Cops Rock Car to Wake Driver Asleep at the Wheel

LAKE FOREST, IL — A Waukegan man was found with cocaine after officers found him stopped in the middle of the road and asleep at the wheel, according to Lake Forest police.

Richard M. Gomez, 21, of the 400 block of Jackson Street, was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony.

Police encountered Gomez while on patrol at about 6:02 a.m. Aug. 14, near Green Bay Road and Linden Avenue. His black Honda sedan was stopped in the northbound lane of Green Bay—engine running—and officers found him asleep at the wheel when they approached the car.

Rousting Gomez proved to be a problem for police, who banged on the car's windows and rocked the vehicle from side to side in order to wake the driver, according to the report. Eventually, Gomez woke up, and officers could smell a strong odor of alcohol on his breath as he exited his car, the report stated. Open bottles of alcohol also were seen in the car, the report added.

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At the scene, Gomez failed field sobriety tests, and a breath test he took at the Lake Forest police station registered a blood-alcohol level of 0.157, the report stated. The legal limit is 0.08.

A search of Gomez's wallet also found a plastic bag containing a white powder that field tested for cocaine, the report added.

PHOTO: (Image via Shutterstock)

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