Aldon Smith arrested for DUI

[MHSL82]

Many of them think that the laws that apply to the rest of us don't apply to them. Smith was one of the last of the 49ers I thought would do something this childish and stupid.

You know this was Aldon, not Alex, right? Because according to Sando's blog, this was something that they were concerned of (immaturity, big stage of the NFL).

Could be that he was up late and thought he slept it off. I am sure that back in the day I drove to work over the limit on some of my hungover days.

Is this even possible? I know you can be influenced the day after, but over 0.08 (or whatever it is in your state)?

You guys know that Harbaugh has a DUI on his record (I'm assuming Jim, not John - wikipedia so it's not reliable per se). I wonder if this helps him have a teaching moment with Aldon, if he hasn't already had one.

 

[Stokes1931]

Maybe he is auditioning to join the Raiders.

 

[9er4life]

C'mon man!!!!!!

 

[xJuicex]

Shit just got real.

 

[RobertPhD01]

Glad he was able to avoid running anyone over!!

 

[h0ckeysk83r]

This wouldnt have happened if we were playing this sunday...

 

[Crimsoncrew]

As said, DUI is no laughing matter, but assuming it doesn't become a pattern, this single blip should serve as more of a wake-up call than anything else. Smith seems like a pretty responsible, high-character kid. If he can take this opportunity and learn from it, he'll be that much better for it. For a first infraction I wouldn't think there would be any league suspension. Probably just a fine.

 

[tallglassofwater007]

I wonder what his BA level was and if this could impact voting for DROY...

I was thinking the same thing. Sometimes a guy has 2 beers and can get a DUI. Not that it makes it any better, but there is a difference from being drunk and blowing too high on the breathalyzer.

 

[my2cents]

Many of them think that the laws that apply to the rest of us don't apply to them. Smith was one of the last of the 49ers I thought would do something this childish and stupid.

That's not entirely accurate. DUIs are the one type of crime that people will ususally commit out of stupidity or absentmindedness, typically because of the effects that alcohol has on their ability to reason. I have represented a lot of DUI clients and the vast majority of them never even realized they were too drunk to drive until after they were arrested. It really is one of those offenses that people commit with verry little criminal intent.

 

[spacedoodoopistol]

Thank you my2cents. While its been pretty tame here, its usually crazy to see how vicious people tend to be toward drunk drivers these days....people have been whipped into a frenzy by the MADD crowd and there is just no counterpoint to balance the conversation.....nobody exactly standing up for drunk drivers rights outside of a few lawyers. People act like they're nuclear warheads steaming up and down the freeway, rather than barely more dangerous than your average tired/stupid/distracted driver until you're quite a bit above the limit.

If there were 1/10 the hostility toward tired drivers as there is "drunk" (a subjective term, of course) ones, it would be rational.....but its not, its movement built on PR and massive guilt trips and misunderstood statistics.

 

[MHSL82]

Thank you my2cents. While its been pretty tame here, its usually crazy to see how vicious people tend to be toward drunk drivers these days....people have been whipped into a frenzy by the MADD crowd and there is just no counterpoint to balance the conversation.....nobody exactly standing up for drunk drivers rights outside of a few lawyers. People act like they're nuclear warheads steaming up and down the freeway, rather than barely more dangerous than your average tired/stupid/distracted driver until you're quite a bit above the limit.

If there were 1/10 the hostility toward tired drivers as there is "drunk" (a subjective term, of course) ones, it would be rational.....but its not, its movement built on PR and massive guilt trips and misunderstood statistics.

I understand your sentiments but don't necessarily agree. I don't disagree per se either.

I think people (in mass) have to have something to drive their anger. They have to have something that makes them superior, whether that be morally superior, intellectually superior, etc. So as far as people becoming viscious for reasons of that nature, I agree that people go overboard just to have something to (over)state.

Having said that, my best friend's sister was killed by a drunk driver. Not everyone who goes vicious on people admit that or want to talk about it. They just get mad when they see anyone make the same mistake as the demon that killed their friend. I'm not saying they're demons, but that's what they look like to most members of the victim's family. It appears they are getting mad for no reason. They may take as much vitriol against someone who is barely over as those who are greatly over.

