A California man found out too late that some drunk driving charges can be the result of entrapment. A 49 year old father met a beautiful woman, who after a few dates invited him to a San Francisco restaurant to celebrate with a friend who had recently closed an important real estate deal. The two women were very friendly and encouraged David Dutcher, recently separated from his wife, to finish his drinks as well as theirs. They then suggested they go another friend's house where they could enjoy the hot tub.

Mr. Dutcher never made it to the house with the hot tub. He was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving as he followed his new friends in his truck. Three months after this memorable evening, his wife filed a motion with the court requesting supervised visitation because she feared for her children's safety. The judge granted the motion, and Dutcher saw his children only under court supervision.

However, it turned out that the women worked for a detective agency owned by Christopher Butler and were part of a scheme to have men arrested for DUI in order to give their wives and ex-wives the upper hand in divorce and custody proceedings. A former agency employee blew the whistle, telling authorities that stories like Dutcher's were only a small part of the story.

In addition to setting up DUI arrests such as David Dutcher's, Butler sold drugs and performed other chores for corrupt police officers, such as helping to start and run a brothel. One of his associates, a police officer, faces charges of accepting bribes to make DUI arrests.

Butler paid the female decoys $25 per hour. One woman drank heavily with targets, while the other drove. Once the trio left the bar or restaurant, Butler, who was also in the restaurant, phoned police friends to report a possible DUI.

The consequences for Dutcher and other men like him extended beyond family court. Dutcher could not get the security clearances he often needed for his work. Others lost business and paid significant fines. However, prosecutors have now helped Dutcher and four other men remove their DUI convictions or have their charges thrown out.

Source: Los Angeles Times, "Coming clean on 'dirty DUIs' in Contra Costa County", by Maura Dolan", Oct. 15, 2011.