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Chris Pine Charged With Drink Driving

Must be nice to be so rich you don't have to worry about breaking the law. Or, breaking the law in another country.
"Hey Cris, what are you doing tomorrow?"
"Oh, flying out to NZ for court. Probably grab lunch before coming back afterwards."

I don't think that's what's really happening in this case. He was staying in the country to film a movie already, so he's subject to the laws of the land that he's in, whatever they may be. There's nothing in the report that says or suggested that he left New Zealand after committing the crime.
 
Must be nice to be so rich you don't have to worry about breaking the law. Or, breaking the law in another country.
"Hey Cris, what are you doing tomorrow?"
"Oh, flying out to NZ for court. Probably grab lunch before coming back afterwards."

I don't think that's what's really happening in this case. He was staying in the country to film a movie already, so he's subject to the laws of the land that he's in, whatever they may be. There's nothing in the report that says or suggested that he left New Zealand after committing the crime.
He's supposed to appear in court on Monday, so I imagine he'll be sticking around.
article said:
"A 33-year old American national was stopped during a routine drink-drive operation near Methven, Mid-Canterbury, early on Saturday morning, March 1.

"He has been charged with driving with excess blood alcohol and will appear in the Ashburton District Court on Monday 17 March.
Ashburton is the next town over, about 20 miles away.
 
I believe with the NZ accent in full bloom, it's Deenk Deeving.

And correct, drunk driving is not some minor offense in any manner. Find a sober friend.
 
I'm really surprised this kind of story gets any attention. I do not condone driving drunk - at all - and I certainly have never done it, myself. But this is so minor an infraction, compared to all of the crazy shit celebs of his calibur are making the news for - and getting away with - all of the time.
Ask the friends and families of the approximately 10,000 people killed each year in the US as a direct result of impaired drivers if DUIs are no big deal.

Someone with the cash and fame like Pine acting this reckless should be ashamed of themselves and deserve every bit of bad press they get. No excuse at all for his actions, especially when he can afford to be chauffeured around.
 
While I do not condone DUI, it is easy enough to do without feeling drunk. That said, I have a few questions.

What is the BAC limit in NZ?
Were the police aware that there was a party in that establishment?
Were they lying in wait for possible offenders (something that happens here frequently)?
What is the alcohol content of the beer he was drinking?

I'm not trying to make a case either way, but it's possible that the beer or whatever it was he drank was higher in alcohol content than he was used to, and he may not have felt the effects immediately. The person in the interview said that Pine did not look or act drunk. It's unfortunate, and he should not have been driving, but people make mistakes. This could have been a bad one, and I'm glad it wasn't any worse than it was.
 
Driving while intoxicated is a serious offence and should be treated as such. However (and I don't know the laws in New Zealand, but I'm familiar with US and Canadian laws on the subject), the fact is the bulk of serious accidents (with or without fatalities) are the result of a minority of drivers under the influence. There is no reason why those with lower BAC readings (that are over the limit) should get off more lightly than at present but there should be differences in degree with respect to different BAC levels. A person with .08 is NOT as impaired as one who is .10, .12, etc. (and there are clearly demonstrable differences in effect between the just over the limit and higher levels). If there are different degrees of punishment for various types of homicides (as there should be), there should also be different degrees of punishment for various BAC levels (if there is an injury or fatality involved, that should be treated additively and separately). The current laws, frankly, are a lot like "zero tolerance policies" in areas like school policies or like "mandatory sentencing"--bad ideas and unethical. Again, I am not advocating reducing current punishments for those just over the limit (lest someone think I want to get my alcoholic uncle off lightly for past transgressions or something like that). But I do think those who are well above the limit deserve even more severe punishment.
 
Yea, agreed with the last couple posts, certainly Drinking and Driving is dangerous and bad and should carry penalties. And certainly anyone who makes as much money as a Summer Tent Pole Blockbuster Lead, should be avoiding it altogether and hiring a driver if he's gonna have even a sip in 5 hours+

However, before we sign him up for classes and judge him harshly in the Public Square, it would be helpful to know his BAC. If it's on the low end, it could be an innocent mistake, if quite a bit over, then yea, it points at more than an innocent mistake.
 
