludington, a federal judge in Bay City, will undergo alcohol counseling and remain on paid leave for “one more year.” Ludington took a leave of absence from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in February while his case played out in court. He was arrested on Oct. 3 in Emmet County for drunken driving, but the case didn’t come to light until The Detroit News broke the story months later. The 72-year-old judge allegedly struck two traffic signs and crashed on a rural road near Petoskey. Michigan State Police troopers who responded to the scene found that he was “clearly intoxicated.” Bodycam video from the troopers showed Ludington sitting in the car even after officers arrived and told one trooper that he “wasn’t sure why (the airbags) deployed.” After getting out of the car, he appeared to have a hard time understanding or following police instructions. When asked how much he had to drink that night, he hesitated for a second before he said, “Uh, nothing tonight.” The trooper showed him the damage to the right side of his vehicle and told Ludington that someone had called dispatch and reported seeing him strike two signs about a mile before the crash. Ludington told the trooper that he had no memory of that. The trooper then tried to administer three sobriety tests that Ludington failed, the video shows. When he was asked to pick a number between 19 and 21, he answered “15.” It also took the trooper multiple attempts to get a reading on the preliminary breath test because Ludington couldn’t understand the instructions, the video shows. At that point, he was placed under arrest. “You are very clearly intoxicated. I’ve got the odor of alcohol coming from you even though you say that you haven’t had anything to drink today. You were involved in a motor vehicle accident and you’re unable to follow simple instructions or take any of the tests that I’m offering you here,” the trooper said. He eventually registered a .27 blood-alcohol level, well above Michigan’s legal level of .08 and above .17, the “super drunk” threshold that constitutes a separate range of penalties. Ludington took a plea deal in May, which dropped the “super drunk” charge in exchange for pleading no contest to a misdemeanor charge of operating while intoxicated. As a first-time offender, he was sentenced to six months of probation. Federal judges are given lifetime appointments. Ludington was appointed in 2006 by former President George W. Bush. He handles civil and criminal cases at the federal court in Bay City. In order for a federal judge to be impeached, Congress must pass a motion with a simple majority in the House of Representatives and a two-thirds majority in the Senate. He blew a .27. Impressive. |
z - Deplorable Neanderthal Garbage per liberal media.
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That was in 1981. Owned a used car dealership.
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Originally Posted By xerxes2695: .27 and not puking or passing out, that guy gets hammered every day. He's been practicing a lot. |
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Originally Posted By 2tired2run: 72 years old not only should he probably not be driving, he shouldn't be on the bench either. I don't think we should limit peoples ability to get a DL based on age, but at some point there needs to be annual performance based qualification (probably 65). Driving at .27 should be a lifetime revocation, no appeals, with harsh consequences for driving while lifetime revoked. If you injure anyone at that BAC it should be charged as attempted murder. |