Ex Florida Gator Carlos Dunlap pleads guilty to DUI
Dunlap pleads guilty to DUI charge in exchange for probation
By Lise Fisher
Staff writer (Gainesville Sun)
Published: Friday, January 29, 2010 at 11:17 a.m.
Last Modified: Friday, January 29, 2010 at 11:17 a.m.
Former Florida defensive end Carlos Dunlap entered a guilty plea Friday following a December arrest for driving under the influence.
Dunlap, 20, received the minimum mandatory sentence for a first-time DUI offense with six months probation and a six-month driver’s license suspension, said Spencer Mann with the State Attorney’s Office. He also must complete 50 hours of community service, participate in a victim’s impact panel and pay about $1,000 in fines and court costs.
Dunlap refused to submit to the breathalyzer test. Had Dunlap taken the test, he would have been subject to Florida’s zero tolerance DUI administrative law because he was under 21 at the time of the offense. That means that had Dunlap taken a breath test and registered a .02 BAC or higher, he would have had his license suspended.
However, this administrative law creates some confusion as to what the criminal law is for drivers under 21. The zero tolerance law applies only to driver’s license suspension. If a driver under the age of 21 like Dunlap fights the criminal charge of DUI, the prosecutor must prove either that the driver’s normal faculties were impaired by alcohol or drugs, or that the driver’s BAC exceeds .08 at the time of driving.
Hypothetically, had Dunlap had taken the test and registered a .02 BAC his license would be suspended under the zero tolerance law. However, the same piece of evidence would create a presumption in criminal court that Dunlap was not DUI at the time he was driving.
