By Travis Uresk
7/31/23
Whiterocks, Ut.- 7/27/23, Deputy Fairey was dispatched to an agency assist in the Whiterocks area. Units of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) had been called to a suspicious incident and requested the assistance of the Uintah County Sheriff's Department.
Upon arrival, Deputy Fairey was notified that BIA Officers had been called to a location by a homeowner who reported a suspicious vehicle in their driveway revving the motor. The BIA Officer contacted the vehicle's occupant in the driver's seat.
The BIA Officer noticed a strong odor of alcohol coming from the passenger compartment, and the keys to the vehicle were in the ignition. The male slurred his words and wouldn't identify himself to the Officers.
The male had difficulty answering basic questions. The BIA Officer had identified the driver as 45-year-old Derrick David Herrera.
BIA asked Derrick to step out of the truck and was in the process of detaining him when Derrick began to resist the Officer forcefully. The BIA Officer was struck in the face multiple times during the struggle and was ultimately able to restrain Derrick and take him into custody.
Looking into Derrick's truck Deputy Fairey found two containers of alcohol in the rear passenger compartment. The seals on both bottles had been broken, with the contents of one of the bottles having been consumed.
Derrick was transferred from the BIA Officers' vehicle to Deputy Fairey's patrol vehicle. Derrick was intoxicated to the extent that he would not walk or assist when he was placed in the patrol vehicle.
Derrick continued to be combative and verbally abusive throughout the Officers interactions with him. Due to Derrick acting this way, a field sobriety test was not done. Derrick was transported to the hospital for a blood draw.
At the hospital, Derrick was read the DUI and refusal admonitions, and he stated that he wouldn't cooperate with the requested tests. Due to Derrick's volatility, the Deputy decided to discontinue his efforts to obtain a blood draw and transport Derrick to jail for booking.
Derrick Herrera was transported to the Uintah County Jail and booked on the charges of assault on a peace officer and driving under the influence of alcohol (refusing a chemical test).
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