Part I – To Force Her Honor’s Hand… Tom Keith has just retired after almost completing his fifth term as the DA for Forsyth County, North Carolina. Keith will be remembered by some as a great man. Others claim he is too biased to serve as DA. And the few who don’t know this man will have one last chance to gather an opinion of him… because he isn’t ready to leave the spotlight just yet.
Just before his retirement, Keith stirred up a huge fight with Judge Laurie Hutchins, challenging her ruling on a speeding case. The defendant in the case was caught going 122 miles per hour in a 65 mile per hour zone. He had no prior criminal record, and the judge found him guilty of going 79 in a 65 mile per hour zone… a reduced violation. This is not uncommon even at very high speeds if the driver has a perfect record. At a minimum, one would expect that this outcome saved the defendant a license suspension under NC’s insane 15 MPH+ suspension rule.
Keith was furious, and has since filed a motion to overturn the ruling with the Superior Court. One hundred, twenty-two miles per hour! Triple digits are fast on any highway, but the judge heard the case and is standing by her decision. Maybe she thought this guy deserved a break. Maybe her gut told her something that we aren‘t aware of. Maybe the skill of the defense attorney paid off. But it was in her courtroom, and she ruled as she believed was right, refusing to back down to Keith. In part II, more details will emerge about the showdown over whether judges should have the discretion to give people a break on speeding charges.
To be continued…
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