3-28-14 four fdl county owi trials-four not guilty verdicts

Local law enforcement is reacting to the outcomes of four jury trials in the past couple of weeks for drunken driving.  In all four cases the jury returned not guilty verdicts.  In one of the cases there was a hung jury on one count.  Fond du lac County Sheriff’s Captain Rick Olig says it does seem unusual that juries would return not guilty verdicts in four consecutive owi cases brought to trial.  "I'm not aware of that happening before I'm not saying that it never has but it does seem like a pretty high number,"  Olig told WFDL news.  "It would be nice to poll the juries to see what their concerns were."  Olig says part of the reason may be that a smart defense lawyer will raise issues during the trial that  has to create a reasonable doubt in only one juror’s mind.  "Right, all they have to do is create some doubt in one jurors mind and its done.  Its either a hung jury or its not guilty,"  Olig said.   Olig says it seems that law enforcement is also facing an uphill battle

in a state with an alcohol culture and the weakest owi laws on the books.  "It also could be a juror that maybe doesn't believe there should be any enforcement of owi."