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Austin’s 4th of July Weekend Nets 73 DWI and 1 Sandwich-Making Arrest

The Austin Police Department reported that it made 73 DWI arrests over the Fourth of July holiday weekend this year, which was a “No Refusal” blood alcohol test weekend across the state.  APD reported that 27 arrests were made on Friday, 13 on Saturday, 19 on Sunday, and 14 on Monday (July 4th). Last year only 25 DWI arrests were made during the holiday weekend.

Approximately 213 Texas law enforcement agencies participated in the “No Refusal” initiative during the holiday weekend. Both San Antonio and Dallas law enforcement agencies each reported more than 100 DWI arrests in their respective metro areas. Houston area law enforcement reported 145 arrests this year, which is less than half of the 300-plus DWI arrests the Harris County’s District Attorney’s Office reported in 2009.

However, Austin-area law enforcement take the cake, or the sandwich as the case may be. The story goes something like this: Two men, who had enjoyed the afternoon by ingesting appreciable quantities of their favorite  liquid refreshment, boated ashore near a private residence on Lake Travis. One of the two men “de-boated,” entered a stranger’s home, and made himself a sandwich. It was unclear whether the man attempted to also make a sandwich for his look-out down in the boat–an off-duty Austin police officer–before being confronted by the homeowner. The pair was arrested and charged with BWI, burglary, and of course, theft of at least one sandwich.

One can only ponder if the pair was in the process of attempting to add a little twist to the old adage that a District Attorney can talk a grand jury into indicting a ham sandwich.