A 63-year-old man from Bellevue, California, found himself on the wrong side of the law Wednesday night after crashing his car while allegedly driving under the influence in Petaluma. In an incident that has once again underscored the perils of drinking and driving, Phillip Chaney was arrested following a collision on Frates Road at Lakeville Highway.
The Petaluma Police Department was alerted to the mishap around 9:28 PM yesterday, per an online statement. Upon arriving at the scene, officers were greeted with the sight of two vehicles marooned in the intersection's midst, one of which was operated by the suspect whose evening took a regrettable turn when his impairment became evident to the law enforcement officers tasked with investigating the cause of the collision.
Chaney, upon inspection, exhibited clear signs of intoxication an ensuing DUI probe by the officers confirmed suspicions that he was indeed in no state to be behind the wheel, resultingly, he was then taken into custody on charges of DUI Collision with Injury as he had courted disaster not just for himself but for others as well. An unlucky victim of Chaney’s alleged recklessness was whisked away to a local hospital by the Petaluma Fire Department.
The aftermath of the incident saw Chaney at the Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility, where he faced sobering realities, including significant fines, which for first-time DUI offenders can balloon up to $13,500, not to mention a likely suspension of driving privileges, as authorities continually come down hard to curb the dangers that invariably trail the intoxicated motorist. Petaluma Police Department’s Lieutenant Matthew Parnow, in communications with the public, continued to reprimand the irresponsible practice of impaired driving, reminding the populace to think ahead and ensure a safe ride home by means other than taking the wheel themselves.
