Three of four charges against Taurasi dismissed

WNBA superstar Diana Taurasi is off to Russia to play for Spartak Moscow after a spectacular basketball season marred by an extreme DUI charge resulting in a two-game suspension. The league and Finals MVP had three additional charges filed against her, two of which were related to drunk-driving.

The charges stem from a July 2 incident when the Phoenix Mercury guard/forward was pulled over by cops and transported to a Phoenix Police Mobile DUI van where a sample of her blood was obtained. According to a police report, she had a blood-alcohol level of 0.17, more than twice the state legal limit of 0.08 percent. In Arizona, a blood-alcohol level of 0.150 or more means a driver can be charged with an extreme-DUI. If convicted, she would have faced a minimum of 10 days in jail.

The Phoenix Municipal Court granted postponements three times, the last date announced as October 30. However, her lawyer was working on her case in court on Friday, October 9, the same day as game five of the WNBA Finals.

On October 12, the court dismissed the extreme-DUI, one lesser DUI charge and a speeding complaint. She pled guilty to a “DUI impaired to the slightest degree” charge. Penalties include:

• Minimum of 10 consecutive days in jail. The court may suspend 9 of the 10 days if defendant agrees to get an alcohol and/or drug evaluation, and submit to treatment.
• Fines.
• Driver’s license suspension for 90 days.
• Mandatory counseling.
• Possibility of probation.

Court database screenshot:

Source: http://apps.supremecourt.az.gov/publicaccess/caselookup.aspx

Related Stories:

• Diana Taurasi’s statement on suspension

• Bad news for Diana Taurasi, Mercury star faces extreme-DUI charge