Olympia Dwi Attorneys

Clallam County judge denies change of venue in vehicular homicide

PORT ANGELES — Amber Steim will face trial on charges of vehicular homicide and witness tampering in Clallam County, a judge ruled Thursday.

Judge Ken Williams denied a motion for a change of venue during a hearing in Clallam County Superior Court and reset her trial date, originally set for Sept. 12, to Dec. 5.

Steim, 24, of Port Angeles is charged with vehicular homicide while driving under the influence of alcohol and witness tampering.

Charges

She is accused of killing Ellen J. DeBondt, a 44-year-old nurse who lived in Crescent Beach, in March while driving with a blood-alcohol level three times over the legal limit on state Highway 112 near Joyce.

Steim and her passenger, Nicole Boucher, had minor injuries.

Port Angeles defense attorneys Ralph Anderson and William Payne had cited the standing-room-only crowds at Steim’s various court hearings and extensive coverage in the local press in their motion requesting that Steim’s trial be moved to another county.

Williams on Thursday also delayed ruling on a motion to sever the witness tampering charge from the vehicular homicide case.

Steim is accused of contacting Boucher to fabricate an excuse involving alcohol.

She is free on a $100,000 bond.

Prosecutors allege that Steim had a blood-alcohol level of 0.239 percent when the pickup truck she was driving crossed the centerline and struck DeBondt’s pickup.

The legal limit in Washington is 0.08 percent.

If Steim is convicted of vehicular homicide, she faces a sentence of between 31 and 41 months in prison and a $50,000 fine.

The Class A felony carries a sentence of up to life in prison, but since Steim has a low-offender score, the sentence limit is 41 months, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney John Troberg has said.

________

Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com .



Reporter Rob Ollikainen also contributed to this report.

(Sorry if my comment tried to double post).

Anyway, seeing you are allowing comments (I suppose until they get ugly) I'll say minimally keep her off the road after her sentence is fulfilled.

I'll add, however, a thank you to PDN; it would be a good idea to let the community vent a bit. Also a thank you judge for keeping it to home; what happens in Clallam County should stay in Clallam County.

Maryland Trial Lawyer › About Olympia Dwi Law and Lawyer

Driving while Impaired is a condition which deprives an individual of his ability to drive safely, causing harm both to other drivers and him. Every state has enacted its own driving laws for the safety of the people. These laws have been enacted to drive home the point that any amount of negligence in driving will result in far reaching consequences.

DWI Lawyer Criminal defense lawyer helps in dealing a driving while intoxicated offense on behalf of the defendant. To err is human, even at those times in order to get away with the severity of the consequences of drunken driving laws it is important that an expert is appointed to deal with the legalities of the case. Not only will he educate the offender about the seriousness of the case, he will also inculcate hope in the mind of the defendant. With regard to the modus operandi of the case and the loopholes in the law a DWI expert is the right person to move the case in the right direction and in favor of the defendant.

DWI in Olympia Olympia is known for its punitive approaches in dealing with drunken driving. Where a person is found to be impaired of his ability to drive due to alcohol he is convicted under driving while intoxicated offense. The penalties range from mandatory penalties, fines, suspension or revocation of license, installation of ignition interlock device and substance abuse evaluation.

Olympia DWI Lawyer A DWI expert lawyer alone can help you in avoiding some of the serious consequences arising out of intoxicated driving conviction. The conviction involves both civil and criminal consequences. While you are expected to go through criminal procedures for drunken driving, you should also deal with a civil case against DMV for revocation of license provided you have applied for a hearing within 30 days from the date of arrest. It is certainly important that an expert deals with the case, in order to avoid any kind of extreme and irreparable consequence.

Criminal justice abstracts

Olympia, Wash., 1980. 105 p. An assessment of the implementation and effect of Washington State's new driving while intoxicated (DWI) law, SHB 665, ...

The Prosecutor, journal of the National District Attorneys Association

The authors suggest that the proper use of mobile videotape in a DWI case ... New York; Prosecuting Attorney Bernardean Broadous, Olympia, Washington; ...

Lawyer's Register International by Specialties and Fields of Law, Including a Directory of Corporate Counsel

NE 98506, (206) 786-8787 CRIMINAL TAX LAW ARIZONA - Phoenix Michael D Klmerer See listing under Criminal Law CUSTOMS LAW NEW YORK - New York David Serko ...

Bibliographic Guide to Business and Economics 1988

Liability insurance cases

For the point labelled (3) above, the court cited Olympia and Hilker, ... Aycock had been convicted of a moving traffic violation ("DWI") within three years ...