The following is a press release issued by the Mendocino County District Attorney’s Office:
A Mendocino County Superior Court jury returned from its deliberations late Wednesday morning to announce it had found the trial defendant guilty as charged.
Defendant Aaron Vaughn Mathewson, age 39, of Healdsburg, was convicted of driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, and driving a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol .08 or greater, both as misdemeanors.
The defendant and his passenger were stopped just before 2 o’clock in the morning on October 1st of last year near the fairgrounds in Ukiah when their vehicle was seen drifting between lanes. The defendant performed poorly on field sobriety tests and subsequent breath tests indicated his blood alcohol level was .14/.13.
The law enforcement agencies that gathered the evidence last October and presented testimony at this week’s trial were the Ukiah Police Department and the California Department of Justice forensic crime laboratory.
The attorney who presented the People’s evidence to the jury was Deputy District Attorney Joshua Hopps.
Mendocino County Superior Court Judge Keith Faulder presided over the trial which took place over portions of three consecutive days.
Why were the lab tests not enough?