Kentucky lawmaker arrested on drunken-driving charge hours after session ends
Police arrested first-term state Rep. Derek J. Lewis of London early Thursday on a drunken-driving charge.
Lewis became belligerent and cursed police during the arrest, according to a citation filed by Gary Mehler, an officer with the Laurel County Sheriff’s office.
According to the citation, Mehler was responding to a call on Hatcher Road, which Lewis listed as his address on election records, when he saw a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck sitting against a fence in a ditch.
When he stopped to help, Lewis got out of the truck. He was “extremely unsteady” on his feet, almost falling backwards into the truck, the citation said.
Lewis was slurring his words, his eyes were glassy and bloodshot, and his breath smelled strongly of alcohol, Mehler said in the citation.
Lewis refused to perform a field sobriety test, and demanded several times that the officer call Sheriff John Root, the citation said.
When Mehler explained he was trying to get Lewis to do tests to determine if he was impaired, Lewis said, “I ain’t gonna do a G—damn thing you want,” the officer said in the citation.
When Mehler asked again if Lewis would perform standard field sobriety tests such as a balance test, he allegedly became belligerent and cursed officers.
“It was obvious he was manifestly under the influence of alcohol and he was placed under arrest,” Mehler said in the citation.
While waiting on a wrecker to tow away Lewis’ truck, Lewis demanded to have his blood-sugar level tested.
An ambulance worker tested Lewis and said his blood sugar was slightly elevated “and not the reason for his behavior,” the citation said.
Lewis was taken to Saint Joseph – London Hospital, where he refused to take a blood test to determine his blood-alcohol level, the citation said.
Officers tried unsuccessfully to call two different attorneys for Lewis before taking him to the Laurel County Correctional Center. He was released on his own recognizance, meaning he did not have to post a cash bond, according to jail records.
Lewis, a Republican lawmaker and pharmacy owner, represents Laurel and Clay counties and part of Leslie County.
The state House adjourned about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday on the last day of the 2020 Kentucky legislative session.
Lewis was arrested at 1:36 a.m. London is about an hour and 40-minute drive from Frankfort, according to the Rand McNally calculator.
During a protest against Gov. Andy Beshear’s coronavirus-related restrictions on businesses Wednesday evening, Lewis made his way through the crowd and was seen speaking to some of the protesters. He was not among the speakers at the event.
Croley Foley & Cessna in London, the law firm representing Lewis, said in a statement that Lewis’ vehicle struck a ditch while he was on the way home after working all day in Frankfort, and that police charged him.
Lewis plans to plead not guilty to the charge, according to the statement
“We request that everyone following this matter keep an open mind and not reach conclusions while the matter proceeds though the legal system,” the statement said.
A spokeswoman for the Kentucky House of Representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This story was originally published April 16, 2020 at 3:10 PM.
