Man convicted of at least 5th DUI; in recent case, he nearly hit deputies who were performing a DUI test on different drivers | News, Sports, Jobs

photo of: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

The Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center is pictured September 4, 2024.

A habitual drunken driver was convicted Wednesday of at least his fifth DUI, including an incident in which he nearly crashed into sheriff’s deputies who were conducting a field sobriety test on another driver.

David Dearborn, 57, pleaded guilty to two drunk driving charges, bringing the number of times he has been convicted of the offense to at least five. In addition to the two recent DUIs in Douglas County, he has three others in Georgia dating to the early 2000s, Assistant Prosecutor Samantha Foster said in court.

In the first local DUI, as reported by the Journal-World, Dearborn was arrested on November 23, 2021 shortly before 2:30 a.m. after nearly hitting deputies in the 300 block of Locust Street while a another driver was being tested for driving under the influence.

Foster told the court that Dearborn had a suspended driver’s license at the time, was unable to perform a field sobriety test and refused to consent to a breathalyzer test. A blood test later revealed a blood alcohol level of 0.18, more than double the legal limit.

In the second local incident, on April 15, 2023, Dearborn attempted to leave the scene of an accident without injury, Foster said. Once again, he was unable to perform a sobriety test because he was “unbalanced.” Police on scene observed several open containers in his vehicle, and he was found to have a blood alcohol level of 0.25, more than three times the legal limit.

Dearborn also pleaded guilty Wednesday to misdemeanor charges of violating a protection order for sending an email to a woman with whom he was ordered to have no contact.

Judge Stacey Donovan told Dearborn that for each of the two misdemeanor drunk driving convictions, he faced 17 to 46 months in prison and a $100,000 fine. She scheduled sentencing for December 12.

The parties, as part of the plea agreement, agreed to recommend probation, to which Donovan is not bound.

When Donovan asked Dearborn if he was satisfied with his plea, he responded “absolutely.”