By Travis Uresk
7/30/24
| Naples, Ut. | July 30th, 2024 |
Officer Beatty was near 900 East 2500 South when dispatch reported a hit-and-run accident near his location. Dispatch reported that the vehicle that fled the scene was a black passenger car with damage to the front driver's side.
The officer began searching for any vehicles matching that description. A black passenger car traveling eastbound on 2500 South struggled to stay in its lane of travel and had damaged the front bumper on the driver's side.
Officer Beatty pulled in behind the vehicle and watched it bounce back and forth between the median and shoulder lines, even crossing over the shoulder line multiple times.
The officer attempted to initiate a traffic stop on the vehicle near 1300 East 2500 South, but the vehicle failed to stop. Both vehicles stopped at the traffic light located at 1500 East 2500 South, where Officer Beatty turned off his emergency lights to avoid confusing the general public.
Once the light turned green, they both turned northbound on 1500 East, where the officer turned his emergency lights and siren back on.
The driver noticed the officer and yielded to the right, eventually stopping in the parking lot of Country Grub, located at 2419 South 1500 East. Officer Beatty approached the driver's side window and saw one adult male.
While speaking with the driver, the officer detected the odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from his person. His speech was slurred and slow, and both his eyes appeared glossy. Officer Beatty asked him where he was coming from, and he stated he had just dropped off his brother at work at True Value.
The driver was asked to step out of the vehicle to determine better if he was impaired by alcohol. The driver was observed struggling to exit his vehicle and maintain his balance, swaying and stumbling several times until he could lean on the back of his vehicle.
When asked for his driver's license, the male provided a Colorado license identifying him as 23-year-old Jalen Eugene Saunders.
Jalen was asked if he would complete the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFST) to help determine whether he was too impaired to operate a motor vehicle. Saunders agreed to perform the tests.
SFST: By Officer Beatty:
I began to give Saunders the instructions for the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test. As I placed Saudners in the position, he swayed and struggled to maintain his balance. Furthermore, He would often attempt to change the conversation's topic away from the test's instructions.
I asked Saunders if a physician had ever told him that he had suffered from a Traumatic brain injury or any other injury that would affect his vision. Saunders stated that a physician had never told him that information.
I gave clear and precise instructions to Saunders regarding not moving his head during the HGN test and only following the stimulus with his eyes. I produced a pen with a white tip and a black colored body to help Saunders identify the stimulus for his eyes to follow. I asked him to point to the stimulus with his finger. Saunders initially missed the tip of my pen with his finger by almost touching my face. Saunders eventually found the tip of the pen, and I again gave clear instructions to him to follow that point with his eyes and not move his head.
Every time I attempted to move the pen to perform the HGN test, Saunders moved his entire head in the same direction as the pen. I clarified multiple times during this attempt that he should not move his head, follow the pen with his eyes only, and keep facing me.
After Several Failed attempts to perform the first test of the SFST, I determined that Saunders was too impaired to operate a motor vehicle safely and was also too impaired to safely perform the remainder of the SFSTs.
I asked Saunders if he would submit a Portable Breath Test (PBT) to determine if a medical clearance was necessary. Saunders agreed, and after several attempts to obtain an adequate sample due to breath volume, he submitted a PBT sample with a .327 Breath Alcohol Content (BrAC).
Jalen was arrested and placed in the back seat of Officer Beatty’s patrol vehicle.
During that time, a Uintah County Sheriff's Deputy assigned to the hit-and-run accident arrived and verified that the stopped vehicle was the same vehicle by showing Officer Beatty a photo provided to him by a witness.
Officer Beatty began completing the DUI Citation and asked Jalen if he would be willing to take a breath sample at the Uintah County Jail (UCJ), which he agreed to. En route to the UCJ, Jalen made statements that he wasn't driving the vehicle and that he hadn't had anything to drink since yesterday.
At the jail, Jalen submitted a breath sample on the Intoxilyzer. After several failed attempts due to inadequate breath volume and capacity, I determined that a blood draw and medical clearance would be necessary.
Officer Beatty asked Jalen if he would consent to a blood draw to determine the alcohol levels in his system, and he agreed. They left the UCJ and arrived at Uintah Basin Hospital ER, where Jalen signed a consent form At approximately 10:19 am, the Registered Nurse obtained a blood sample.
After clearing the UBH and completing the DUI interview and citation. They returned to the UCJ, where Saunders was booked for the following offenses:
Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol/Drugs
Unsafe Lane Travel
Jalen Saunders was later released.
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