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Officer: 69-year-old on lawnmower busted for drunk driving

Posted at 4:52 PM, May 30, 2012
and last updated 2012-05-30 16:52:17-04

JACKSON, WI (WDJT) - A police officer in Wisconsin spotted a 69-year-old man on a lawnmower, weaving from side to side, driving down a highway Sunday evening.

"I never expected to see somebody operating a lawnmower while intoxicated going down the road," said Jackson Police Department's Kyle Henning.

During the routine patrol, Henning radioed back to headquarters that he was "going to have traffic with a lawnmower."

However, getting the 69-year-old to pull over proved difficult.

"And I had my lights on and hit my siren a few times trying to get his attention and he just kept saying going around go around," said Henning.

Instead, the pair ended up pulling into a Walgreens' parking lot, but even then, the 69-year-old had trouble stopping the machine.

"Instead of putting it into park, he drove forward and hit the curb -- and the curb stopped him from going in further," said Henning.

Kenning said Charles Gray told him that he had only had one beer, but Henning did not buy it and conducted a field sobriety test.

The test revealed Gray's blood alcohol level to be "2-1-9," as Gray continued to argue that he had only had one beer.

When Henning asked Gray if he had any questions, the man couldn't figure out what he had done wrong – and why he had been pulled over.

"Ok, you've been drinking. You're operating a lawnmower on a roadway. These are problems!" said Henning.

During the stop police also discovered Gray's license had been suspended because of three earlier drunk driving arrests.

Gray appeared in court Tuesday and was charged with his fourth OWI.