A six-member jury took only two hours to find Indian River County Administrator Joe Baird not guilty of DUI late Wednesday afternoon.

Baird, noticeably jubilant, sat with his attorney Bobby Guttridge as the court clerk read the verdict at 3:57 p.m. Baird then hugged his girlfriend and deferred comments to his attorney, before leaving the courthouse.

Guttridge said Baird is very relieved by the verdict.

“His reputation is still tarnished, but this goes a long way in vindicating him,” Guttridge said about Baird.

“Some people were angry that Baird took his case to trial,” but that’s the rights under the judicial system, he said.

Assistant State Attorney David Dodd said he respected the jury’s decision.

Baird plans to pay a speeding ticket issued in connection with the DUI arrest. He faced up to six months in jail and probation, 50 hours’ community service, a license suspension and fines up to $1,000 if convicted on the DUI charge. Because he refused a state-required Breathalyzer test following his arrest, the state suspended Baird’s driver’s license for one year.

The three-day trial, that included a day of jury selection, concluded with Guttridge contending police rushed to judgment and didn’t listen to Baird’s repeated contentions he had a problem with balance and coordination.

As the jury left the courtroom to begin deliberations, an alternate juror handed the judge a note suggesting one of the jurors may have been predisposed to making a decision.

County Judge David Morgan refused Guttridge’s request for a mistrial because of the note.

The handwritten note said the juror “told us that she was a friend of a woman who was excused as a juror (at the beginning of the trial) because her daughter was killed by a drunken driver. And that she (the current juror) in this case attended the child’s funeral.”

The final defense witness jurors heard was a man who bought a mixed alcoholic drink for Baird about a half hour before Baird’s arrest in Vero Beach at 10:26 p.m. May 16 on 21st Street.

Peter Armfield said he bought the drink just before Baird left the party shortly after 10 p.m.

A Vero Beach Police officer saw a spilled drink and ice on the floor of Baird’s Jeep after stopping him, according to testimony. But no tests were run on the spilled drink to find out whether it contained alcohol. And there was no testimony that Baird drank any of the cup of liquid Armfield gave him.

At the time of his arrest, Baird said he had had a few drinks earlier in the evening. Witnesses who attended the party said they saw him drink about two beers.

Prior to Armfield’s testimony, defense witnesses, including Baird’s girlfriend and his administrative assistant, testified that he has vertigo and has trouble balancing, which Baird’s attorney said contributed to his failing a roadside sobriety test conducted by Vero Beach Police following his being stopped on 21st Street

Baird’s longtime girlfriend, Karen Diegl, who lives with him, testified “He has a lack of balance on a daily basis. He cannot do any activity that requires balance.’’

He can run, ride a two-wheel bicycle, but he cannot put on shoes or pants while standing on one foot, she said.

Diegl’s testimony was corroborated by Baird’s administrative assistant, Dori Roy.

When Baird walks, he “lumbers one foot to the other,’’ she said. And, occasionally, when Baird gets up from a desk, he has to reach out and touch something, Roy said. “He almost seems to be working to get his balance.” She said she sees that several times a week.

Also, she was at the Youth Guidance fundraiser near Wabasso that Baird attended shortly before his arrest. She said she saw him shortly after 10 p.m., and “I didn’t feel like he was impaired. I didn’t think he had too much to drink.’’

Roy said that when she heard of his arrest for DUI, “I was shocked.’’

Other witnesses testifying Wednesday were people who were at the youth guidance fundraiser that Baird attended, and they said they saw no signs of Baird being impaired before driving to Vero Beach.

Guttridge said the roadside sobriety tests are abnormal tests of physical ability, requiring people to stand on one leg or walk a line. The tests “are ridiculous,” he said. And he told jurors police rushed to judgment and lied some in testimony.

Vero Beach Police Chief Donald Dappen couldn’t be reached for comment.

In closing arguments, Guttridge called on jurors to give Baird the benefit of the doubt.

“This man’s liberty and reputation are at stake,” he said.

Dodd told jurors that Baird’s contentions he has vertigo is just an excuse.

Baird refused a Breathalyzer test following his arrest. Dodd said Baird “should have begged to take the Breathalyzer test” to prove his innocence. He should have run to (the police department) to give that sample.”

Dodd also told jurors that witnesses who testified on Baird’s behalf lied.

“Every one of the defense witnesses had an interest in how this case comes out,” he said.

By Elliott Jones, TCPalm.com

Tags: alcohol, arrest, attorney, beach, bicycle, chief, child, clerks, communication, court, desk, drinking, driver, driving, dui, fines, foot, fundraising, funeral, girlfriend, hand, jail, jeep, judge, jurors, jury, leg, man, police, probation, reading, SAT, saw, speeding, trial, woman

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