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Uploaded: Thursday, September 20, 2012, 9:22 AM
Atherton DUI driver sentenced to five years in state prison
Margaret Brill, 63, ordered to pay $85,000 in restitution
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by Sandy Brundage
Almanac Staff
Photo
 | A guilty plea and an apology weren't enough to keep a 63-year-old Atherton woman out of prison. A judge sentenced Margaret Brill to five years for a drunken rampage through downtown Menlo Park that left two people injured, according to the district attorney's office.
Police said Ms. Brill rammed a car while backing her green Mercedes out of a Santa Cruz Avenue parking lot, causing a chain reaction that led to two parked cars pinning a man between them. Several bystanders forced the cars apart to free him, according to police. The man suffered a broken leg and kneecap.
Without stopping, Ms. Brill pulled out and careened down Santa Cruz Avenue, striking two more vehicles, leaving one woman with facial cuts after the collision forced her car on to the sidewalk. Driving the wrong way down the street, the Mercedes finally stopped after leaping the center median into a tree. Bystanders cornered the car and yanked the key out of the ignition. Police said her blood alcohol level was 0.29 percent.
Two days later Atherton police arrested Ms. Brill as she wandered through a train station parking lot, muddy and intoxicated, carrying two bottles of wine, according to the district attorney's office.
Earlier this year Ms. Brill pleaded no contest to causing injury while driving under the influence (DUI) and hit-and-run with injury for the December 2010 incident. She admitted multiple prior DUI convictions.
Margaret Brill's husband reportedly told the court during the Sept. 19 sentencing hearing that his wife "is not a bad person, but has a bad disease."
San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Craig Parsons ordered that she pay $85,000 to those injured during the incident as well as various fees to Menlo Park and other agencies. She received 59 days credit for time served, having spent most of those in a treatment program.
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| Comments
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Posted by good, a resident of the Atherton: other neighborhood, on Sep 20, 2012 at 10:15 am About time the DA started cracking down on repeat DUI offenders. Very lucky that this woman didn't kill anyone.
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Posted by Menlo Resident, a resident of the Menlo Park: Allied Arts/Stanford Park neighborhood, on Sep 20, 2012 at 12:18 pm I witnessed this event in the parking lot and on Santa Cruz. I am pleased to see that the judge levied a serious penalty for Mrs. Brill's felonious behavior on this day. It was only pure luck that prevented the death of innocent bystanders on the sidewalk or roads as she drove like a crazy person through the center of our downtown area without regard to anyone.
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Posted by Country girl, a resident of another community, on Sep 20, 2012 at 2:45 pm
There are countless members of our communities who, like Mrs. Brill, drive under the influence. If you or someone you care about think they have problems with alcohol, please go to an AA meeting where you will be warmly welcomed. Meetings are like reality shows – you'll want to stay tuned. Call AA and a volunteer will tell you where and when all of the local meetings are both during the day and evenings. And ladies, your complexion will clear up and positively glow after you stop drinking. Not to mention keeping you out of jail when you could be gardening or playing tennis. Good luck!
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Posted by marie, a resident of the Menlo Park: Stanford Weekend Acres neighborhood, on Sep 20, 2012 at 4:04 pm Far as I am concerned justice has been served. I say lock her up for good and throw the key away.
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Posted by About time, a resident of the Menlo Park: Allied Arts/Stanford Park neighborhood, on Sep 20, 2012 at 7:13 pm Nice job San Mateo County D.A.'s Office and Menlo Park PD. It was so nice of the police department and the city council to identify the civilians that were involved in stopping the accident from any further property damage and injuries.Way to go all........
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Posted by Think Twice, a resident of the Menlo Park: Fair Oaks neighborhood, on Sep 20, 2012 at 8:04 pm Yes, of course we all think it's wonderful that this woman is behind bars where she belongs and thank heavens there was no loss of life. But wait a minute . . . could the words "Atherton" and "Mercedes" have entered into your decision? Might your thoughts have been different if this report were about one of the many, many illegals and irresponsible people from the lower socio-economic levels who so much more frequently do this very thing? Why are they never reported in the media? Hmmm?
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Posted by Hmmm, a resident of another community, on Sep 21, 2012 at 1:02 pm Think Twice - I've read plenty of news about the spectacular escapades of drunks behind the wheel, drunks of all ages, ethnic backgrounds & socioeconomic status. Remember the one in Palo Alto recently, going over the Univ Ave overpass on Alma? The drunk young woman in EPA who killed her friend while speeding through town? The drunk man in EPA who killed a beloved local resident? These latter 2 were not monied Caucasians from Atherton.
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Posted by MADD, a resident of the Menlo Park: Menlo Oaks neighborhood, on Sep 21, 2012 at 1:29 pm It is clear that few are sympathetic to the disease of alcoholism.
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Posted by safety first, a resident of the Atherton: other neighborhood, on Sep 21, 2012 at 1:47 pm I am very sympathetic to alcoholics who seek treatment and give up driving. No way am I going to be sympathetic towards someone who drives the wrong way down a street and crashes into pedestrians and parked cars.
If your spouse is an alcoholic, then take away their car keys permanently or you should be considered an accessory to murder when they kill someone.
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Posted by POGO, a resident of the Woodside: other neighborhood, on Sep 21, 2012 at 3:10 pm We don't let people with epilepsy drive. Why should people who can't control their alcohol be allowed to drive?
The unfortunate truth is that just because you revoke someone's license doesn't mean they won't drive.
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Posted by Help is on the way, a resident of the Menlo Park: Central Menlo Park neighborhood, on Sep 21, 2012 at 3:16 pm Think Twice writes, "But wait a minute . . . could the words "Atherton" and "Mercedes" have entered into your decision? Might your thoughts have been different if this report were about one of the many, many illegals and irresponsible people from the lower socio-economic levels who so much more frequently do this very thing? Why are they never reported in the media? Hmmm?"
Classic case of someone who warps reality to fit his ideology. Mind coughing up the statistics that show that illegals and people of "the lower socio-economic levels" go on broad-daylight drunken vehicular rampages in otherwise peaceful downtown areas causing bodily injury and major property damage "much more frequently" than anyone else?
Think Twice, calm down, take off the cranky pants, clear your head of the prejudices that are distorting your reality. You'll feel better, I promise.
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