Officer Suspended After DUI Arrest While Driving Patrol Car

WPDE

LAMAR, S.C. (AP) – A South Carolina police officer has been fired after being arrested for DUI while on the job and driving his patrol car.

Lamar Police Chief Jason Chaney tells local media outlets a disciplinary board voted Monday to fire 50-year-old Jerry “Jay” Russell from the force.

Chaney says Darlington County deputies pulled Lamar over on Friday, telling the chief they thought Russell may have been under the influence while responding to a dog bite incident.

Authorities say he performed poorly on a field sobriety test and refused a breathalyzer test. Russell was charged with DUI and having an open container of alcohol in his car.

The veteran law officer was released from jail Saturday on bond. It wasn’t immediately known if he had an attorney.