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Beer company chief faces drunken driving charge


Steff
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http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/07/13/co...t.ap/index.html

 

 

 

GOLDEN, Colorado (AP) -- Beer company executive, chief commercial pitcher and former Senate candidate Pete Coors confirmed Thursday he was cited in May for driving under the influence of alcohol after leaving a friend's wedding celebration.

 

"I made a mistake," Coors said in a prepared statement. "I should have planned ahead for a ride. For years, I've advocated the responsible use of our company's products. That's still my message, and our company's message, and it's the right message.

 

"I am sorry that I didn't follow it myself."

 

The citation, first reported by The Denver Post, happened in Golden, the longtime hometown of the Adolph Coors Co. just west of Denver. The company has since become the Molson Coors Brewing Co. after a 2005 merger with the Canadian brewer.

 

Coors was driving a 2004 Jaguar when he was pulled over by a Colorado State Patrol trooper just before midnight May 29, according to officials in the Jefferson County District Court clerk's office.

 

He was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence and cited for failing to obey a traffic control device.

 

Coors rolled through a stop sign a block from his home and was stopped by the officer in his driveway, company spokeswoman Kabira Hatland said. She said his blood-alcohol content following a breath test was 0.088, above the legal limit of 0.08.

 

Coors is driving with a 60-day provisional license, Hatland said. A hearing before motor vehicles department officials is scheduled for Friday.

 

Coors, 59, also faces a July 20 arraignment.

 

Coors took over as president of his family's company in 1987 and in 2000 was named chief executive of the brewer, which has 8,500 employees and rang up $4 billion in sales in 2003.

 

Coors, a tall, silver-haired figure familiar to many as the face of the Coors television ads, was a political novice in 2004 when he decided to seek the Senate seat being given up by Republican Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell. He won the Republican primary but was defeated in the 2004 general election by Democrat Ken Salazar.

 

 

:cheers

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QUOTE(juddling @ Jul 14, 2006 -> 01:09 PM)
Not sure what the charge would be called but the police should cite the man for making a crappy beer!!!!

:bang

Agreed, "beer crimes against humanity" should be an internationally recognized capitol offense. :cheers

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QUOTE(Steff @ Jul 14, 2006 -> 11:28 AM)
http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/07/13/co...t.ap/index.html

 

 

 

GOLDEN, Colorado (AP) -- Beer company executive, chief commercial pitcher and former Senate candidate Pete Coors confirmed Thursday he was cited in May for driving under the influence of alcohol after leaving a friend's wedding celebration.

 

"I made a mistake," Coors said in a prepared statement. "I should have planned ahead for a ride. For years, I've advocated the responsible use of our company's products. That's still my message, and our company's message, and it's the right message.

 

"I am sorry that I didn't follow it myself."

 

The citation, first reported by The Denver Post, happened in Golden, the longtime hometown of the Adolph Coors Co. just west of Denver. The company has since become the Molson Coors Brewing Co. after a 2005 merger with the Canadian brewer.

 

Coors was driving a 2004 Jaguar when he was pulled over by a Colorado State Patrol trooper just before midnight May 29, according to officials in the Jefferson County District Court clerk's office.

 

He was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence and cited for failing to obey a traffic control device.

 

Coors rolled through a stop sign a block from his home and was stopped by the officer in his driveway, company spokeswoman Kabira Hatland said. She said his blood-alcohol content following a breath test was 0.088, above the legal limit of 0.08.

 

Coors is driving with a 60-day provisional license, Hatland said. A hearing before motor vehicles department officials is scheduled for Friday.

 

Coors, 59, also faces a July 20 arraignment.

 

Coors took over as president of his family's company in 1987 and in 2000 was named chief executive of the brewer, which has 8,500 employees and rang up $4 billion in sales in 2003.

 

Coors, a tall, silver-haired figure familiar to many as the face of the Coors television ads, was a political novice in 2004 when he decided to seek the Senate seat being given up by Republican Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell. He won the Republican primary but was defeated in the 2004 general election by Democrat Ken Salazar.

