Drunk driver goes on (fender) bender
PETALUMA – Around 11 a.m. Friday, a repeat DUI offender with a blood-alcohol level nearly five times the legal limit crashed into two metals poles and a fence along the 300 block of Bodega Avenue in Petaluma.
Ross Bracken, 46, of Petaluma pulled into a parking lot of a local business and collided with the poles. He then drove back onto Bodega Avenue and into oncoming eastbound traffic, before crossing over into the correct westbound lane and stopping in the street. Next he backed up his vehicle, turned into the driveway of a private residence and crashed into an adjacent wooden fence, said Sgt. Ken Savano of the Petaluma Police Department.
When Petaluma officers arrived, they found that Bracken was extremely intoxicated and unable to stand or walk on his own. DUI testing revealed that he had a blood-alcohol level almost five times the legal limit. In fact, he was so intoxicated that he had to be transported to a hospital for medical clearance before being booked at the Sonoma County jail.
Bracken’s vehicle was impounded for 15 days because he was convicted of DUIs in 2004 and 2006, Savano said. The damage to his vehicle was minimal and the damage sustained by the two property owners’ fencing and mental poles was minor.
