Crime & Safety
PA State Trooper Charged With DUI While On-Duty
The Pennsylvania state trooper was drunk on the job while driving, authorities said.
MCKEAN COUNTY, PA — A Pennsyvlania state trooper has been charged with driving under the influence while he was on duty, according to authorities and media reports.
Austin James Burney, 29, stationed at Troop C in Lewis Run, McKean County in northwestern Pennsylvania, arrived at work on Nov. 27 drunk, officials said.
Fellow state troopers described Burney as having bloodshot and glossy eyes and that he was "extremely talkative," according to PennLive.
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Burney was reported to superior officers but he had already driven away to respond to a call in nearby Mount Jewett, police said.
Burney was suspended without pay.
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State police said Burney enlisted in the academy in Feb. 2021 and graduated with the 161st class in Aug. 2021. He's been assigned to Troop C ever since.
A preliminary hearing is forthcoming.
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