The report just says over the legal limit of .08 percent. Good judgement goes down as the level goes up, so the mistake must be determined to have been made prior to the drink.
 
Dammit, Chris, don't do that shit! There's no excuse for it!
He should pay a hefty fine.
 
Fines should be based on a percentage of income or something. For an average NZ citizen that $4500 fine is 10% of their annual income whereas for Pine that's probably considerably less.
 
While I'm not for a minute condoing drink driving, I do think there's a difference between being slightly over the legal limit, and being complete incapacitated but getting behind the wheel anyway.

The latter behaviour IS reckless and stupid. No argument from me there.

The former... well, it ain't great, but it's a shady area. By all accounts Chris was not visibly drunk, nor did he actually drive recklessly while he was behind the wheel, so chances are possible he was in sound mind even though obviously he was mildly intoxicated. He got pulled up, he happened to read over the legal limit, and he got punished accordingly.

Like I say, there's a truckload of difference between what happened with Chris, and Justin Beiber's kind of "antics" behind the wheel of his car, which IMO truely ARE reprehensible.

Of course, in an IDEAL world, nobody should ever get behind the wheel after drinking alcohol.
 
He should pay a hefty fine.
I'd expect that much, at the very least. Here's what Wikipedia has to match what we know of the details in Pine's case:
All persons over 0.08% BAC / 400μg/L breath (first and second offenses) - up to 3 months imprisonment and/or up to NZ$4500 fine; loss of licence for six months or more.

Good. I've got this thing about drunk driving. It's totally preventable, but people do it anyway, and it frustrates me to no end because they put their lives, and the lives of others in danger for no reason whatsoever.
 
'Star Trek' Actor Chris Pine Pleads Guilty to DUI

Hollywood actor Chris Pine, known for playing Captain Kirk in the "Star Trek" movies, pleaded guilty Monday in a New Zealand court to a charge of drunken driving.
The 33-year-old American was fined $93 New Zealand dollars ($79) and had his New Zealand driver's license suspended for six months during a hearing at the Ashburton District Court.
Police pulled over Pine early on March 1 after he'd attended a party to mark the end of filming on the movie "Z for Zachariah," which is due for release next year. Fairfax Media reported that Pine told police he'd consumed four vodka drinks.
Police told the court that a blood test found Pine's blood-alcohol level was 0.11 percent, which is over New Zealand's legal limit of 0.08 percent.
Pine stood silently during the hearing, allowing his lawyer, Marilyn Gilchrist to enter the plea.
According to Fairfax, Gilchrist told the judge that Pine acknowledged he'd made the wrong decision to drive that night. Gilchrist said her client had suffered emotionally and professionally and that the negative publicity had put his acting contracts in jeopardy.
The judge said she accepted Pine was "entirely remorseful," Fairfax reported.
Pine appeared relaxed as he left the courtroom, stopping to sign a couple of autographs for fans who had gathered outside before being driven away.
Much of the filming of "Z for Zachariah" took place on the South Island's picturesque Banks Peninsula.
Before being pulled over by police, Pine had been at the Blue Pub in Methven with his Icelandic girlfriend, Iris Bjork Johannesdottir.
"The pub was closed to the public later in the evening and approximately 80 actors and crew attended the party, which finished at 3 a.m. on March 1," the bar said in a statement. "This was a well-controlled party, the cast and crew were friendly and it was a great night, not a wild party."
The statement said that "Chris Pine did not appear to staff to be intoxicated to a level where intervention might have been warranted."
In addition to playing Capt. James T. Kirk, Pine also played Jack Ryan in the movie "Jack Ryan: Shadow
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/star-trek-actor-chris-pine-pleads-guilty-dui-22934467
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/star-trek-actor-chris-pine-pleads-guilty-dui-22934467

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/star-trek-actor-chris-pine-pleads-guilty-dui-22934467
 
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