Drunk Driving with Children Means Felony, Jail Time

LUNENBURG – Andrew Lamont Rainey, a 36-year-old Victoria man of 2720 Washington Ave., was sentenced recently in Lunenburg County Circuit Court to serve two months in jail for Felony Child Neglect as the result of driving drunk with two children in the vehicle. He had earlier been convicted in the General District Court of Drunk Driving and sentenced to 12 months in jail with all suspended except 25 days in jail.

An additional four years and ten months were imposed on the felony and suspended upon conditions of good behavior, supervised probation, and abstaining from alcohol.

According to Commonwealth’s Robert Clement, the incident arose on June 17, 2017 at 8:45 p.m. when Victoria Sgt. Daniel Medlin pulled Rainey over because of a rejected inspection sticker.  He noticed Rainey had a strong odor of alcoholic beverage, glassy and bloodshot eyes, and had no driver’s license.  He failed a number of field sobriety tests, and then was placed under arrest for DWI, a second offense within ten years.  His blood alcohol level was 0.19 which is over twice the legal limit.

Clement said he argued for a 12-month sentence, emphasizing that Rainey had been convicted of the same felony offense in 2007 in Hopewell, and that he had already been through a six-week inpatient rehabilitation program.  Clement said he also argued about Rainey’s poor work record, dropping out of high school, and dropping out of the Job Corps Program.

The Sentencing Guidelines recommended probation with no active incarceration.