Former Texas City Commissioner Dee Ann Haney Charged with DWI, Risks Violating Probation

Dee Ann Haney, a former Texas City Commissioner, has found herself in custody after being charged with driving while intoxicated (DWI), an offense that could carry severe repercussions given her legal history. Haney, aged 61, was apprehended by Texas City police officers around 4 a.m. after she reportedly engaged in a pursuit of a reckless driver, leading to a disturbance in the 200 block of 22nd Avenue North, as per FOX 26 Houston. This charge emerges following her earlier conviction for criminally negligent homicide related to a tragic 2017 crash.

During the incident that led to her arrest, Haney's claim of chasing another driver did little to sway the judgment of the responding officers, who suspected she was intoxicated. Nevertheless, it remains unconfirmed whether a field sobriety test or other methods such as a breathalyzer or blood draw were conducted before the arrest. As provided by The Galveston County Daily News, Haney had previously been convicted on two counts of criminally negligent homicide for the deaths of Van Duoc Le, 58, and his son Hong Phuc Le, 33, a verdict that came after several years of delays and deliberation, resulting in a 10-year probation sentence contingent upon remaining charge-free.

This latest DWI charge thus imperils Haney's probationary status. A crucial condition of her probation for the criminally negligent homicide conviction was to steer clear from any new criminal charges, which means Haney could be facing the possibility of the 10-year jail sentence originally set by the jury. Haney was listed as an inmate in the Galveston County jail following her latest arrest, with no bond indicated in the jail records.

Back in February of this year, Haney stood trial for a late-night crash that resulted in the loss of two lives, father and son Duoc Le, 58, and Hong Le, 33, on July 3, 2017. After about seven years worth of delays, a jury convicted Haney of the aforementioned charges. As quoted in The Galveston County Daily News, "The jury found Haney guilty and sentenced her to 10 years of probation under conditions such as avoiding any criminal charges during that time."