A reported legally blind man arrested Sunday night for driving while intoxicated, has been re-arrested for public intoxication after allegedly coming to court drunk.
Mark Alan Watson, 41, of Bartlesville, was about to be arraigned Monday on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol, leaving the scene of an accident, driving under suspension and assault on a police officer when he fell on his face in front of Associate District Judge Russell Vaclaw.
Vaclaw had just called Watson’s name to approach the bench to answer to the charges when Watson stood and paused before collapsing, striking his head on the jury box on the way down. Immediately, several onlookers went to render aid but, Watson, who at the time was free on $7,500 bond from the arrest, was able to get up and walk to the bench.
“Are you intoxicated?” Vaclaw asked.
“No, I’m blind,” Watson replied.
At that point, Vaclaw called for a Washington County Sheriff’s Office deputy to administer a field sobriety test.
When Watson overheard Vaclaw’s call to the deputy, he said that because he was blind he couldn’t take the standard field sobriety test but that he could take a breathalyzer, a test commonly administered to determine levels of intoxication.
Minutes later, after deputies responded and took Watson to the sheriff’s office downstairs, he reportedly failed a breathalyzer test.
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After he was re-arrested for today’s public intoxication, bond was re-set at $15,000.
[Examiner-Enterprise]
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