Johnson County drops DWI charges against Tarrant judge

The Johnson County attorney is dismissing its driving while intoxicated case against Tarrant County state District Judge Elizabeth Berry.

County Attorney Bill Moore’s decision to drop the case comes after the 10th Court of Appeals dismissed his appeal of a lower court ruling that threw out blood tests taken after she was arrested last year.

"After reviewing the evidence, we determined that because of the ruling on the suppression of the blood test, our only alternative is to dismiss the case against Elizabeth Berry," Moore said. "Our opinion was that we could not prove DWI/open container beyond a reasonable doubt without the blood test."

Moore filed the dismissal on Tuesday after the Waco appeals court tossed out his appeal on a technicality because Moore did not sign the required notice of appeal. An assistant county attorney signed the document.

Moore could have filed an appeal with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin.

Berry was charged with misdemeanor DWI based on the results of a blood draw taken three hours after she was arrested Nov. 8 by Alvarado police. Officers said she was driving 92 mph in a 65-mph zone on Interstate 35W when they stopped her.

Moore has refused to release the blood test results. In Texas, drivers with a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 are considered intoxicated.

After a three-hour hearing in January, Senior Judge Robert Dohoney ruled that the results could not be used to try Berry on the DWI charge because the facts cited by the arresting officer were not enough to support the search warrant granted by a judge to obtain her blood.

Berry, 44, announced in June that she will not seek re-election when her four-year term expires next year. She has presided over Criminal District Court No. 3 since 2003.

Since her arrest, Berry has transferred all alcohol-related cases in her court to another judge.


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