I wouldn't quite put tiredness/distractedness in the same arena of drunkeness. I understand that both cause unfortunate results. Both can be prevented. Getting tired is a natural thing in which people absolutely should realize and acknowledge when they are over that limit. However, getting drunk is a choice. There are levels of drunkeness and that surely could mitigate whether that was a choice. I am limiting my vitriol to people who go to a bar in a car with no one to drive them home. They have the responsibility of limiting their alcohol. Saying they are too drunk to know they've had too much does not shift the blame to anyone else, unless the bartender can clearly see he is flooded. To me it doesn't mitigate their blame.

Some people say that the offense is lesser if there was no one hurt, but the decision to get there is the same. They are lucky they didn't hit anybody, not a shade more responsible than someone else who did hit somebody under the same insobriety level. If they learn, it's no harm, no foul. But these things are hard to prevent. Everybody here is addicted to something and everyone here could get more support in some way in their lives.

So I'm not going to go on a diatribe against them. I'm just not going to go out of my way to defend them. If there are legitimate reasons for defense, it's likely I support or am neutral to it, but otherwise, I won't defend someone just to defend them, as cursing them just to curse isn't right either.

 

[spacedoodoopistol]

Man I could type for hours on this....but I'll leave it. Suffice it to say this is probably one of the few laws on the books where the guidelines and penalties are pretty much written by the grieving families of victims, who in the wake of a great loss are often left looking for both a cause and someone to blame. Results in supercharged emotional arguments that are tough to combat without offending, and a lobby of pure victims that is very difficult to reason with.

 

[MW49ers5]

I was thinking the same thing. Sometimes a guy has 2 beers and can get a DUI. Not that it makes it any better, but there is a difference from being drunk and blowing too high on the breathalyzer.

Nailed It!

 

[Ray_Dogg]

BRows updated the article:
49ers Blog and Q&A: Smith was swerving before his DUI arrest
He blew a .194 and .176

 

[bvanthielriceyoung]

Is this even possible? I know you can be influenced the day after, but over 0.08 (or whatever it is in your state)?.

Yes, Its a lot more common then people think. People underestimate how long it takes to get alcohol out of your system. If you go at it pretty hard one night, it is highly likely that by 9 or 10 in the morning that they would still be over the limit.

 

[Ray_Dogg]

Yeah kind of like when I was 18 and blew .3 and change and they kept me for 8 hours. No way would I have been good to drive in the morning haha.

 

[sayheykid1]

You know this was Aldon, not Alex, right? Because according to Sando's blog, this was something that they were concerned of (immaturity, big stage of the NFL).



Is this even possible? I know you can be influenced the day after, but over 0.08 (or whatever it is in your state)?

You guys know that Harbaugh has a DUI on his record (I'm assuming Jim, not John - wikipedia so it's not reliable per se). I wonder if this helps him have a teaching moment with Aldon, if he hasn't already had one.

For sure, I know someone who was over .1 after 10 am after they stopped drinking prior to 1 am.

 

[guitarmy21b]

Had it been Kyle Williams, the charges would've been dropped.

 

[MHSL82]

For sure, I know someone who was over .1 after 10 am after they stopped drinking prior to 1 am.

Thanks, everyone for the education.

 

[clyde_carbon]

Man I could type for hours on this....but I'll leave it. Suffice it to say this is probably one of the few laws on the books where the guidelines and penalties are pretty much written by the grieving families of victims, who in the wake of a great loss are often left looking for both a cause and someone to blame. Results in supercharged emotional arguments that are tough to combat without offending, and a lobby of pure victims that is very difficult to reason with.

Agreed. The notion that blowing .08 = drunk driving is absolutely ridiculous. A guy who blows .08 isn't anymore dangerous than a college student who's been awake for 16 straight hours studying for a test, or an old lady that can barely see and doesn't know how to use her signals.

Drunk drivers in general have been so villianized that people don't even pay attention to context or what's behind it.