BEDFORD — A Bedford man was arrested Thursday after police say he was found unconscious behind the wheel of a running vehicle stopped in a lane of traffic.
According to a probable cause affidavit filed by Bedford Police Officer James Ball, Gary Sergent, 56, was arrested on preliminary charges of operating while intoxicated and operating while intoxicated endangerment.
Ball reported officers were dispatched at about 7:05 p.m. Thursday to the intersection of 5th Street and State Road 37 following a report of a man passed out inside a gray Pontiac.
According to the affidavit, officers arrived and found the vehicle stopped in a lane of travel with Sergent slumped over in the driver’s seat. Sgt. Crulo opened the driver’s door, waking Sergent, and turned off the vehicle before removing the keys from the ignition.
Police reported Sergent was removed from the vehicle and placed in handcuffs. The affidavit states officers observed an open alcoholic beverage container in plain view near the front passenger seat and a box of unopened alcoholic beverages in the back seat.
According to the affidavit, Sergent immediately told officers he was “an addict” and had been drinking. Officers also reported detecting the odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath and observed bloodshot, glassy eyes, slurred speech and poor balance.
Police said Sergent refused to perform standardized field sobriety tests and declined a preliminary breath test, telling officers he was “all the way bad.”
After being advised of Indiana’s implied consent law, Sergent agreed to a certified chemical breath test at the Bedford Police Department, according to the affidavit. Police reported the test produced a result of 0.131%.
Sergent was transported to the Lawrence County Jail on the preliminary charges. His vehicle was inventoried and towed from the scene.
Formal charges will be determined by the Lawrence County Prosecutor’s Office.
Those arrested are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
