A now former high-ranking Mexican official will have to pay fines, do community service and undergo random alcohol and drug testing after pleading no contest to driving drunk in Roswell.
Dashcam video obtained by Channel 2 Action News shows the mid-December traffic stop on Georgia 400 after police said Ricardo Camara-Sanchez, the one-time Consul General of the Mexican Consulate in Atlanta, was weaving in and out of his lane and failed to pull over for officers.
“Normally, you would be going to jail right now, but since your consular status, I cannot physically arrest you,” an officer can be heard telling Camara-Sanchez. “You’re getting charged with failure to maintain lane, charged with DUI less safe, and charged with failure to yield to an emergency vehicle.”
Records obtained by Channel 2’s Mike Petchenik show Camara-Sanchez reached an agreement with the Roswell City solicitor that ended with him pleading “nolo” or “no contest” to the DUI charge, while the other charges were dropped. The document said Camara-Sanchez must pay a $988.50 fine, complete 40 hours of community service, refrain from alcohol and drugs, and undergo random drug and alcohol screenings. He’ll also be on probation for 12 months.
“The sentence he was given is a standard and typical first offense DUI, given to any individual who had similar evidence brought against them,” said veteran DUI lawyer, Douglas Rohan, who isn’t associated with the case.
Rohan said the “no contest” plea is atypical for DUI cases, however.
“He’s accepting the fact that there’s sufficient evidence likely to prove him guilty beyond reasonable doubt, either before a judge in a bench trial or in front of a jury,” Rohan said. “The reality is that’s very rare for that to be done in A DUI Case.”
Rohan said for all intents and purposes, a no contest plea and a plea of guilty are essentially the same in the eyes of the law, and carry with it a suspension of driver’s license.
A spokesman for the Mexican Embassy said a new consul general was installed last month. Francisco Javier Diaz de Leon is now in that position.
Dashcam video obtained by Channel 2 Action News shows the mid-December traffic stop on Georgia 400 after police said Ricardo Camara-Sanchez, the one-time Consul General of the Mexican Consulate in Atlanta, was weaving in and out of his lane and failed to pull over for officers.
“Normally, you would be going to jail right now, but since your consular status, I cannot physically arrest you,” an officer can be heard telling Camara-Sanchez. “You’re getting charged with failure to maintain lane, charged with DUI less safe, and charged with failure to yield to an emergency vehicle.”
Records obtained by Channel 2’s Mike Petchenik show Camara-Sanchez reached an agreement with the Roswell City solicitor that ended with him pleading “nolo” or “no contest” to the DUI charge, while the other charges were dropped. The document said Camara-Sanchez must pay a $988.50 fine, complete 40 hours of community service, refrain from alcohol and drugs, and undergo random drug and alcohol screenings. He’ll also be on probation for 12 months.
“The sentence he was given is a standard and typical first offense DUI, given to any individual who had similar evidence brought against them,” said veteran DUI lawyer, Douglas Rohan, who isn’t associated with the case.
Rohan said the “no contest” plea is atypical for DUI cases, however.
“He’s accepting the fact that there’s sufficient evidence likely to prove him guilty beyond reasonable doubt, either before a judge in a bench trial or in front of a jury,” Rohan said. “The reality is that’s very rare for that to be done in A DUI Case.”
Rohan said for all intents and purposes, a no contest plea and a plea of guilty are essentially the same in the eyes of the law, and carry with it a suspension of driver’s license.
A spokesman for the Mexican Embassy said a new consul general was installed last month. Francisco Javier Diaz de Leon is now in that position.
Cox Media Group
