Brickbat: Close Enough
A DUI arrest in Rockmart, Georgia, triggered an investigation into the officer who made it because tests later showed the driver's blood alcohol was well below the legal limit. When Officer Thomas Maguire pulled him over, Allen Wehunt asked for a breathalyzer test. Maguire said, "No, Rockmart don't do breathalyzers anymore." The police chief said breathalyzers are always available, and an investigation found Maguire had made several other DUI arrests of people later cleared by blood tests. Maguire, who was previously terminated from the Georgia State Patrol during training, resigned from the Rockmart Police Department instead of being fired, but he was soon hired by another department because the Georgia Peace Officer Standards & Training Council put him on probation rather than revoking his certification. Meanwhile, the mistaken DUI cost Wehunt over $5,000 in attorney fees.
