Bizarre, Criminal law

Pennsylvania Man Arrested For DUI Wearing “Drunk Lives Matter”

Elwood R Gutshall III, 44, has a curious choice of clothing as someone with prior DUI convictions on this record.  His fashion sense was on full display in Pennsylvania for this mugshot two days after St. Patrick’s Day.  If the tee shirt was not disturbing enough, his BAC reading was.
Police stopped Gutshall in his Ford pick up truck  for various traffic violations while he was wearing his “Drunk Lives Matter” t-shirt.

A blood alcohol test revealed Gutshall’s BAC to be at .217.  That is approaching three times the legal limit.

In addition to his prior DUIs, he has a guilty plea in 2009 to assault.  

23 thoughts on “Pennsylvania Man Arrested For DUI Wearing “Drunk Lives Matter””

  1. So it’s ok if he self identifies as a Drunk. Just as long as he doesn’t do it while driving.
    I would have loved to have seen the cop’s face when he stood up from the car seat with that t-shirt. 😜

  2. He has the right to wear whatever he wants. I still find it offensive. Someone in my family died 2 weeks before his 18th birthday from a drunk driver. He never got to have any great adventures, or a family, or a life as an adult. He was a golden child that everyone loved, made friends as easily as converting oxygen to CO2.

    Drunk lives don’t matter. A drunk driver makes the ultimate selfish decision, and is essentially an unguided missile out there with all of us. There’s a faulty guidance system, so who knows. Is he going to make it home tonight? Is he going to take out a tree or a family or you?

    Alcoholics are addicts, and their drug of choice and addiction circumvents their decision center. They are incapable of making a responsible decision. They may suffer intense guilt and shame afterwards, but they are helpless to make a good decision at the time. For instance, why don’t they just call a cab or an Uber? Why is it so vitally important that they get good and schnockered and then drive themselves? But, again, you can’t reason with the irrational decisions of an addict. They can’t help but make horrible choices.

    All alcoholics who know they drink and drive should put an ignition breathalyzer on their cars. They know they can’t be trusted, so they owe it to all of us to take steps.

    1. Karen – I knew an alcoholic who never went out to get drunk, he only went to the bar to get a drink. He would just end up closing the bar.

    2. I’m sorry for your loss. IMHO, second offense for a DUI is confiscation of the vehicle plus 60 days in jail + 1 year of probation which includes being sober 100% of the time. 3rd offense, confiscation of the vehicle, 1 year in jail and proof you can live close enough to walk to work before you get out of jail and an ankle bracelet that alarms if you are within 100 feet of an establishment that sells alcohol to be worn for the rest of your life. If the first offense has not shown you what you can get away with as far as drinking and driving, nothing will.

      Sound harsh? perhaps. I think allowing people to be out on 2nd, 3rd, and 10th offenses to eventually maim and kill is harsh.

    3. Karen, you hit the nail on the head. “They are incapable of making a responsible decision”, …” but they are helpless to make a good decision at the time.” …..”irrational decisions of an addict.”…..”they can’t help but make horrible choices.”

  3. Paul, it’s an invasive procedure that has only gained popularity in the last few years. The breathalyzer results are accurate enough to be submitted as evidence. What the blood test provides that the breathalyzer does not is a greater demonstration of power.

  4. When this man (and I do mean when) injures another driver on the road because he’s drunk, he will face much more dire financial and criminal prosecution. Unfortunately, it will take harm to another before this happens.

    When it’s clear an individual has a substance abuse problem that endangers other people on the road, there needs to be more severe or robust programs to keep it from happening, even if it is as simple as more jail time. But state legislatures do not take this route. I wonder why? Financial reasons, perhaps?

  5. Notice that a breathalyzer was not enough for the arresting officers. His blood was taken too.

    1. James Nepomuceno – blood tests are always more accurate but usually given later so you have to figure the time the blood was drawn against when they were arrested and was the BAC going up or down.

    1. He needs to write, DRUNK LIVES MATTER, one hundred times, on his application.

  8. Elwood’s Blues

    Yah can’t teach stupid, but you sure as hell can arrest it.

    1. Darren – why do I have the feeling that the police were running a drunk trap by the bar where the suspect was arrested?

  10. I wonder if he’s laundered the t-shirt in the two days since St. Patrick’s Day……or just one long booze fest?

  13. Awesome. A person who stands up for what he believes. Erin go bragh borracho!

    1. bam bam – unless you are up around 0,3, you are nothing. This guy is a Little Leaguer. Extra points for wearing the t-shirt while DUI though.

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