A Leesburg man was charged with DUI after he reportedly fell asleep behind the wheel of his vehicle while stopped in the middle of a roadway in Tavares.
Shortly after midnight Sunday, two Tavares police officers responded to a report of a white Hyundai stopped in the middle of Dora Avenue near Druid Place. The vehicle was occupied by 46-year-old Darren McCoy, of 155 Bayou Circle, Apt. 304, in Leesburg.
According to the police report, McCoy was asleep, snoring and drooling. The vehicle was in park and the engine was running. The officers entered the vehicle through unlocked doors and immediately smelled alcohol. They were able to awaken McCoy, but he continued to fall back asleep. The officers turned off the ignition and requested emergency medical services due to a possible medical emergency.
Between falling asleep, McCoy handed an officer his wallet and was identified through his driver’s license. When asked where he was coming from and where he was going, McCoy spoke with a thick tongue, mumbled and couldn’t remember anything including his name. He refused EMS transport and became argumentative when asked to get out of the vehicle, saying there were better things the officer could be doing, the report said.
Once fully awake, McCoy admitted he had too much to drink and said he believed his brain told him it was a good idea to park in the middle of the road. His eyes were bloodshot and watery, and his eyelids were droopy. After refusing to participate in field sobriety exercises, McCoy provided breath samples that came back with BAC readings of .137 and .132 – well over the legal limit, according to the report.
McCoy was arrested and taken to the Lake County Jail, where he was released later Sunday morning on $1,000 bond. He’s due to appear in Lake County Court on Nov. 30.
