On October 5, 2000, Armstrong was arrested for DUI, carrying a concealed weapon, and driving left of the center line. The case numbers in Jefferson County Circuit Court are 1-CC-2000-4481, 4482, and 4483. Those cases apparently were transferred to another jurisdiction, probably a municipality, and the outcome is not clear from the file at alacourt.com.
Less than one year later--on August 27, 2001--Armstrong was arrested again, on the same three charges. This time, it was in Shelby County, Alabama. Court documents indicate that Armstrong pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of reckless driving, and Circuit Judge D. Al Crowson entered a finding of "nol prossed" (not prosecuted) on the weapon charge. The case numbers in Shelby County Circuit Court are 58-CC-2001-1075, 1076, and 1077.
Several questions come quickly to mind about the Armstrong cases:
* Did the legal community give him preferential treatment because he is a lawyer? Were they particularly quick to cut him slack because his brother is U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Armstrong, of the Northern District of Alabama?
* My understanding is that it's common for a driver to plead guilty to reckless driving on a first DUI offense. But why was Armstrong allowed to make a lesser plea when this was his second DUI in less than a year?
* Why was the concealed-weapon charge nol prossed, considering that it was Armstrong's second such offense in less than one year?
* Why does Allan L. Armstrong make it a habit to carry a concealed weapon? And why is he unwilling, or perhaps unable, to obtain a permit to carry a weapon? My understanding is that pistol permits are easy to obtain for most people in Alabama. Is there something in Allan Armstrong's background that prevents him from qualifying for a gun permit?
As for McClain, he won the Butkus Award as the top college linebacker in the nation and became an immediate starter in 2010 for the Oakland Raiders, who picked him in the first round (eighth overall) in the NFL draft. McClain was the Raiders' second leading tackler and was named to The Sporting News' All-Rookie Team.
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