Staff Reports
Columbus police arrested a local man for operating a vehicle while intoxicated after he was accused of driving off the road and striking several mailboxes before leaving the scene.
Police were sent to the 4500 block of Jonathan Moore Pike at 7:20 p.m. Thursday to investigate the accident and talk to a witness, said Lt. Matt Harris, Columbus Police Department spokesman.
The truck involved in the accident, driven by Douglas H. Mitchell, 54, of 616 Hutchins Ave., was located and had extensive front end damage and was later towed, Harris said.
When officers spoke with Mitchell, they said his speech was slurred and they smelled a strong odor of alcohol on his breath, Harris said.
After Mitchell failed several field sobriety exercises, he was taken to the Columbus Police Department, where he provided a breath test sample of .201 percent, which exceeds the state’s .08 percent blood-alcohol threshold, Harris said.
Mitchell was arrested on preliminary charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and leaving the scene of an accident, Harris said.
He was released from the Bartholomew County Jail after posting $6,000 bond, jail officials said.
