Police: Trooper charged with DUI; found asleep at the wheel on I-84

Trooper Shaquile Ajene Williams was charged with illegal operation of a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs. His state police cruiser vehicle had its hazard lights on on the side of I-84 in Waterbury. Her was found asleep and unreponsive on Monday, March 16, 2030. less Trooper Shaquile Ajene Williams was charged with illegal operation of a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs. His state police cruiser vehicle had its hazard lights on on the side of I-84 in ... more Photo: State Police Photo Photo: State Police Photo Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Police: Trooper charged with DUI; found asleep at the wheel on I-84 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

A Connecticut state trooper was arrested on a drunken driving charge after he was found asleep in a cruiser parked along Interstate 84 early Monday, police said.

Shaquile Ajene Williams was charged with illegal operation of a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

State Police said at around 12:50 a.m., Troop A in Southbury received a call reporting a state police cruiser parked on the right shoulder of I-84 in Waterbury.

“The vehicle had its hazard lights on. The operator was asleep and unresponsive,” according to the arrest summary.

“Troopers and a supervisor responded to the scene. The operator, identified as Shaquile Ajene Williams, agreed to perform the standardized field sobriety tests, which he subsequently failed.”

Williams was taken into custody and arrested at Troop A. He was released on $500 bond.

State police said Williams “was suspended immediately; his cruiser, weapon, badge and ID were handed in; an Internal Affairs investigation was launched.”

Williams was off duty at the time of his arrest, said Trooper First Class Christine Jeltema, a spokeswoman for the agency. He has been with the state police for two years, assigned to the patrol division out of Troop I in Bethany.

Troop I patrols highways and towns between Milford and East Haven along the coast and as far north as Naugatuck and Meriden.

It is not clear whether Williams was given a breathalyzer after he failed the field sobriety test. Jeltema said officers typically perform a breathalyzer after the field sobriety test, but she did not know whether Williams refused the breathalyzer after failing the first test.

Police said Williams was in his assigned unmarked cruiser when he was found parked near westbound Exit 26 in Cheshire.

State policy bars state police from having any amount of alcohol while driving their department vehicle.

Troopers are permitted to use their assigned vehicles while off duty under the police union contract.

Williams will appear in Waterbury Superior Court on April 21.

He is not the only trooper facing charges of driving under the influence.

State police are also conducting an internal affairs investigation into a retirement party last September at the Black Hog Brewing Co. in Oxford.

In court documents, police allege one of officers at that party, Sgt. John McDonald, drank as many as eight beers in three hours before crashing into a family car a short distance from the bar.

The 37-year-old officer is facing criminal charges of operating a motor vehicle under the influence and second-degree assault with a motor vehicle.

He was also charged with reckless driving and failure to obey a stop sign in the Sept. 25 crash.