A Palm Coast man with four prior DUI convictions and an outstanding fugitive warrant from Indiana was arrested Monday night after a citizen reported a reckless driver on State Road 100.
Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to State Road 100 and Old Kings Road after receiving a call about a driver swerving on the road. Deputies quickly located a blue Ford pickup as it left the RaceTrac gas station with its headlights off, exiting through an entrance marked with a “do not enter” sign rather than using the proper exit. The vehicle then crossed three lanes into the left turn lane and ran a red light while making a U-turn.
Deputies stopped the vehicle and identified the driver as Howard Johnson, 60, of Palm Coast. Johnson appeared nervous and was slurring his speech. Deputies also observed an open beer can on the passenger floorboard.
During a DUI investigation, deputies asked Johnson to exit the vehicle for a field sobriety test. Johnson could not keep still, smelled strongly of alcohol, and could not complete portions of the exercises. Based on his driving behavior, physical impairment, and field sobriety test performance, deputies determined Johnson was unable to drive safely and placed him under arrest. An inventory search of Johnson’s vehicle revealed additional open alcohol containers.
Johnson was arrested for DUI and driving while license was suspended. He was transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, where he refused to submit a breath test.
Sheriff Rick Staly emphasized the dangers of impaired driving and credited the citizen who reported the incident. “When you decide to get behind the wheel of the car, you take on the responsibility of operating that vehicle sober and safely,” Staly said. “Within seconds of leaving the gas station, Johnson had committed several traffic violations and was a clear risk to everyone around him. Because a vigilant citizen saw something and said something, a dangerous drunk driver was taken off the roadway and a fugitive was apprehended.”
Johnson has an extensive criminal history outside of Florida and has been convicted four times in Indiana for DUI. He is also a fugitive from Lake County, Indiana, wanted on several charges, including dealing cocaine, possession of a firearm by a violent felon, and operating a vehicle while impaired, endangering a person.
Johnson is being held at the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility on an $81,000 bond for the Flagler County charges and is pending extradition to Indiana.
View video of Johnson’s arrest.
The post Citizen Tip Leads to Arrest of Indiana Fugitive Wanted on Drug and Gun Charges After Fifth DUI first appeared on Flagler County Buzz.
