Post by WaTcHeR on Jun 7, 2006 10:57:37 GMT -5
06.07.2006 - ORLANDO, Fla. -- An Orange County Sheriff's deputy is facing drunken driving and possibly prostitution-related charges in Orlando.
Deputy James Freeman, 34, is suspended without pay while the investigation is ongoing, WESH 2 News reported.
He was arrested early Tuesday morning along Carter Street when officers went to check out suspicious activity. Two Orlando police officers were sent to the home at about 4 a.m. because of reports of "unknown trouble."
When they arrived at the home, they didn't find any trouble, but they found a tan sport utility vehicle. They could tell that somebody was inside because the brake light kept popping on and off, officials said.
They approached the SUV and allegedly found Freeman inside with a known prostitute. They also said they believed he was drunk because they could smell alcohol on his breath.
Freeman refused to take a field sobriety test. They tried to have him take a Breathalyzer test, but right before they conducted it, he collapsed. They had him checked out at the hospital. After doctors cleared him, the officers took him to jail.
"It puts us, as another law enforcement agency, in a difficult position, but we have to remind ourselves that we are not above the law and everybody is accountable for their own actions," said Sgt. Barbara Jones, of the Orlando Police Department. "Certainly he needs to be treated fairly in this process and allow the judicial system to decide and a jury of his peers to decide whether he was right or wrong."
Freeman joined the force in September 2001 and he was assigned to road patrol.
Deputy James Freeman, 34, is suspended without pay while the investigation is ongoing, WESH 2 News reported.
He was arrested early Tuesday morning along Carter Street when officers went to check out suspicious activity. Two Orlando police officers were sent to the home at about 4 a.m. because of reports of "unknown trouble."
When they arrived at the home, they didn't find any trouble, but they found a tan sport utility vehicle. They could tell that somebody was inside because the brake light kept popping on and off, officials said.
They approached the SUV and allegedly found Freeman inside with a known prostitute. They also said they believed he was drunk because they could smell alcohol on his breath.
Freeman refused to take a field sobriety test. They tried to have him take a Breathalyzer test, but right before they conducted it, he collapsed. They had him checked out at the hospital. After doctors cleared him, the officers took him to jail.
"It puts us, as another law enforcement agency, in a difficult position, but we have to remind ourselves that we are not above the law and everybody is accountable for their own actions," said Sgt. Barbara Jones, of the Orlando Police Department. "Certainly he needs to be treated fairly in this process and allow the judicial system to decide and a jury of his peers to decide whether he was right or wrong."
Freeman joined the force in September 2001 and he was assigned to road patrol.