An officer at the Yale Police Department remains on active duty after a recent arrest for drunk driving in New York City.
The 32-year-old male, charged with three misdemeanor counts for operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated and impaired by alcohol, is “working and fulfilling his normal duties and responsibilities,” according to university spokesman Tom Conroy. The Yale Police Department is conducting its own internal investigation into the matter.
On April 23, around 9:20 p.m., in front of a Rite-Aid on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, a witness claims he saw the officer asleep behind the wheel of a gray 2012 Dodge automobile, according to an incident report written by New York City Officer Stephen Patti. When the witness tried to wake the officer up, the officer allegedly sped forward, crashing into another vehicle.
Patti wrote that he arrived on the scene and noticed the car’s engine running and damage to its front. The officer admitted he’d been driving. Patti noted that the officer had watery, bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and the odor of booze on his breath. The officer looked unsteady on his feet, Patti added.
A chemical analysis of the officer’s blood, breath, urine and saliva, administered by another NYPD cop, noted a blood alcohol content of 0.17 percent — twice the legal limit.
The officer informed Yale Police Department after the incident occurred, and Police Chief Ronnell Higgins initiated the internal review, Conroy said.
The New York County district attorney is prosecuting the case, with the officer’s next court date scheduled for Tuesday, June 6. “As the incident is still going through the legal process, we don’t have more to add about it at this time,” Conroy added.
Why is this being reported now if it happened last April?