This is not helping the police case for arresting DUI suspects at all.
Map showing distance from bar to accident site.
Bar incident explanation.
Posted on 12/16/2004 5:59:57 AM PST by Arrowhead1952
By Asher Price
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, December 16, 2004
A retired Austin police detective and his wife, a police commander, had blood-alcohol levels far above the legal limit to drive when they died in a motorcycle crash Saturday, according to toxicology results from the Travis County medical examiner's office.
Kurt Jacobson, who retired from the Austin Police Department in 2002, was driving his Harley-Davidson with a blood-alcohol level of 0.24 — three times the state limit of 0.08 — Medical Examiner Roberto Bayardo said. Cmdr. Shauna Jacobson, his passenger, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.33, more than four times the legal limit, Bayardo said.
The couple probably consumed the same amount of alcohol, but because Kurt Jacobson, at about 230 pounds, weighed about twice as much as his wife, his blood-alcohol level was lower, Bayardo said.
Though much depends on drinking history and tolerance, Bayardo said, with a 0.24 blood-alcohol level, "there is muscular incoordination, impaired balance; you are drowsy or you are dizzy. Emotionally you might feel fear, or rage or sorrow."
Shauna Jacobson, he said, "was getting close to passing out."
"She was close what to we consider a lethal level, (which is) anything above 0.35," he said, adding that she was probably staggering.
Bayardo said the tests showed no trace of drugs.
The Jacobsons had been participating in a charity ride with dozens of other officers to benefit a police victims assistance counselor who has multiple sclerosis. The last stop on the charity ride was at the Cedars Bar and Grill on Texas 71 in Spicewood.
About 5:30 p.m., Kurt Jacobson drove his motorcycle into the crowded restaurant and spun his rear wheel until it created enough smoke to clear out the restaurant, bar owner Bobby Joe Bailey said.
Shortly after 7 p.m., the couple died after their motorcycle crashed into a guardrail near Bee Creek, less than a mile east of the restaurant in western Travis County. Bailey said he was not sure when they left the bar.
A Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman said earlier this week that the Jacobsons were not wearing helmets and that speed was a factor in the crash.
The bartender at the Cedars, Candi Lou Summers, 44, has been charged with being intoxicated while serving alcohol, a Class A misdemeanor that carries a maximum punishment of a year in jail.
A funeral service with full honors for Kurt and Shauna Jacobson is today.
The Austin Police Department plans to launch an administrative inquiry in the coming days to find out whether other officers witnessed the incident at the bar and if so, how they reacted.
In a news conference Wednesday, Chief Stan Knee said he has not yet spoken with any of the officers who were at the restaurant.
"Officer safety is not only officer safety on duty, but it also involves officer safety off-duty," Knee said. "So our expectation is that we'll not only be good leaders of the community, but we'll also understand that even off-duty, we have obligations.
"We have a policy that says our employees will not violate the law."
Knee also commended the officers' service.
"Tomorrow, we'll lay to rest two good individuals and two great police officers," he said.
He credited Shauna Jacobson, a commander of the Centralized Investigation Unit, which handles violent crimes, with developing the department's cold case unit, reopening a case involving men she thought had been wrongly convicted, and volunteering to strengthen the felony re-entry program.
This is not helping the police case for arresting DUI suspects at all.
Map showing distance from bar to accident site.
Bar incident explanation.
"About 5:30 p.m., Kurt Jacobson drove his motorcycle into the crowded restaurant and spun his rear wheel until it created enough smoke to clear out the restaurant, bar owner Bobby Joe Bailey said."
He should have been thrown in jail at that point.
This whole thing is terrible. I guess the only good news is that these people didn't kill anyone but themselves.
How long was this clown allowed to be a LEO?
I agree. Is the public supposed to be shocked that policemen constantly break the law when off-duty or retired from the force?
The cops I have know where big drinkers and drove drunk all the time.
I guess we can be thankful these two didn't kill anybody but themselves.
If alcohol impairment is reason to restrict operation of a motor vehicle it certainly should be reason to restrict the police power of an impaired individual. Public intoxication charges don't even require a degree of intoxication for conviction. Maybe police officers under the influence of alcohol or other drugs should not be allowed to have police powers. Unfortunately drunk police officers are rarely held accountable for their actions. For that matter officers are very rarely even required to submit to testing to determine their degree of impairment.
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In my opinion and experience, many cops (not most, not all, but many) drink and drive and routinely break many other rules of the road. They know that if they get pulled over they'll most likely get "professional courtesy", especially if it's by someone in their police department. One set of laws for the law enforcers, another for the rest of us.
My guess would be about 30 to 45 seconds earlier.
This is all over the radio here.
The 'charity ride' was apparently a 'poker run'. Out at the lake, they have these 'events' where you boat from bar to bar, getting a playing card (and a few drinks) at each bar. Then, at the end of the day, at the last place, the person with the best 'poker hand' gets some kind of prize.
And they arrested the bartender at the *last* bar these folks were at!
This does say a *lot* about DUI laws. The law expects the bar/bar owner to be responsible for these folks' drunken-ness. Even tho a room full of law officers didn't do, say or try anything.
It's an interesting story, without a doubt.
You and I both.
I am completely aghast that this retired cop had been drinking.
What would we do without taxpayers thousands supporting laboratory tests?
Gotta go now. I spilled some gas on my driveway and the EPA, FBI, CIA, Disaster Control, and Homeland Security just arrived to save the neighborhood, and lock me up.
Have a Happy Christmas.
I have been on a few poker runs and for most of the people its not just a card at every stop but a drink or two and then more at the party at the finish. Many people leave drunk and its suprising more people are not killed.
I don't know exactly where the accident took place, but I understand the road is not very straight. If you are listening to Mark, Ed and SGT Sam on KLBJ, this is one of the worst examples the APD could set for Austin.
Read again why the bartender was arrested.
I have figured out where this place is. The next time I need to drive in that direction, I'm going to look for it, just out of curiousity.
My husband was driving past Dave's Biker Bar on 620 earlier in the day, and noticed all of these bikers turning in there. Apparently, they were going from bar to bar.
Are you listening to KLBJ? SGT Sam made a comment about this early today. That room full of law officers will all have "the bathroom excuse". He said that about 550 AM today, when we were driving to work. Every officer in the bar will say "I was in the bathroom", even though the bathroom only holds 3 or 4 people.
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