By Stephanie Boulos
FRESNO, CA – A man here in Fresno County Superior Court last week admitted he wasn’t supposed to drive because he didn’t have a license after a driving-under-the-influence conviction, but did so to help his father following a medical procedure.
But, Judge Heather Jones said she didn’t care why Christopher Thomas drove.
According to Deputy District Attorney Christopher Moss, the defendant failed to refrain from driving without a valid license after a prior felony conviction for driving under the influence.
DDA Moss said the violation of probation would be dismissed with an admission, and that probation would be additionally revoked but then reinstated under the same conditions.
This defendant already had served around 213 days, and would have to serve the remaining 45 days of probation, according to Judge Jones.
The public defender said that, although the DDA appeared to be graciously dismissing the misdemeanor, the reason why the defendant was driving when he wasn’t supposed to was to aid his father.
According to the police report, the defendant said he was driving to take his father home from a medical procedure that impaired his ability to drive.
The defendant has a stable job, working at a flooring company for several years, and previously was not driving at all—this one instance was just an exception, said the PD, asking that the defendant be able to serve his remaining time on a county work program.
Judge Jones responded by saying, “He knows he shouldn’t have be driving at all with a felony DUI,” and did not grant the PD’s request.
Due to some audio issues, the remainder of the hearing, including sentencing, was not clear or known.
