We have zero sympathy for people who get caught at a DUI Checkpoint. If anything, we’re on the side of the cops who caught ‘em. But just because there’s absolutely no excuse for driving drunk, doesn’t mean some humor doesn’t come from those DUI Guys (& Gals). Heck, a few of those DUI Stories even add irony to the equation.
So, without further ado, here are a few oddball DUI Guys (& Gals) doing what they do best – get caught.
It Was So Many Years Ago
You know you’re drunk when you’re asked to take seated field sobriety tests, which is what Tammy Angel, 61 faced last week. Angel had been witnessed driving erratically by Lt. Paul Bloom of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office on April 5th, and he promptly proceeded to pull her over. Angel must’ve still been rather erratic for Lt. Bloom to opt for seated sobriety test.
He gave her an easy test though –perhaps the easiest one out there: the “A.B.C.’s”. Really. All she had to do was to recite the A.B.C.s. As you’ll see from the clip, she didn’t get much past “C.”
“It was so many years ago,” said Angel.
Too bad Angel’s drinking didn’t date back so many years ago. She was so drunk that deputies had to have her checked out at the hospital before she could be taken to jail.
Not a Good Look: DUI Guys Driving Dirty
Driving dirty is bad enough; driving dirty and drunk through a DUI Checkpoint is about the worst you can do. That’s what happened to this DUI guy in Hardin County Tennessee.
As WBBJ-TV’s Kyle Peppers reports, the Hardin County Sheriff’s Department took Jeffery Bridges into custody late Friday evening while working a sobriety checkpoint. It was around 11 p.m. when contact was made with a black GMC truck driven by Bridges.
The Sheriff’s Department says Bridges stated he had been drinking, and a deputy subsequently found guns on Bridges and in the vehicle.
According to the Sheriff’s Department, they also found oxycodone pills, a white powder substance believed to be cocaine, and drug paraphernalia.
Authorities confirm Bridges was taken into custody and is facing charges of schedule II (cocaine), schedule II (oxycodone), drug paraphernalia and driving under the influence.
No word in any gun charges.
Records available online though do show that Bridges currently remains in custody at the Hardin County jail.
High Pressure Situation
Brandon Thomas Hall, 32, of Fruitland Park, Florida, has a rather unique perspective on the whole checkpoint thing. He was driving a truck with a partially obscured license plate in the wee hours Thursday when he was pulled over on Longview Avenue, according to an arrest report from the Lady Lake Police Department. He identified himself as a landscaper and said he had been meeting with a prospective client. Finally, e admitted he had consumed three Coors Light beers.He agreed to participate in field sobriety exercises, but struggled.
“It’s kind of a high-pressure situation, is it not?” he asked the police officer.
Hall refused to provide a breath sample.
During the booking process, it was discovered that he had more than one driver’s license in his possession.
Hall was arrested on charges of driving under the influence and having more than one driver’s license. He was booked at the Lake County Jail and released after posting $1,500 bond.
No OWI
Sometimes authorities can be a little too overzealous at the sobriety checkpoint, even after someone has passed the sobriety tests. That’s the feeling of an Iowa man who’s suing the city of Winterset after being for arrested on an OWI charge despite passing field sobriety tests, two blood-alcohol tests and a drug screen.
According to Clark Kauffman and the Iowa Capital Dispatch, Ryan P. Elgin, 42, of Adair County is suing the City of Winterset and Winterset Police Officer Logan Camp for false arrest, unreasonable seizure and common law negligence. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, is seeking unspecified damages.
Elgin alleges that he was driving through Winterset shortly after 9 p.m. on Oct. 15, 2022, along with a woman, Becky Oltmann, and Oltmann’s child, when he was pulled over by Camp.
The lawsuit claims Camp did not observe any traffic violations and or equipment violations that would have justified the stop. Elgin submitted to standardized field sobriety tests, such as the horizontal gaze test, the walk-and-turn test and the one-legged stand test, and allegedly displayed no signs of intoxication.
Elgin then submitted to a preliminary breath test which indicated a blood-alcohol concentration of .047, well below the legal limit of .08. Camp then detained Elgin for the purpose of conducting additional testing at the Madison County Law Enforcement Center. While there, Elgin consented to a second breath test which indicated a blood-alcohol level of .037, the lawsuit claims.
Camp then asked Elgin to provide a urine sample for a drug screen. Elgin complied and was released from custody shortly before 11 p.m. Police records indicate that within an hour, and before the results of the urine test were known, Camp notified the Iowa Department of Human Services of the potential child-endangerment charge, and the state agency initiated an investigation.
Two months later, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation’s laboratory reported that a chemical analysis of Elgin’s urine showed the presence of Citalopram, a drug used to treat depression, which was consistent with Elgin’s admitted use of the physician-prescribed medication. The report indicated there were no controlled substances in Elgin’s urine.
And Yet…
Police records show that after consulting with his supervisor, Camp obtained an arrest warrant for Elgin on charges of operating a vehicle while under the influence (OWI) and child endangerment. According to the lawsuit, Camp then informed the Iowa Department of Transportation that Elgin had tested positive Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substances, and the DOT initiated a license-suspension proceeding seeking to revoke Elgin’s driving privileges for one year.
In April 2023, the criminal charges were dismissed by county prosecutors. Because court records related to the case have been expunged, there is no public record detailing the position of county prosecutors in dismissing the matter.
The city’s arrest report confirms the test results as described in the lawsuit, but the police report also states that Camp believed Elgin smelled strongly of alcohol and that Elgin displayed “clues of intoxication” prior to his arrest. The report states that in December 2022, when Camp called Elgin to inform him of his impending arrest, Elgin “responded by laughing and saying, ‘Good luck,’ ” before hanging up and turning himself in.
Camp and the city have yet to file a response to the lawsuit.
If this is all true (and we see no reason to believe otherwise), it’s an egregious attempt to put undue hardship on the plaintiff. Do you know how hard it is to get around in a rural area without a license? Furthermore, what’s with the child endangerment charge? It wasn’t his kid and he obviously wasn’t drunk.
Perhaps they’ll find another side to the sordid story… only time will tell.
DUI Guys (& Gals)
So, there you have it. A few distracting stories from some DUI Guys (& Gals). (And one who probably isn’t.) If they don’t scare you away from drinking and driving, perhaps you should check the fatality lists of DUI Deaths. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that number was 13, 384 in 2021. Despite the 6% decrease brought about by ride-sharing, it was still a 14% increase from the year before. That’s inexcusable.
If you’re still drinking (and by now we hope you aren’t), please don’t drink and drive. Life’s too short to risk — yours and others.
Image courtesy Yo! Venice