Man who drove lawn mower drunk could get jail time

Tammy Stables Battaglia, Detroit Free Press | USATODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Raw video: Man arrested for riding lawn mower drunk Roy Walton was arrested at 9:49 p.m. March 22, 2013, after police spotted the riding mower parked on the sidewalk outside a drugstore, according to a report issued by Bloomfield Township Police in Michigan.

Navy veteran faces his 3rd DUI

He was arrested in drugstore parking lot

Michigan allows arrests for driving any motorized vehicle

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. — A Navy veteran is scheduled to be sentenced May 15 for driving his lawn tractor drunk here last month.

Bloomfield Township Police stopped Roy Walton, 47, at 9:49 p.m. March 22 in the parking lot of a drugstore along a busy road.

On Wednesday, he pleaded guilty to drunken driving, his third offense, in Oakland County Circuit Court. Judge Wendy Potts said Walton could expect 45 days in jail as punishment for the felony charge, which requires a minimum of 30 days in jail.

"This is the stupidest case I've heard in my life frankly," Walton's lawyer, John Secrest, said Thursday. "I know it's unusual behavior, but I don't know that it's criminal. This is a harsh remedy. For a lawnmower? C'mon. I think it's ridiculous."

Several states, including Michigan, allow for drunk-driving charges to be lodged if a person is operating a motorized vehicle on a highway or other place accessible to the public.

Officers spotted the lawnmower parked outside the pharmacy, then pulled him over as he started to drive away. His blood-alcohol level was 0.10, just more than Michigan's legal limit of 0.08, according to his lawyer.

The lawn mower was impounded but Walton picked it up the next morning after paying about $200 in fees for towing and impounding, according to General Towing in Auburn Hills, Mich., where the mower was towed.

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"He just really couldn't figure out why they were picking on him," a female employee said at the time.

Walton told a Free Press reporter a few days later that he had gone to the store to buy a pack of cigarettes and use the Western Union service. Worried about his job, he said he just wanted to let the incident blow over and didn't want to speak publicly.

Secrest said that Walton, who served in the Middle East, may be fired if he's forced to serve jail time.