Bill White's 17 year old daughter arrested for DWI

[Mr. Brightside]

Where's the responsible parenting?

http://www.click2houston.com/news/9606921/detail.html




Mayor's Daughter, 17, Arrested On Suspicion of DWI


HOUSTON -- Houston Mayor Bill White's teenage daughter was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, officials told KPRC Local 2 Tuesday.

Elena Wells White, 17, was arrested in the 9800 block of Memorial Drive at about 11 p.m. Monday, according to Frank Michel, a spokesman for the mayor.

A Harris County deputy constable arrested White about a mile from her home, Michel said.
Click here to find out more!

Officials said White's Toyota Prius was pulled over because her headlights were not on.

"The car was being operated on a public street without any lights on and was not staying in a single lane of traffic," said Assistant Chief Leroy Michna with Harris County Constables Precinct 5.

She failed a field sobriety test and refused a Breathalyzer test, deputies said. They described her as cooperative.

White was released from jail at about 10 a.m. after posting $500 bond.

"If there's a problem violating the law, we don't dodge it in our family. We own up to it. But, if there was a mistake by the officer, then we'll have to look at that," Bill White said.

"I've learned a lot and I'm really glad to see my parents," Elena said as she walked out of jail.

"We're proud of our daughter," Bill White said. "We love her. She's a great kid. She violated family rule. You pay the consequences. It's good that there was impartial justice."

The mayor elaborated on the incident at a later, unrelated news conference.

"My daughter believes that she was not intoxicated and was not dangerous and wouldn't be impaired in her condition to drive," he said. "We'll be reviewing tapes and what the evidence is about that.

"I think there was a mistake, based on what she's told me," Bill White said. "And she's always shot straight with me."

Rusty Hardin, a high-profile Houston attorney representing Elena White, said he is confident the teen will be absolved.

"I'm comfortable, when everything is known, that we're going to find that she was not intoxicated," Hardin said. "I also hope everybody reserves judgment until they hear all the evidence."

Bill White said she was driving his hybrid gasoline-electric car, on which the lights do not turn on automatically.

"She's not a party animal," White said. "You can tell by her grades, you can tell what she does when she's not in school."

Elena White was working full time until last Friday as a volunteer math teacher in a summer program for seventh graders. Bill White said Tuesday she was about to start a training program for running nonprofits.

"We're a family that believes if somebody does something, they ought to take responsibility for their actions," White said. "Based on what I have heard, I think it may have been a mistake."

"If everybody treats her fairly and doesn't think she's going to get special treatment they'll find out this is not quite as it first appeared," Hardin said.

Elena is scheduled for a court appearance on Aug. 8.

A first-offense DWI is classified as a misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine. The offender's license can also be revoked for up to one year.

[macalu]

how can they charge her with a DWI if she didn't take a breathalyzer? i know she failed the field sobriety test but that could just be from fatigue.

[Smokey]

The officer smelled alcohol on her breath.

[macalu]

The officer smelled alcohol on her breath.
maybe she had some nyquil. :p

[Vengeance]

how can they charge her with a DWI if she didn't take a breathalyzer? i know she failed the field sobriety test but that could just be from fatigue.

I'm pretty sure if you refuse a breathalyzer, you are charged with DWI.

[Rocket Fan]

Bill White's office works very hard to help improve this city and run it in a responsible way.

If she's found guilty, she should get the same punishment as everyone else (no less or more of a punishment). I don't see him as the type that would expect his daughter to get special treatment.

[thadeus]

Her dad's wealthy. She'll get a slap on the wrist.

[Rocket Fan]

thadeus.. isn't is pretty common for a first time dwi person to get a slap on the wrist?

[A-Train]

Is she hot?

[Rocket Fan]

My point was... it seems like quite a few people get fairly light penalties for first DWI so if she did... it wouldn't necessarily just be because of who she is.....

Then again, most people you hear about are famous and all... I don't know exactly what the average penalty is. anyone know?

[jlaw718]

how can they charge her with a DWI if she didn't take a breathalyzer? i know she failed the field sobriety test but that could just be from fatigue.

Good question. Here's the deal on this: There are three ways you can be intoxicated in Texas (as in most states):

(1) Loss of the normal use of your mental faculties;
(2) Loss of the normal use of your physical faculties;
(3) Breath or blood alcohol above .08.

If the only way to prove DWI was by a breath test, then wouldn't it stand to reason that everyone would simply refuse to take the test? Sure, of course it would. Then a person would only be facing a license suspension. So, as you can imagine, the law makes provisions for this.

That's when an officer looks at other factors, such as the Field Sobriety Tests, whether their speech was slurred, bloodshot eyes, somewhat incoherant, etc....

