Two men riding horse, mule arrested for DWI

[cali]

by SHELTON GREEN / KVUE News

kvue.com

Posted on January 11, 2011 at 10:22 PM

Updated today at 10:45 AM

Two men were arrested for driving while intoxicated on 6th Street Friday night. One was riding a horse, while the other was riding a mule.

Austin police say the ment were both intoxicated. They were apparently trying to lure people out of bars and into the street to take pictures with them and their farm animals.

Bartender Brian Matthews thought he'd seen everything, that is until he walked outside to have a cigarette Friday night.

"There were these two guys on horses, or mules, or something, outside of Shakespeare's," he said. "(It) looked like they were being pulled over for a DUI."

<snip>

http://www.kvue.com/news/Two-men-riding-horse-mule-arrested-for-DWI-113324824.html

[Ilsa]

1. Are mules and horses lethal weapons under the direction of inebriated riders?

I could see a horse being dangerous if out of control. Maybe the police thought the mule was the one that kicked Sarah Palin in the head.

[Boudica the Lyoness]

5. No they are not lethal weapons

If a person was to fall asleep at the reins, the horse would plod home. It happened a lot when we used horses and wagons. My great grandfather was busted for being drunk in his cart, and the horse was on his way home. That was in Wales around the 1870's.

[Lance_Boyle]

10. bad generalization - some horses and some mules could very well be

lethal to their riders or others if spooked or otherwise pissed off. Even by virtue of slipping and falling and landing on someone, a perfectly-trained horse or mule could be lethal.

[Motown_Johnny]

7. It doesn't matter, most laws say "vehicle". A riding lawn mower counts

even bicycles


being a danger to yourself is included in these laws

[cynatnite]

2. This is not an unusual thing where I grew up. n/t

[Renew Deal]

3. Do laws specify the "vehicle?"

I've heard of BWI's (Bicycling While Intoxicated) and Boating While Intoxicated. But I never heard of Riding Animals While Intoxicated.

[reggie the dog]

18. bicycling???

it is illegal to smoke weed and mountain bike ride???? do they stop people on bicycles for that shit in the states???

[Renew Deal]

19. I personally know of someone that got drunk, rode his bike into some bushes

and got a BWI. Generally weed falls under the same criteria.

[Xithras]

21. Yes, biking while intoxicated is illegal.

In California, the law says that operating a bicycle on a public roadway while under the influence of alcohol is an arrestable offense, and the same mandatory testing laws apply.

The difference is in the penalty. In CA, you're looking at a $250 fine per offense (about $500 after the fees and taxes are paid).

[reggie the dog]

24. do they do road blocks and stop bicycles

and give us piss tests for cannabis? i had no idea i was breaking a dui law by smoking weed then going mountain bike riding. i have been riding bicycles stoned since i was 14 and have never had a problem. do you lose car driving rights for having smoked weed before riding a bicycle?

[reggie the dog]

25. i just checked in Illinois

in illinois all human powered vehicles such as bicycles are EXEMPT from DUI laws, so i can still smoke my weed and go mountain biking in my home state of illinois

[Withywindle]

4. But....

...the horse and the mule were sober, right?

[Motown_Johnny]

9. I would assume we are waiting for the blood test results

:sarcasm:



Yes, the OP title was phrased inaccurately

[somone]

6. No jury in Austin would convict them for DWI

It will be public intoxication, as hinted in the article.

[Sabriel]

8. Maybe Garrison Keillor will use this on PHC

Lefty could get pulled over.

[demodonkey]

11. In many states, an equine being ridden or driven on road is legally a non-motorized vehicle...

...so if they were riding drunk, this charge is actually not surprising. It is rather unusual though.

[goforit]

12. Hilarious.

[ChoppinBroccoli]

13. In Most States, The Law Says You Must Be "Operating" A "Motor Vehicle"

Depending on which State this was in, and how that State's law is written, these guys would likely have a good defense. That's assuming they were, in fact, charged with DUI. That's not so clear to me, since the final sentence quotes the bartender as saying, "(It) LOOKED LIKE they were being pulled over for a DUI." (emphasis mine)

[somone]

14. Texas law says

http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/docs/PE/htm/PE.49.htm

Sec. 49.04. DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED. (a) A person commits an offense if the person is intoxicated while operating a motor vehicle in a public place.

(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c) and Section 49.09, an offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor, with a minimum term of confinement of 72 hours.

(c) If it is shown on the trial of an offense under this section that at the time of the offense the person operating the motor vehicle had an open container of alcohol in the person's immediate possession, the offense is a Class B misdemeanor, with a minimum term of confinement of six days.

http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/docs/PE/htm/PE.32.htm

Sec. 32.34.
(2) "Motor vehicle" means a device in, on, or by which a person or property is or may be transported or drawn on a highway, except a device used exclusively on stationary rails or tracks.

[dixiegrrrrl]

15. They Arrest people here for walking while drunk.

Down here, "public intoxication" is a no-no, you actually get arrested and thrown in jail, have to bail out, then pay fine.
riding lawnmowers on the road while drunk is a popular past-time.

[marmar]

16. How do you ask for license and registration in such a case?

nt

[ProgressiveProfessor]

17. In MD you can get convicted for DUI even if it was on private property and it is any means of

conveyance, even a donkey. Judge read the law to a defendant who was asserting he was on private property when cited and the judge said it even applied to horses and donkeys.

[Broderick]

20. Mental note

Skip the beer while riding the mower in the back yard....

[Ezlivin]

22. They should've been riding Clydesdales

[muriel_volestrangler]

23. Man was fined £150 under 1872 law in England, in 2009

A man has been convicted under a 137-year-old law of riding a horse while drunk. Godfrey Blacklin, 31, admitted a charge under the 1872 Licensing Act of being drunk in charge of a carriage horse, cattle or steam engine.

Police spotted Blacklin, of Byker in Newcastle, riding bareback on a road in the city and stopped him.

Newcastle magistrates' court was told officers found Blacklin slurring his words and he was unsteady on his feet on 29 October last year. For the prosecution, David Thompson said: "It is not a charge you see every day. The concerns were that he was in control of a large animal where there were other road users. There are no definite parameters for this offence but it is clear that he was drunk."

Mark Humble, for the defence, said: "It is a very unusual case nowadays. He accepts he had been drunk on the afternoon in question. He knew the horse needed exercise so he rode it."

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/man-fined-for-riding-horse-drunk-1521681.html