New York DWI Lawyer Blog
We recently reported on the passage of “Leandra’s Law”, by which any motorist charged with a New York DWI with a child in the car under the age of 15 will be facing felony charges, even on a first offense. This past Saturday, Paul Amay, a 24 year old Mahopac resident, was arrested on a New York drunk driving charge with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .29, almost 4 times the legal limit of 0.08. Mr. Amay’s 5 year old son was in the back seat, not restrained in a car seat.
Initially, Mr. Amay was charged with Misdemeanor DWI and child endangerment. However, the Westchester District Attorney’s Office is considering raising the Misdemeanor DWI to a Felony DWI pursuant to the new law. Mr. Amay is incarcerated in the Westchester County jail on $50,000 bail, and is due back in Ossining Village Court on December 1, 2009. If Mr. Amay’s DWI charge is raised to a felony DWI, the case will automatically be transferred to the County Court as Village Courts do not have jurisdiction in felony cases.