Now, of course, by analyzing each one of these in a vacuum we could easily explain them away.

For instance, maybe I didn't do well on the walk-and-turn because I recently sprained your ankle playing ball. And maybe my speech is slurred because that's just the way I talk. And maybe I have bloodshot eyes because I didn't sleep much the night before. And maybe I'm not really incoherant, I'm just nervous being on the side of the street with cars whizzing by and the cop-car lights flashing.

At the end of the day, an officer isn't going to force my mouth on the Intoxylizer and make me blow. But, depending on the totality of the circumstances I may very well be looking at a DWI charge.

[jlaw718]

My point was... it seems like quite a few people get fairly light penalties for first DWI so if she did... it wouldn't necessarily just be because of who she is.....

Then again, most people you hear about are famous and all... I don't know exactly what the average penalty is. anyone know?

I guess it depends on one's definition of "light".

A first-offense DWI is a Class B punishable by up to 180 days county jail. Now here's the deal: Unless a person has prior convictions of some sort (and only felony convictions make someone ineligible for probation from a jury) is a jury EVER going to max a person? Umm, probably not.

Remember, DWI is an interesting crime. Think about the juries...there is typically a "...there but for the Grace of God go I" mentality with DWI's. Many of us have been in that situation and just never got caught.

As opposed to a rapist or drug dealer, where my experience with juries is they have the attitude that "We can *judge* that guy because we'd NEVER do something like THAT", etc....

You get the point.

So, that being said, typically a first-timer will be put on a year probation or maybe serve the minimum 3 days in the county jail (for first-offense DWI's) and pay a fine.

The kicker is what DPS does now: Upon conviction, they hit you with a "surcharge" of $1,000 per year for THREE straight years. And if a person doesn't pay it they're unable to renew their driver's license.

[Mr. Clutch]

Where's the responsible parenting?



Where are the pics?

[arkoe]

Who cares.

[Harrisment]

eh, who cares. Kids drink, it happens. Doesn't make him any less of a mayor.

[Faos]

"Hey, did you hear about Mayor White's kid getting picked up for DUI?"

http://www.thefirsttwins.com/images/4m-both-2.jpg

[glad_ken]

She's got one of the best defense lawyers in Houston. Rusty Hardin is known for winning high profile cases, but I am sure it won't be cheap. Probably looking at $15-20,000 for his services.

[yaoluv]

So, kind of tangential to this....

if you get pulled over and you are slightly tipsy....

what is the best course to take to avoid getting screwed..

should you refuse the breathalizer even if you think you might be borderline .08?

should you say you had just a couple?

should you refuse the field sobriety test?

[WhoMikeJames]

Is she hot?

Beat me to it.

[Mr. Clutch]

So, kind of tangential to this....

if you get pulled over and you are slightly tipsy....

what is the best course to take to avoid getting screwed..

should you refuse the breathalizer even if you think you might be borderline .08?

should you say you had just a couple?

should you refuse the field sobriety test?

I heard you should refuse the breathalizer. Also, I just stick to drinking beer now, it's harder to get drunk off just beer.

[Austin70]

I saw the thread title and I was thinking, "He drinks on stage all the time on the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, what's the big deal". Then I remembered that it's Ron White. Carry on.

[datsmrcb2u]

I've been told --- havent had to emply it yet --- that these are the steps to follow if you are being pulled over for a DUI:

1) Turn the AC on high and point the vents towards the rear of the car. This will push any smell of alcohol that was by the driver towards the back.

2) Only crack the window to talk to the poilce officer. (I think this would piss him off, but oh well.) This way, he can't smell the alcohol on your breath or in the car.

3) When he asks you to take a breathalyzer test, DO NOT refuse. Instead, concede to the test but inform the officer you will only take the test with your attorney and physician present.

4) You'll probably have to go to a holding cell until your attorney and physician arrive... which they won't. No doctor or lawyer is going to get up in the middle of the night to oversee a breathalyzer test. This way, you have the rest of the night to sober up, and when you feel that you will pass the test, inform the officer that you have decided to take the test anyways, regardless of whether or not your attorney and physician are present.

OK guys, I'm going to need a few of you to test this out tonight and report back here before the weekend whether or not it works. :D

[Rocket G]

I've been told --- havent had to emply it yet --- that these are the steps to follow if you are being pulled over for a DUI:

1) Turn the AC on high and point the vents towards the rear of the car. This will push any smell of alcohol that was by the driver towards the back.

2) Only crack the window to talk to the poilce officer. (I think this would piss him off, but oh well.) This way, he can't smell the alcohol on your breath or in the car.

3) When he asks you to take a breathalyzer test, DO NOT refuse. Instead, concede to the test but inform the officer you will only take the test with your attorney and physician present.

