Illinois DUI attorney Terry Ekl told Chicago Sun-Times reporters that the alleged wobbly driving of his client, former hockey star Chris Chelios, was caused by multiple knee surgeries, and not alcohol. Mr. Ekl showed a 15-minute police video in a hearing that prompted DuPage county Judge Cary Pierce to rule that police lacked probable cause for the Dec. 28 arrest.
In all likeliness, according to the article in the words of the defense attorney, "The case is over."
Mr. Chelios refused to take a breathalyzer test; so the prosecution based its DUI charge on the alleged weaving and results of a field sobriety test. In the videotape, the Sun-times reports, 48-year-old Chelios could be seen swaying as he walked and once put his foot down during the balancing test.
But Mr. Ekl insisted that this his client's apparent lack of coordination was the result of the 10 knee operations that Mr. Chelios had undergone during his long career as a professional hockey player. Mr. Chelios was a star defenseman for the Chicago Blackhawks from 1990 to 1999 and currently plays for the Chicago Wolves, an American Hockey League team.
During the sobriety tests, Mr. Chelios reportedly asked the officer if he could leave his truck and walk to his parents' house just one block from his truck. The officer refused his request, then Mr. Chelios declined a breathalyzer test; which led him to be promptly arrested and taken into custody by police.
But now Mr. Chelios will not have to surrender his driver's license (routine for refusing a breath test) in light of Judge Pierce's ruling that police lacked probable cause, the article reports.
Related Resources:
- DUI - Arrest (FindLaw)
- Probable Cause (LawBrain)
- Directory of Chicago DUI Lawyers (FindLaw)
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