JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A part-time Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office employee was charged with multiple DUI counts after he was found reeking of alcohol following a crash, according to officers.
JSO Community Service Officers (CSO) responded to a crash involving a Ford vehicle and a John Deere excavator on Coralberry Lane around 1:30 p.m.
The driver of the vehicle, identified as 54-year-old Thomas T. Turbeville, was still sitting in the car when the officers approached him, noticing a strong odor of alcohol coming from inside.
JSO said Turbeville refused to tell the CSO what happened, so they called for a patrol officer to assist.
When a JSO officer and a supervisor tried to talk with Turbeville, they said he appeared to be sleeping behind the wheel. They also smelled alcohol coming from Turbeville’s direction.
The officers opened the door, waking him up.
JSO said he became uncooperative when asked to exit the vehicle. He was also slurring his words and being sluggish. He was so unsteady on his feet that JSO said he almost fell.
The officers sat Turbeville back down and called for a DUI unit to investigate. The DUI officer noticed Turbeville had bloodshot, watery eyes with droopy eyelids and a flushed red face, JSO reported.
Officers attempted to de-escalate the situation as Turbeville continued to resist orders. Eventually, he was escorted out of the vehicle and arrested.
He faces multiple counts of DUI and resisting an officer without violence. JSO said Turbeville, who has bonded out of jail, was a part-time, non-sworn civilian employee for the services division.
He was not working at the time of the incident and was driving his personal vehicle. This is the second JSO employee arrest of the year.