Photo from website of U.S. District Court (W.D. Mi.).

On February 25, 2008, I wrote:

Wicomico County, Maryland, State’s Attorney Davis Ruark said of his arrest from last Friday, which involved an alleged 015 blood alcohol content reading:  “I am human … We are all human and we are subject to make mistakes and when you make a mistake you learn from it and you don’t do it again. And this will never happen again.” While Mr. Ruark remains in office, I hope he practices as his above quote preaches, and urge all other prosecutors, police, and judges to do the same.

On May 12, 2008, Davis Ruark pled guilty to driving under the influence and received a guilty verdict  rather than the probation before judgment disposition that Maryland defendants often seek when convicted for the first time for driving under the influence. (See a courtroom eyewitness’s account here.) He received a one-year probation period and no executed jail time.

Although some law and order folks might argue that Mr. Ruark’s misdemeanor conviction in this case makes him unfit to continue in office, I hope that his experience in this case will make him more empathetic to the plight of criminal defendants.

Jon Katz