4) You'll probably have to go to a holding cell until your attorney and physician arrive... which they won't. No doctor or lawyer is going to get up in the middle of the night to oversee a breathalyzer test. This way, you have the rest of the night to sober up, and when you feel that you will pass the test, inform the officer that you have decided to take the test anyways, regardless of whether or not your attorney and physician are present.

OK guys, I'm going to need a few of you to test this out tonight and report back here before the weekend whether or not it works. :D

Dude. Whoever is telling you this stuff is an idiot.

1.) Air recirculates. It doesn't matter which way you push the vents. The only alcohol that is hard to detect is vodka because it is essentially odorless. Even if the cop DOES NOT smell alcohol, there are about 50 other things he can cite as a reason to ask you to perform a sobriety test.

2.) "Cracking" the window WILL piss off the cop & actually TRAP MORE alcohol laden air in the car. Christ. If anything - roll down ALL the windows if you're drunk and keep them down.

3.) Yeah - DO refuse the breathalyzer but understand that you don't have the right to demand your doc & lawyer show up before you take it, and then just sit around biding time until you're sober and you can. If you refuse it in the field & at the station when THEY ask you to, that's it. License suspended. :rolleyes: You think the cops will just sit around watching you in the tank until you, in all your wisdom, suddenly decide you want to blow into the tube?

4.) DO NOT TAKE THE FIELD SOBRIETY TEST! NO! STOP! DO NOT! Sit in your car, tell the cop you ate something bad and do not feel well. Tell them that you ate some seafood, oysters, whatever, that its making your stomach turn and you feel woozy and feel faint.

This will ALL be recorded on the video.

5.) DO NOT ADMIT TO HAVING ANY DRINKS! NOT EVEN ONE!

The thing is that you are going to spend a night in jail no matter what. When a cop gets the suspicion that he has a DWI on his hands, he smells overtime $$$ for himself. You're going to the klink. At this point it's all about reducing the evidence they have against you, so that any decent DWI attorney can have something to work with.

If you do the above, all they have on you is the officer's word that he "smelled alcohol." This doesn't count for **** in a courtroom. Especially if having done the above, you leave them with no confirmed breathalyzer score, no video of you stumbling around outside the car, no admission that you drank anything, and an explanation possibly (food poisoning - wooziness, etc) for the impaired driving.

Again, you WILL spend a night in jail, and a few thousand on attorney fees, but chances are pretty damn good you wont get hit with a DWI conviction.

This could all just be avoided if you don't drink & drive, though.

[DanzelKun]

Dude. Whoever is telling you this stuff is an idiot.


This does still leave you with a suspended liscence though right?
Just without the DWI on your record, which would be far worse than a suspended liscence I guess...

Not that I ever drink and drive nor do I plan to start...! :D

[pgabriel]

eh, who cares. Kids drink, it happens. Doesn't make him any less of a mayor.


are you kidding? I'm not gonna jump on a high horse because I know I have driven home when I shouldn't have more than a few times, but people die in dui accidents all the time.


when I was graduating from h.s., the number one student in the class behind killed a family after driving home and not even having had that many drinks. pretty much ruined his life before it got started.

you may feel it shouldn't have been reported just because its the mayor's daughter, but it is big deal.

[rocketsinsider]

RocketG since you seem to know soo much about the subject, what if your under 21?

[SWTsig]

I'm pretty sure if you refuse a breathalyzer, you are charged with DWI.

no, you're charged with a DUI. refusing a breathalyzer is an automatic 90 day license suspension (i think) on top of an automatic trip to the drunk tank.

from what i know, you cant recieve a DWI if you never blow.

[macalu]

Dude. Whoever is telling you this stuff is an idiot.


so what makes you the expert in this kind of situation? i'm not implying dats or you is right or wrong. i just want to know if your suggestions have been field tested.

[macalu]

RocketG since you seem to know soo much about the subject, what if your under 21?
then, you're even more ****ed.

[SWTsig]

So, kind of tangential to this....

if you get pulled over and you are slightly tipsy....

what is the best course to take to avoid getting screwed..

should you refuse the breathalizer even if you think you might be borderline .08?

should you say you had just a couple?

should you refuse the field sobriety test?

if you feel you may be above a .08 - ALWAYS REFUSE. accept the 90 day suspension and the night in jail.

this advice came from the mouth of a DPS officer.

[rocketsinsider]

if you feel you may be above a .08 - ALWAYS REFUSE. accept the 90 day suspension and the night in jail.

this advice came from the mouth of a DPS officer.

any advise for those under 21 :p

[ima_drummer2k]

from what i know, you cant recieve a DWI if you never blow.
[obvious one liner]Well, if you're a woman, you have a better chance of not receiving a DWI if you do blow... [/obvious one liner]

[Mr. Brightside]

any advise for those under 21 :p


yea, get out the car and run like hell.

