A Tampa Bay resident who has reportedly been a binge drinker for more than 30 years has somehow survived long enough to tally his ninth DUI conviction, according to an incredible report from the Tampa Bay Times.
And a Florida judge who had little sympathy for a man with a clear disease has sentenced him to 10 years in prison for his latest brush with the law, in which the man was caught driving drunk despite the fact that his license had been permanently revoke.
According to sources, 48-year-old James Vernon Smith pleaded with Judge Kimberly Fernandez for mercy before she announced his sentence.
Wearing an orange jumpsuit and clad in shackles around his wrists and ankles, Smith asked the judge not to throw him in jail, and claimed, “I’m more than just a drunk. I’m a son, I’m a brother, I’m a father and there’s still good left in me.”
Despite this plea, Judge Fernandez said the man’s conduct “simply demonstrates a flagrant disregard for the law,” which led to her decision to levy a 10-year jail sentence and five years or probation.
After he is released from jail, Smith will also receive psychiatric and alcohol evaluations, although his DUI lawyer argued that Smith should receive more treatment immediately, rather than jail time.
In the words of Smith’s attorney, the “reality is that he will go sit in a prison cell for the next eight years and he won’t receive the help he needs.”
The attorney also observed that a mental health counselor employed by the state said that Smith suffers from several mental disorders which went undiagnosed until last week but have had a significant impact on Smith’s behavior.
In fact, the mental health counselor also observed that Smith’s mental illnesses likely contributed to his binge drinking, and that the man needs serious psychiatric help in order to remedy his problems.
While the judge listened respectfully to the lawyer’s arguments, she was ultimately swayed by the extreme disregard for DUI laws displayed by Smith, and decided that a more severe punishment was warranted.
In addition to his time in jail, Smith will also be required to perform up to 100 hours of community service and he will have to give speeches to younger people about the dangers of driving while intoxicated.
Sources say that Smith lives in Louisiana and works an underwater welder. He also has two daughters who live in Florida.
