Navajo VP can't drive 55
Cited by NN police for doing 92 mph

By Natasha Kaye Johnson
Diné Bureau

DILKON, Ariz. — Navajo Nation Vice President Ben Shelly was stopped for speeding and arrested for reckless driving on Saturday afternoon.

Shelly was driving a black Yukon SUV owned by the Navajo tribe around 3:58 p.m. when he was pulled over by a Dilkon police district officer for traveling 92 mph in a 55 mph zone in Indian Wells.

Shelly told the Navajo Nation Police officer he had just attended a meeting in Tolani Lake, in Coconino County, and that he was late for another meeting in Holbrook, which is located in Navajo County. The two communities are approximately 70 miles apart. Indian Wells is 32 miles north of Holbrook.

A police report stated that he refused to sign a Personal Recognizance Form upon request by the police officer, and asked to be processed through the whole booking. The report also stated that Shelly's wife was the only passenger and he did not have a Navajo Nation permit for her to be a passenger in the tribal vehicle. The officer explained to Shelly that if he refused to sign the a Personal Recognizance Form, the vehicle would be towed and impounded.

Shelly will appear in District Court to answer the citation on July 25.

Rumors that Shelly was arrested for DUI circulated over the weekend, but Lt. Emerson Lee of Dilkon Police District reported that the rumors were untrue. He said here was no mention of any other charges other than speeding and reckless driving on the report.