[rocketsinsider]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4088107.html

White calling the arrest a "mistake"

and theres a pic of the girl btw

[glad_ken]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4088107.html

White calling the arrest a "mistake"

and theres a pic of the girl btw


This is what you call tainting the jury pool. Get the public to feel sympathetic before the trial, "she's a good kid, tutors kids, its a mistake, etc..."

[Uprising]

Is she hot?

The only thing I was wondering too.

EDIT:
Nope...she's not. http://images.chron.com/photos/2006/08/01/3029651/311xInlineGallery.jpg

[Saint Louis]

The only thing I was wondering too.

EDIT:
Nope...she's not. http://images.chron.com/photos/2006/08/01/3029651/311xInlineGallery.jpg

I'll withhold judgement until I see her from the neck down. A paper bag can cure a damaged grill.

[A-Train]

You can tell that's a really bad picture...

[Stack24]

At least she didn't use that "MY DADDY IS BILL WHITE EXCUSE" and actually handled herself well...

[rrj_gamz]

You can tell that's a really bad picture...

Yeah, but even in good light, she's fugly...snap, that wasn't very nice...

I'd hit it... :p

[SwoLy-D]

At least she didn't use that "MY DADDY IS BILL WHITE EXCUSE" and actually handled herself well...TWO THUMBS WAY UP for Ms. White for that. Kudos, Bill, you raised a good daughter, you said she'd pay. Cool.

[Rocket G]

Just to answer a couple of questions - I am licensed to practice law in Texas. And yes, my advice has been "field tested." No evidence = no conviction. Most juries don't want to convict people for having a couple of drinks - everyone does it - but if you're a raging drunk stumbling all over the place on the video & they show that you blew a .2, wtf do you think they'll do?

If you blow even Rusty Hardin won't save you. If you stumble all over on a video, even Rusty will have to come up with some ridiculous explanation as to why.

I would give you the same advice if you were under 21.

You WILL spend a night in jail. You WILL lose your license for a while (though there's a lot your attorney can do to ameliorate this, as well). Take these last two statements to the bank. If a cop even remotely suspects you have been drinking (impairment is a VERY subjective thing to the HPD) you're done for.

Again, you're just trying to reduce the amount of evidence they have against you. Don't help them bury you!

Most people give in because they get scared, but think about it - wtf are they going to do to you if you refuse? NOTHING. Again, you go to jail anyway.

And ya know what? The cops don't care. Wanna know why? Either way, you go to jail so your off the street, and more importantly, they know they'll be getting paid overtime to deal with you & come testify against you.

HPD officers BANK on DWI arrests.

Again though, if you don't drink and drive none of this is even necessary.

Take a cab people.

[Supermac34]

A drunk driver murdered my cousin.

One if my wife's best friends in high school was murdered by a drunk driver.

A guy in my church was paralyzed by a drunk driver when he was playing in his yard as a kid.

Don't drive drunk.

[DonnyMost]

Big freaking deal..

Slow news day.. next please..

[Invisible Fan]

In Texas, do they give you blood tests at the station if you refuse a breathalyzer? Just burp into the damn thing and they're forced to haul you off...

[bejezuz]

Just to answer a couple of questions - I am licensed to practice law in Texas. And yes, my advice has been "field tested." No evidence = no conviction. Most juries don't want to convict people for having a couple of drinks - everyone does it - but if you're a raging drunk stumbling all over the place on the video & they show that you blew a .2, wtf do you think they'll do?

If you blow even Rusty Hardin won't save you. If you stumble all over on a video, even Rusty will have to come up with some ridiculous explanation as to why.

I would give you the same advice if you were under 21.

You WILL spend a night in jail. You WILL lose your license for a while (though there's a lot your attorney can do to ameliorate this, as well). Take these last two statements to the bank. If a cop even remotely suspects you have been drinking (impairment is a VERY subjective thing to the HPD) you're done for.

Again, you're just trying to reduce the amount of evidence they have against you. Don't help them bury you!

Most people give in because they get scared, but think about it - wtf are they going to do to you if you refuse? NOTHING. Again, you go to jail anyway.

And ya know what? The cops don't care. Wanna know why? Either way, you go to jail so your off the street, and more importantly, they know they'll be getting paid overtime to deal with you & come testify against you.

HPD officers BANK on DWI arrests.

Again though, if you don't drink and drive none of this is even necessary.

Take a cab people.

I had dinner with an assistant DA that told me the same thing tonight. Getting your license suspended is WAY better than dealing with a DUI. And even if you beat the breathalizer, you're still going to jail.