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  • From: Carrie McLaren <carrie AT stayfreemagazine.org>
  • To: monkeywire AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [monkeywire] Judge says gorilla suit doesn't alter DUI test
  • Date: Tue, 21 May 2002 20:48:12 -0500

Chicago Daily Herald
May 18, 2002, Saturday F1,F2,DuPage,M1

Judge says gorilla suit doesn't alter DUI test

by Charles Keeshan



A McHenry County judge had no tolerance for a Chicago man charged with driving drunk while dressed as a gorilla.
Judge Thomas Baker refused to throw out the evidence against Sean M. Collins, who argued in court Friday it was his ape costume, not intoxication, that caused him to fail a series of sobriety tests during an October 2000 traffic stop.
Collins, 26, was arrested for driving under the influence and speeding in the early morning hours of Oct. 20, 2000, after a McHenry County Sheriff's Deputy clocked him driving 76 mph through a 45 mph zone near Wonder Lake. At the time, Collins said in court Friday, he was driving from a nearby Halloween party still in full gorilla get-up, minus the mask. Arresting officer Deputy Robert Chamberlain testified he suspected Collins was intoxicated almost immediately from the strong odor of alcohol on his breath and his bloodshot, glassy eyes. A series of tests, including walking a straight line and standing on one foot, confirmed the suspicion, the deputy said.
Chamberlain testified Collins performed and failed those tests while wearing the gorilla costume, including what his attorney described as "large, furry feet," even though he was offered a chance to remove it.
"He said to me he wouldn't take them off," said Chamberlain, who admitted having some experience dressing in a gorilla outfit. "They did not impede the bottom of his shoes or the way he walked."
Collins blew a .180 - more than twice the legal limit of .08 - in a Breathalyzer test later that morning, according to court records.
But Collins' attorney, William Gracik, argued Friday that there should have never been a Breathalyzer because the arrest was illegal. Testing a man in a gorilla suit, he said, is far out of line with police standards.
"If he deviated from those standards, the tests are inherently not valid," Gracik added. "Clearly, in the officer's own testimony, the footwear can affect the (test) results."
Assistant McHenry County State's Attorney Adrian Gosch said wearing a gorilla suit is not a valid excuse for failing sobriety tests, including the one Collins failed that had nothing to do with walking or standing.

"Even the defendant testified that the gorilla feet didn't affect his performance on all these tests," he said.

Baker sided with the prosecution, saying Chamberlain had more than enough reason to pull over Collins and arrest him for driving under the influence.




  • [monkeywire] Judge says gorilla suit doesn't alter DUI test, Carrie McLaren, 05/21/2002

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