Police: Robert Carmack's blood alcohol content was 3 times legal limit during Oct. arrest

Joe Guillen | Detroit Free Press

Robert Carmack's blood alcohol content was more than three times the legal limit when he was arrested in October for drunken driving, according to a Brownstown Police report of the incident.

The police report, obtained by the Free Press, provides new details about Carmack's arrest. The Michigan Attorney General announced last week a charge of felony drunken driving, third offense, against Carmack, who is known for his dramatic feud with Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan.

Police officers were in the parking lot of Champions Sports Grill "to prevent any crime occurrences" when they saw Carmack leave the bar about 2:30 a.m. on Oct. 27. He nearly fell multiple times, according to the report.

Carmack and his lawyer, Ed Zelenak, each declined to comment on the police report.

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The officers stopped Carmack, 60, of Woodhaven, in the parking lot and saw he had bloodshot eyes and slurred speech. Carmack said "I'm drunk" multiple times, according to the report.

Officers gave Carmack contact information for a ride and he walked back inside the bar. About two minutes later, Carmack came back out, went into his red Corvette and started the car, according to the report. Police stopped him in the parking lot to prevent him from leaving.

Carmack refused field sobriety testing and a blood test. A warrant was obtained for a blood draw and the results were .257, above the legal limit of .08, the report reads.

Carmack was arraigned Dec. 20 and a not guilty plea was entered. A preliminary exam is scheduled for Jan. 7.

Joe Guillen has been covering city governance and development issues for the newspaper since 2013. He has covered Detroit city hall, been a member of the investigations team and previously worked at The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer covering county and state government. Contact him at 313-222-6678 or jguillen@freepress.com.