Politics & Government

Sen. Crapo Consumed Vodka Prior to Arrest in Del Ray

U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) is scheduled to appear in Alexandria court on Jan. 4.

U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) admitted to consuming several shots of vodka hours before being arrested and charged with driving under the influence early Sunday morning in Del Ray, according to Alexandria General District Court documents obtained by Patch.

Crapo was pulled over near the corner of Mount Vernon and Hume avenues after an Alexandria police officer on routine patrol noticed Crapo's vehicle run a red light. The 61-year-old was arrested at 12:45 a.m. and taken into custody “without incident,” according to a police spokesperson. Crapo was transported to the city’s Adult Detention Center and later released on an unsecured $1,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 4.

According to the criminal complaint filed by the Alexandria Police, the arresting officer noticed a white vehicle driving north on Commonwealth Avenue make a U-turn just north of the street’s intersection with Mount Vernon Avenue. The officer reported that the vehicle then stopped at a red light at the Mount Vernon-Commonwealth intersection, but later made a left turn to move south onto Mount Vernon Avenue while the signal remained red. The officer, positioned on the south side of the intersection, then initiated a traffic stop.

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Upon encountering the driver, identified as Michael Dean Crapo with an address in Washington, DC’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, the officer detected a strong odor of alcohol on Crapo's breath “which became stronger as he spoke,” according to the criminal complaint. The officer wrote that the driver exhibited slurred speech and described the driver’s eyes as “bloodshot and watery.”

“The driver indicated that he consumed several shots of vodka hours earlier and did not consume any more alcoholic beverages since,” the officer wrote in the report.

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The driver failed to complete several sobriety tests. He was then offered and agreed to take a preliminary breath test. The breath test showed the driver had a blood alcohol content level of 0.11. The legal limit in Virginia is 0.08.

Crapo is charged with driving while intoxicated and disregarding a red light. His privilege to drive in Virginia was suspended for seven days for a first-time offense.

On Sunday evening, Crapo apologized for his actions in a statement.

“I accept total responsibility and will deal with whatever penalty comes my way in this matter,” Crapo said. “I will also undertake measures to ensure that this circumstance is never repeated.” 

Crapo had previously admitted to abstaining from alcohol as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.   

He is slated to take the Republican party’s top spot in the Senate Banking Committee when the 113th Congress convenes on Jan. 3.

The following day, he is scheduled to appear in Alexandria General District Court.

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