Oregon Police Officer Busted for Arresting Sober Motorists for DUI

Oregon Officer had a high DUI arrest record before resigning after an investigation.

Police Officer Dave Cox made 27 of the 35 total DUI arrests in Corvallis, Oregon during the month of May 2007, and he was named DUII Enforcement Officer of the Year four years ago. It now seems that a performance oriented system lead Cox to arrest of sober motorists, including as many as 6 last May.

On May 11, David E. Picray drove to a bar to pick-up his wife and friends. Through a text message he learned the group had moved to another bar a block away. Picray drove closer to the second bar, and the short distance moved aroused the suspicion of Officer Dave Cox.

Cox wrote in his drunk driving arrest report that Picray’s eyes were bloodshot and watery and that his tongue had a light green coating. Picray had been suffering from a cold and was chewing gum. Picray registered a 0.00% blood alcohol content on a Breathalyzer, and a drug test revealed only trace amounts of codeine from cold medicine.

Picray notified the City of Corvallis of his intent to sue for false arrest, which lead to an investigation of Officer Cox. It was discovered that at least six of 27 motorists arrested by Cox for Oregon DUI last May registered BAC levels below the legal limit of 0.08% and drug tests were negative. Nonetheless, the majority of the arrest reports from May contained nearly identical notations of "bloodshot and glassy eyes" and other alleged indicators of intoxication.

Oregon DUI defense attorneys claim it is a common practice to write an arrest report to reflect what the officer should have seen in order to substantiate the arrest. The larger concern is that police officers have learned that pay reviews and awards can be influenced by performance; the higher the number of arrests, the greater the potential for reward. Unfortunately this system places economics as a higher motive for issuing traffic citations than highway safety.

Officer Cox was placed on paid leave and he subsequently resigned. Picray was not charged with an Oregon DUI, though the arrest will remain on his record.

Tags: DUI News