:cheers

 

If it was .088 why was he arrested?

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In Colorado, as in most if not all other states in the US, the legal limit for BAC is .08. Hence, .088 is over the limit. I also believe that in Colorado, you can be charged with "impaired driving" if you register between .05 and .079, since a great many states have that provision.

 

He'll get off with probation and (maybe) a fine, since I'm pretty sure this is his first offense.

 

What boggles my mind is that why he didn't just hire a limo for the night. It's not like he can't afford it.

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Update

 

Beer baron Coors loses license for DUI

 

52 minutes ago

 

DENVER - Beer baron Peter Coors' driver's license has been revoked by a hearing officer who ruled the executive had been driving under the influence of alcohol, officials said.

 

Hearing officer Scott Garber ruled Friday that Coors did not stop at a stop sign on May 28 and was driving intoxicated.

 

Coors, 59, said he had consumed a beer about 30 minutes before leaving a wedding, the Rocky Mountain News reported Saturday. He faces a July 20 arraignment and has 30 days to appeal the revocation.

 

"I made a mistake. I should have planned ahead for a ride," Coors said in a statement. "For years, I've advocated the responsible use of our company's products."

 

Coors' spokeswoman, Kabira Hatland, said Coors was charged with driving while under the influence. Coors' lawyer, Steve Higgens, did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

 

Hatland said that Coors rolled through a stop sign a block from his home in Golden and that an officer stopped him in his driveway.

 

In one breath test, he registered a blood alcohol level of 0.073 percent. In a second, 20 minutes later, he registered 0.088. In Colorado a blood alcohol count of 0.05 results in a driving while impaired charge, while a count of 0.08 results in driving under the influence.

 

Legal analyst Scott Robinson said drivers with no previous alcohol convictions are usually held to have driven while impaired, rather than the more serious driving while under the influence. A DWI finding can result in a loss of driving privileges for 90 days; DUI can result in suspension for a year.

 

Peter Coors "has never even had a moving violation," said Coors spokeswoman Kabira Hatland.

 

Coors took over as president of his family's company in 1987 and in 2000 was named chief executive of the brewer, with 8,500 employees and $4 billion in sales in 2003. Following a 2005 merger, it is now the Molson Coors Brewing Co.

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QUOTE(Queen Prawn @ Jul 14, 2006 -> 10:49 AM)
0.08 is the limit - apparently they follow it to a T with no leeway.

 

I'm not sure if this applies in Colorado, but in many places you can challenge the accuracy of a portable breathalizer and request to be taken down to the station to blow into the more accurate instrument. Since it usually takes 10-30 minutes to get to your town's police station plus at least a few minutes of paperwork and allowing the instrument to warm up/calibrate, there's a good chance that your alcohol level will go down over that time. If Pete had done that, there's a very good chance that his BAC could've fallen 0.009 points by that time.

 

EDIT: Oops, didn't know about his BAC going up the second time. Yikes.

 

QUOTE(bmags @ Jul 14, 2006 -> 10:49 AM)
coors is good for us college folk, we ain't all rich

 

You can find better cheap beer than Coors. Yuck...

Edited by WCSox
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QUOTE(WCSox @ Jul 17, 2006 -> 07:43 PM)
I'm not sure if this applies in Colorado, but in many places you can challenge the accuracy of a portable breathalizer and request to be taken down to the station to blow into the more accurate instrument. Since it usually takes 10-30 minutes to get to your town's police station plus at least a few minutes of paperwork and allowing the instrument to warm up/calibrate, there's a good chance that your alcohol level will go down over that time. If Pete had done that, there's a very good chance that his BAC could've fallen 0.009 points by that time.

 

EDIT: Oops, didn't know about his BAC going up the second time. Yikes.

You can find better cheap beer than Coors. Yuck...

 

of course we can.

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