Anthony Mackie convicted of driving while impaired
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Friday, February 20, 2015, 1:32 PM
Jefferson Siegel/New York Day after day News Anthony Mackie was convicted Friday at a bench trial in Manhattan Criminal Court. The Falcon has been grounded.
“Captain America: The Winter Soldier” actor Anthony Mackie was convicted Friday of driving while impaired.
Mackie was found guilty of the violation and sentenced to perfect a drunken driving program and pay fines after a bench trial in Manhattan Criminal Court.
Judge Kevin McGrath rendered a guilty verdict on the sole count after the day-long trial, which included testimony from three NYPD witnesses.
Mackie, 36, declined to testify but thanked McGrath for overseeing a honest proceeding before he was sentenced in connection to the Nov. 9, 2013 incident in Harlem.
“Thank you, your honor, for the opportunity. Thank you for listening to the case and coming up with a honest conclusion,” Mackie said after the verdict.
“I wish everyone else had done the same,” “The Hurt Locker” star said without elaborating.
He shook his head in disappointment as the verdict was read. His attorney had argued the police testimony was not reliable, that his client was clearly okay to drive under the law.
Mackie’s lawyer, Michael Miller, argued it was “abundantly clear that the People have not met their burden” of proof that Mackie was impaired.
The proof is in police footage, Miller said, in which Mackie appears sober and responsive on the tape.
Mackie, who hails from New Orleans and wore a Saints scarf and gray coat as he left the building, declined to note as he exited the courthouse.
The film star will also lose his New York State driving privileges for 90 days.
But Supporter District Attorney Leah Branch said the video wouldn’t show that he sobered up after being dragged into a precinct stationhouse for a Breathalyzer and coordination tests — both of which were refused by Mackie.
“This is a very sobering experience. It makes sense that his signs of intoxication may have been diminished” when he go to the stationhouse, Branch argued in her summation.
Earlier, McGrath ripped a detective who worked on the case after the cop revealed on the witness stand that he, as a matter of do, tossed his copies of the summonses including ones that were issued to Mackie and provided evidence about the arrest.
McGrath said NYPD Det. Fernando Argote’s admitted the do was “extremely troubling” and he ruled that there would be an “adverse inference” instruction on the record as a result.
“The fact that this came out in this trial, I think the district attorney’s office here has to look into this,” McGrath said.
Mackie was stopped while making a U-turn at W. 126th St. and Lenox Ave.
He was given permission to do the intoxicated driving counseling in Louisiana.
sjacobs@nydailynews.com
