Record sentence for driving offence?

In the US a jury awarded a man some US$22 million as reparation following his arrest for suspected drink driving. The payout was made as the man was mistakenly kept in solitary confinement after the arrest and was then kept for two years behind bars. The man was arrested in New Mexico and charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, aggravated driving while under the influence of alcohol, driving with a suspended licence, possession of an open container of alcohol in a vehicle and improper use of registrati
October 9, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
In the US a jury awarded a man some US$22 million as reparation following his arrest for suspected drink driving. The payout was made as the man was mistakenly kept in solitary confinement after the arrest and was then kept for two years behind bars. The man was arrested in New Mexico and charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, aggravated driving while under the influence of alcohol, driving with a suspended licence, possession of an open container of alcohol in a vehicle and improper use of registration. But the case was not resolved for two years, when he was finally discharged as being incompetent rather than dangerous. During his stay behind bars he was even refused dental treatment, resulting in him having to pull out his own tooth. The authorities responded to the award for damages by pointing out that the man’s arrest record is 26 pages long and appealed against the jury’s verdict.

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