A black Nissan Altima sits on property at the intersection of East Tyler Street and FJRM Avenue early Friday in Brownsville. The driver was arrested on a charge of driving while intoxicated.
BY Oscar Castillo | THE RIDER
An individual was arrested on a charge of driving while intoxicated early Friday on the Brownsville campus. The suspect’s vehicle went over on the curb between the intersection of FJRM Avenue and East Tyler Street.
“We were dispatched and found the person had driven over the curb,” said UTRGV Police Chief Raul Munguia. “The officer noticed they appeared to have alcohol in their breath and then did some field sobriety [tests], and from there they were arrested and taken to Brownsville jail.”
A tow company removed the car from the scene about 2 a.m., Munguia said.
“DWI is something very, very difficult to control because we have public streets. These are public streets that lead into the campus; however, our officers watch for that, you know, they make traffic stops. They’re very active—here on the Brownsville campus and the Edinburg campus,” Munguia said. “We do make numerous arrests for DWI, so much so that Mothers Against Drunk Driving have actually recognized UTRGV for their DWI efforts.”
MADD is a nonprofit organization that aims to protect families from drunk driving.
In 2015, 12 liquor law arrests and 28 liquor law violations referred for disciplinary action were reported by campus police in its 2016 Security and Fire Safety Report.
In Texas, the blood alcohol concentration to determine if one is driving while intoxicated is 0.08 percent for adults 21 and older.
Penalties for DWI in Texas include:
–a $2,000 fine, jail time between three and 180 days for the first offense;
–a $4,000 fine, jail time between one month and one year for the second offense; and
–a $10,000 fine, state prison time between two and 10 years for the third offense.
An annual surcharge of up to $2,000 for three years to keep your driver’s license is also required, according to DMV.org.
