A Douglas County sheriff’s deputy faces a DUI charge after he crashed his car on the side of a road in Douglasville, according to the Georgia State Patrol.
Matthew Owen Harper, 33, crashed on Cedar Mountain Road about 7 p.m. Saturday, according to a GSP crash report.
Harper had watery, bloodshot eyes and “slow and mumbled” speech, GSP Sgt. M.T. Land wrote in his report. Land said he also smelled a strong odor of alcohol coming from Harper’s mouth.
An ambulance was called to treat Harper’s and a passenger’s bloody noses, which they got from the car’s airbags.
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When Land told Harper to get out of the car, he noticed the veteran sheriff’s deputy was “unsteady on his feet” and helped him lean against the patrol car.
Harper told Land he’d had two or three beers, but said he crashed after a deer jumped in front of his car.
Land said Harper refused a sobriety test and a blood test. He later consented to a Breathalyzer exam.
He was charged with DUI and failure to maintain lane. He is out of jail on a $1,000 bond.
Harper, a 10-year veteran with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, is on unpaid leave. Officials say he will face “disciplinary action” as a result of the incident.
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