Man arrested on 8th DWI

By Leslie Wood
Staff writer

Leroy J. Yazzie

GALLUP — A 36-year-old Gallup man was arrested for the eighth time on the suspicion of drunken driving, according to police records.

Leroy J. Yazzie’s blood alcohol content registered almost three times the legal limit when he was booked into the McKinley County Adult Detention Center early Sunday morning. The legal limit in New Mexico is .08.

Yazzie was driving his silver Buick east along New Mexico Highway 118 near Arnold Street when Deputy Tom Mumford noticed the vehicle swerving across the center lane divider at about 2 a.m.

“The vehicle at one point reached a “Y” intersection and almost went straight into the painted divider at which time the vehicle made an abrupt left turn into the Zia Motel,” Mumford wrote in a police report.

During a traffic stop, Mumford noted Yazzie’s breath smelled of alcohol and his eyes were bloodshot. He could also see several beer cans scattered throughout the vehicle, some of which were open and accessible to the driver.

Yazzie was given a field sobriety test and reportedly failed them and was subsequently arrested for the eighth time on the suspicion of drunken driving. He is also facing charges of careless driving and driving with no insurance.

Rachel O’Conner, the state’s DWI Czar, said repeat offenders are more common in parts of New Mexico.

“The multiple offenders are not a regular occurrence, but are more common in some parts of the state,” O’Conner said.

She said first-time DWI offenders must be dealt with before their behavior becomes repetitive.

“We really don’t do anyone favors when we don’t crack down on the offender,” she said.

Once convicted of drunken driving, the offender is required to install an ignition interlock device in the vehicles he or she drives. The device measures the driver’s blood-alcohol content before it allows the vehicle to be driven.

However, McKinley County has the lowest rate of ignition interlock compliance in the state, she said. In part, because many offenders claim they have no vehicle in which the device can be installed.

O’Conner said it doesn’t matter if the offender owns a car, the device should be installed in any vehicle he or she drives despite ownership.

She said the county’s compliance team is also working to ensure those convicted of DWI follow through with their sentences.