If Barron Hilton, Paris Hilton's younger brother, ever drinks and drives again, it is hopefully somewhere other than Georgia.
Celebrity drunk driving stories certainly lack instructive or cautionary value in every case and, indeed, often score tabloid headlines simply for whatever sensationalism can be wrung out of them. Occasionally, though, as with Hilton's case, something meaningful can be taken away, and that is why the contours of his DUI matter are sketched here.
Hilton was 18 years old -- that is, an underage drinker -- when he got behind the wheel of his Mercedes-Benz after drinking one night in 2008 in Los Angeles. He collided with another car, drove for several miles on the wrong side of the road, and eventually struck and badly injured a gas station attendant in Malibu.
Hilton was arrested for DUI, his blood-alcohol content registering 0.14 percent. He pleaded no contest and was placed on probation, fined, required to attend an alcohol education program and also visit hospitals and county morgues. Additionally, he had his driver's license suspended for one year.
Now his civil trial has just ended, with a jury awarding the man he injured $4.6 million for pain and suffering, medical expenses and future loss of earnings. An additional $300,000 was also awarded in punitive damages and interest.
Hilton's case demonstrates that a drunk driving arrest can result in far more than a criminal charge and the consequences associated with that. In some instances -- for example, where personal injury or a wrongful death resulted -- a civil lawsuit can exact additional and quite severe penalties in a DUI matter.
Related Resource: Los Angeles Times, "Barron Hilton ordered to pay $4.9 million in drunk-driving case, attorney says" July 15, 2011
