A driver turned combative during a drunk driving arrest early Sunday morning in Leesburg.
David Noel Herbst, 47, of Leesburg, was squealing the tires of his red sedan in the parking lot of Palm Plaza on North 14th Street when he attracted the attention of a Leesburg police officer. Herbst began to drive out of the parking lot, again squealing his tires, according to an arrest report from the Leesburg Police Department. The officer activated his emergency lights and began to pursue Herbst’s vehicle.
“The driver suddenly made a right turn at Citizens Boulevard and departed at a high rate of speed,” the arresting officer wrote in the report.
Herbst’s vehicle came to a stop in the parking lot of a SunTrust Bank. When the officer approached the vehicle, he found that Herbst had “severely slurred speech” and was “immediately confrontational.”
He initially agreed to participate in field sobriety exercises, but became upset and refused to continue. He provided breath samples that registered .212 and .203 blood alcohol content.
Herbst, who has been classified as a habitual offender, was arrested on charges of driving under the influence, driving while license suspended and reckless driving. After he was placed in the squad car, Herbst began banging his head against the security bars and the window. He had to be placed in a three-point restraint to prevent injury to himself or damage to the vehicle. He was booked at the Lake County Jail and released after posting $6,500 bond.
