The Virginian-Pilot
©
VIRGINIA BEACH
A Virginia Beach police officer who specialized in enforcing drunken-driving laws was convicted Monday of DUI and misdemeanor hit and run.
Bryan K. Womble, 37, kept his head bowed and frequently wiped away tears as he stood before substitute General District Judge E.L. Turlington Jr. The judge suspended his driver's license for a year and ordered him to serve five days in jail, pay $500 in fines, use an ignition interlock device for six months and attend alcohol safety awareness classes
Womble and his attorney, Larry Slipow, immediately appealed the guilty verdict to Circuit Court, effectively setting aside the judge's ruling. Womble, who joined the force in 2002, will remain on administrative duty, where he has worked since his arrest while off-duty on June 20, a police spokesman said.
During the nearly two-hour trial, Womble testified that he had been drinking rum and Coke when he decided to head toward the 2nd Police Precinct about 2 a.m. that Saturday. He said he hoped to get a ride home after reaching the precinct.
While heading north on Pacific Avenue, he tried to turn onto 20th Street and instead struck a southbound car with four people inside. His air bags deployed and a set of golf clubs in the passenger seat smashed the windshield of his Mitsubishi sports car. Womble pulled away and drove off.
Meanwhile, Officer Michael Stark was heading east on 20th Street when he saw smoke pouring from the windows of an approaching Mitsubishi. Its windshield was cracked, he said.
Stark made a U-turn and followed as the car rolled through a stop sign at Arctic Avenue and finally pulled over. He said he recognized Womble when he walked up to the car.
Other officers, including Womble's supervisor, Sgt. Scott Wichtendahl, responded to help. They testified Womble smelled of alcohol and appeared unsteady. He also failed two field sobriety tests.
Wichtendahl arrested the officer, and as they traveled toward Oceana Naval Air Station for a blood-alcohol test, he said Womble cried and apologized repeatedly.
Womble also said, "I'm guilty, I just want to get this over with," according to Wichtendahl.
At the base, Womble registered a 0.15 blood alcohol concentration, nearly twice the state's legal limit to drive.
At the time of his crash, Womble was one of eight officers in a unit that specialized in enforcing traffic laws. He ranked among the department's top DUI-enforcement officers.
Womble testified on Monday that he didn't recall admitting guilt. He never saw the vehicle that he struck on Pacific Avenue, nor did he see the police car behind him before he pulled over on 20th Street, he said.
He choked up and cried as he told the judge that personal and work-related problems had led him to begin drinking in May, around the time he made the biggest arrest of his career.
On May 14, Womble pulled over a Bentley speeding on Interstate 264. He charged the driver, retired NFL star Bruce Smith, with drunken driving. Smith was convicted in July in General District Court. He has since appealed and is awaiting a Nov. 5 trial.
A Circuit Court trial date for Womble was not immediately set.
Shawn Day, (757) 222-5131, shawn.day@pilotonline.com
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DRUNK COP
The people of our city with concerns about equal punishment for equal crimes should all email and or call the Mayor's office as well as the city council members and make their concerns known. The officer should resign from the city and make the decision from his superiors mute. He stood infront of the judges and pointed his finger at many in his same position; they were found guilty and paid the price for their crime. I plan on contacting MADD and requesting them to lobby the City of Virginia Beach on their position regarding the matter as well. Remember, Officer Wamble was part of a "special" group that set up moving survelience on the streets of Virginia Beach seeking our reckless and drunk drivers. He did his job very well and now should receive the punishment the many guilty drunk drivers he arrested have received. He arrested my son, who was guilty spent a year without a drivers license, attended the weekly meetings and whose insurance went through the roof. The "good" officer deserves the same; no more no less. Equal justice for all. PERIOD.
Well stated. There is no
Well stated. There is no reason why he shouldn't suffer the same consequences as someone else convicted of the same.
DUI cop will suffer from the publicity of his blatant hypocrisy
Be glad he was arrested in the first place - it says one of two things - either the system is more honest than most people give it credit for, or, his accident was so over the top as to force a response or risk being seen as blatantly protecting one's own. I didn't follow this closely enough to make the call - I will say, though, regardless of the outcome of his case (or appeal or whatever), he will forever be remembered by me as a hypocrite of the highest order. He ought to be thanking his lucky stars he's just a laughingstock on facebook and the butt of a lot of jokes at workplaces throughout Hampton Roads and not in the position of having to plan a defense for manslaughter or worse...
Officer Womble
I send this message with the deepest gratitude that no one was seriously injured or killed in Officer Womble's incident while driving under the influence of alcohol and with the deepest sorrow for what may be a career destroyer and painful problem for him, his loved ones, and his brothers and sisters in the police department. For those who aren't aware, Officer Womble's behaviors are very typical of the judgements and terrible decisions people who are seriously impaired and who may be addicted to alcohol can make. It is too easy for us to be critical and cruel when responding to such incidents, especially when commited by one of our necessarily most trusted citizens. Fortunately, Officer Womble can be offered a second take on life with the mandated education and information school that people who are arrested for driving under the influence must experience. As the result of a judge's sentence, Officer Womble may have the opportunity to begin recovery from his alcohol-related problems or possible alcoholism. In this case, he may be of great service to his profession as one who can educate and intervene with his fellow professionals who may have similar problems as his. Alcoholism is
teacher girl
How can this man "need" further education about the dangers of drivung under the influence of alcohol, much less hit and run? He is a police officer isn't he? He, more than anyone else would have to know and what the consequences would be to even become a police officer if one is driving while impaired by alcohol, drugs, or whatever. In addition to that, he hit another vehicle and ran. More mandated education? I was taught in elementry school about alcohol and the effects on someone who tries to drive after a few drinks. Everyone else in his situation would have received a sentence a lot more severe than what he got. He needs to do his 5 days in the can, pay his fine, and make restitution for the damage to the other vehicle he hit and move on.
Perhaps you folks should sit
Perhaps you folks should sit in a circuit court room for a day and watch a DUI appeal. Prosecutors in Va Beach bring them to trial and do not make deals in any way whatsoever. It happens for speeding tickets and the like, but not DUI's.
DUI
He should be held to the same standard as all of us and how about this:
He gets the same punishment as the people he helps prosecute. I think we will all be watching what Virginia Beach does with this, Good ole boy system or a fair and just legal system. I suspect he will walk and we will be disappointed.
Double Standards
Is this the policy of the City of Va Beach to allow a police employee who job requirement is that they have valid driver license remain an active employee? once they have been charged with a DUI, licenses revoked and charged with a hit and run accident? If the employee was a public work employee would the same standards be applied?
Penalties should be harder for those in uniform
This man was entrusted to hold up the law, he abused his position of power. Already VB has an aggressive driver problem. We need to set examples. Since I am against abortion, i must be against the death pentalty. So he should get life imprisonment for this crime. Drunk driving is basically attempted murder....
Let's see if I got this
Let's see if I got this right...You drink rum and coke...get in your car..hit a car you didn't see, your air bags go off and obviously didn't see that, you leave the scene of the accident and later bust a .15 on the blood test, confess you did it and then want to appeal. Let joe citizen try that, I don't care what you say he/she is getting the book thrown at them. I'm thinking the ones sticking up for him probably know or work with him