The owner of the Indianapolis Colts, Jim Irsay, possibly faces four felony counts after being arrested Sunday night for a DUI by Carmel police. Irsay did not crash, but will likely be charged with driving under the influence and possession of a controlled substance, police said.
Lt. Joe Bickel of the Carmel Police Department said in a release, Irsay reportedly drove at a slow rate of speed, stopped in the roadway, and failed to signal a turn before police stopped him.
“During the course of the investigation, Irsay subsequently failed several roadside field sobriety tests,” Bickel said.
This is important to note, especially when considering that Field Sobriety Tests are not pass or fail. These tests were created and used to determined cues or clues of impairment. They are in no way conclusory or 100% accurate to prove impairment.
Thus, it appears Irsay had some prescription drugs in his car, drove in an odd manner, and performed Field Sobriety Tests poorly.
But, this case definitely needs further investigation. If the streets were empty and no other cars were affected, while Irsay’s driving may appear somewhat erratic, it was not necessarily enough to prove he was too impaired to drive. As for the Field Sobriety Tests, they can always be challenged as insufficient to prove impairment beyond a reasonable doubt.
Thus, it appears they must wait for chemical results, like a blood test result. Until they have a quantitative breakdown of drugs in his system, and further investigation, we will not know whether Irsay was guilty of driving under the influence. Here’s what he faces for a Felony DUI.