Darien Fire Official Over 2 Times Legal Limit: Police

DARIEN, IL — A top official with the Darien-Woodridge Fire Protection District was more than two times the legal limit when he was arrested in Morris on a DUI charge last week, police said.

Seth Dale, 52, a battalion chief, rear-ended another car shortly before 9 p.m. Aug. 16, police said.

Through a public records request, Patch obtained the full police report from the Morris Police Department.

When asked by an officer, Dale said he had had two beers about 20 minutes earlier at Cade's Corner Pub in downtown Morris, according to the police report.

An officer witnessed the crash near Route 6 and Lisbon Road. The report said the officer smelled a strong odor of alcohol from Dale and that his eyes were "extremely" bloodshot. A roadside breath test showed his blood alcohol at .21, while a later test at the police station indicated it was .18.

Dale, a Morris resident, struggled with field sobriety tests, according to the report.

In the walk-and-turn test, Dale displayed four of the eight possible clues for possible impairment, when only two were required to make that determination, police said.

Dale was then arrested and taken to the police station.

When he was asked to sign a "warning to motorist," Dale declined, citing his Fifth Amendment rights. He later requested the presence of a particular sergeant before he took another breath test, the report said.

After he was read the Miranda warning, he said he would not speak with police.

Dale was released on bond.

The next morning, Dale got back his 2016 Jeep after he paid a $150 tow fee.

He was also charged with failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident and operating a vehicle with an expired registration.

In a phone interview with Patch earlier this week, Dale said all the charges were under investigation by the Grundy County State's Attorney's Office.

"The final disposition of the charges will be determined at a later date," he said.

After Dale's arrest, the fire district suspended him with pay.

According to Dale's LinkedIn page, he has been with the Darien-Woodridge district for three decades. The page also says he has been a volunteer firefighter with the Morris Fire Protection District. Morris is southwest of the Chicago suburbs in Grundy County.