The Washington State Patrol (WSP) has settled a lawsuit with a Seattle woman over her arrest for DUI near Chelan last year.
The tort claim, which was settled for $42,500 on Sept. 5, was filed by East Wenatchee attorney John Brangwin on behalf of Kristin Quinlan, who was arrested in May, 2024 after she allegedly refused to submit to field sobriety tests for WSP Trooper Travis Cunningham following a traffic stop for a non-moving violation on State Route 150.
When two subsequent breath tests revealed Quinlan’s blood-alcohol content was apparently well below Washington’s threshold for intoxication (0.08%) at 0.006% and 0.008% respectively, Cunningham determined the results required further review and issued Quinlan a criminal citation for drunk driving.
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Two months later, the citation was dismissed in Chelan County District Court by Judge Jon Volyn, who found Cunningham’s observations that Quinlan was intoxicated on the night of her arrest ran contradictory to video evidence captured by the State Patrol, noting her speech, mannerisms, and bodily movements were not consistent with inebriation, and that she also lacked having glassy or bloodshot eyes…