DUI or driving under the influence is becoming a widespread problem in Las Vegas, Nevada, which is why a district committee has been tasked with solving issues that the judicial system is having trouble with. With that said, the Las Vegas anti-DUI committee itself has faced its own internal issue after it found out its director has DUI charges, which also festered as a result of the problematic delays for DUI cases.
Linsey LaMontagne is the committee director in question for the Clark County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC). On April 27, she was arrested after a caller reported a driver “swerving terribly” and driving off the road “approximately five times” while heading west from Downtown Las Vegas. During the testing and the arrest, she also told the state trooper that she had at least “two [shots] of Tito’s vodka while downtown [at a casino],” police report transcript courtesy of 8News.
Due to blood test delays, which took months, the Las Vegas Municipal Court didn’t schedule LaMontagne’s court appearance until August 26. Still, LaMontagne pleaded “not guilty” to charges of DUI and reckless driving, though the case is still pending for some reason, as her blood tests have not been released.
Despite the pending DUI case, LaMontagne remains employed at the CJCC, which seeks to provide “a voice for those impacted by the criminal justice system, to include at-risk communities, families, and victims”. LaMontagne’s department in the CJCC seeks to expedite DUI case delays and assist victims and the court with DUI hearings and tests.
In CJCC’s defense, LaMontagne’s role is administrative and not policymaking, hence why they’re not taking any employment actions and decisions for her just yet. It’s not clear what they plan to do in case LaMontagne is proven guilty of her DUI charges.
People Online Are Mocking LaMontagne’s Situation
While it’s not really clear what’s taking so long and why there are so many court and blood test delays in DUI cases in Las Vegas, people online have pointed out just how ironic and absurd the committee was. It appears the committee has been affected by the very problem it sought to fix, with LaMontagne at the forefront.
Hence, jokes about LaMontagne’s methods flew in, “Not sure if it’s ironic, or if he’s trying to use method acting to solve the problem,” says a Reddit user, while another quips, “If you can’t beat them, join them.” It appears that even some might be starting to believe that LaMontagne was on to something, because the coincidence is too poetic, “Sounds like field research.”
However, many were also raising their eyebrows at Las Vegas’ rather Kafkaesque bureaucracy when it comes to testing and scheduling hearings for DUI cases. “How many layers are there?” asks a Reddit commenter as to why the blood testing takes so long, and why it took four months for LaMontagne to get a hearing. Meanwhile, another person alludes to a possible case of corruption within the system, “Im surprised the evidence hasnt been mysteriously dropped.”
