James Loeschke

Name:
Loeschke, James Michael

Date of Booking:
07/23/2023

Reason(s) For Booking:
DUI – DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL

Officer’s Narrative:
[Please note: The following is a direct transcription from the official initial incident report. The Georgia Gazette does not fix any spelling or grammatical errors that may exist. Any changes or redactions made by our staff are placed inside brackets. Some errors may exist. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The topics discussed may be sensitive to some readers. Discretion is advised.]

[NARRATIVE #1 on July 23, 2023]

On 7-23-23 I, CPL Vaughn, responded to the area of Hwy 72 E and Pine Valley Farm Rd in reference to a vehicle spun out into the median. As I was en-route, Dispatch informed that a 3rd party – who stopped to check on the driver of the vehicle -stated he had a knife and was in danger of himself.

I arrived on scene and witnessed a burgundy color Mazda in the median pointing towards on coming traffic. I exited my patrol vehicle and the driver was sitting on the back of the tailgate. The driver, James Loeschke, stated he wanted to kill himself due to his relationship ending.

James gave me permission to check his persons for any weapons, which no weapons were located on his person. James stated he placed his knives on the roof of the vehicle. James admitted to fishing and drinking earlier and stated he stopped drinking around noon.

James denied EMS to come out to check on him and did not have any numbers to call someone to be with him while he was going through his emotional issues. James made the statement he wanted to drive his vehicle into a large piece of equipment and end his life but changed his mind, causing him to stomp on the breaks and jerk the wheel.

Deputy S. Loggins arrived on scene and noticed a strong odor of alcoholic beverage coming from James’s person from where she was standing. Loggins asked James again when he last had anything to drink and stated approximately thirty minutes at Arnold Park before we received the call of the accident.

James was asked if he would consent to a PBT test to check on his condition to drive and agreed. I requested SGT Cowan to come to our location to check on the condition of the James. SGT Cowan arrived on scene and conducted a field sobriety test on James. Once the test was completed SGT Cowan conducted a PBT Test on James with the results of .105 alcohol content on his breath.

James was then placed under arrest and charged with DUI. James was handcuffed to his rear and the cuffs were checked for fitting and double locked. I pulled out my Green Implied Consent Notice Card and read the Implied Consent Notice for Suspects Age 21 or Over. James agreed for the testing of blood. James was escorted to my patrol vehicle and I conducted a search of his person.

James was placed in the back seat of my patrol vehicle. Deputy S. Loggins conducted a search of the vehicle. James was able to get in touch with someone to pick up the vehicle from the roadway. I transported James to Station 1 EMS Station where an EMS supervisor conducted the blood draw. James was transported to the Madison County Sheriffs Office and turned over to the on duty jail staff without incident.

[End of Narrative]

[NARRATIVE #2 on July 23, 2023]

On July 23, 2023 at approximately 20:00 hours MCSO CPL C. Vaughn (#7622) requested my assistance regarding a possible intoxicated driver that was reported to have been involved in a motor vehicle collision on SR 72 near mile marker 14. I arrived on scene at approximate 20:16 hours.

Upon my arrival I observed a burgundy pickup truck in the median that had slid from the east bound lane of SR 72 and facing west bound. I observed a white male, identified as James Loeschke. CPL Vaughn provided me with information about the incident, to include James’s consumption of alcohol. I observed James and noted he had red, bloodshot glassy eyes with pinpoint pupils. CPL Vaughn advised that James had agreed to participate in a portable breath test.

I asked James how much alcohol he had consumed. As James spoke, I could detect the odor of alcohol on his breath. James stated he had consumed a travel sized bottle of Old Smokey liquor as well as a pint sized bottle of Flashpoint alcohol with the last consumption being approximately 1.5 to 2 hours prior.

During my discussion with James, I did not notice any slurring or delays in his response to questions. James consented to participating in voluntary Standardized Field Sobriety Tests to determine if he was safe to operate a vehicle. During his consent to the testing, James disclosed that he had received a prior DUI approximately 2 years prior that also involved a collision.

The SFST test was conducted along the edge of SR 72 with safety provided by CPL Vaughn’s patrol vehicle. The front emergency lights were deactivated to prevent interference with the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus Test. Additionally, James was positioned so passing traffic did not interfere with the testing.

The first test was the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test. I noted that James was not wearing glasses or contact lenses. I used my pen as a stimuli for the HGN test. During the initial pass, I noted equal tracking and equal pupil size in both eyes.

During the HGN test, I observed lack of smooth pursuit in the left and right eye, distinct nystagmus as maximum deviation on the left and right eye and an onset of nystagmus prior to 45 degrees in both eyes. There was a total of six (6) out of possible six (6) clues detected in the eyes. There was no vertical gaze nystagmus observed.

The second test was the walk and turn test. The test was conducted along the edge of the roadway using the yellow divider line, which was approximately 5 inches wide. James was wearing boots during the test. I attempted to place James in the instruction phase with his left foot on the line and his right foot in front of the left, in a heel to toe fashion. James was unable initially unable to place the right foot in front of the left foot.

Before I could finish getting James in the position to provide instructions to him, he started attempting to walk. I returned James to the instruction position where he was able to maintain said position until I completed the instructions. During the test phase, James missed heel to toe by more than ½” between on steps 1 and two and two and three then made an improper turn by lifting his left foot from the line. I observed two (2) out of a possible eight (8) clues.

The third test was the one leg stand. Prior to beginning the test, James stated he had trouble sometimes maintaining his balance due to his equilibrium when he gets hot. I place James into the instruction position while I provided instructions and a demonstration of the test. I did not observed any significant swaying during the instructional phase. During the test, I observed no clues in the one leg stand test.

Based on the results of the SFST tests (6 of 6 clues in HGN and 2 of 8 clues in Walk and Turn), I concluded James was impaired to a point of being less safe to operate a motor vehicle. After the test, James agreed to perform an additional field evaluation using a portable breath test.

After installing a sealed breath tube on the device and the device conducting its internal testing, James provided a breath sample into the PBT. The results were positive for alcohol consumption and the results were consistent with my observations from the Standardized Filed Sobriety Testing.

I advised CPL Vaughn of my observations and opinion that James was impaired to a point of being less safe to operate a motor vehicle. CPL Vaughn then placed James under arrest for DUI – Less Safe in violation of OCGA 40-6-391.

Once James was secured in handcuffs, CPL Vaughn read James the GA Implied Consent from CPL Vaughn’s issued green Implied Consent card. CPL Vaughn requested James to submit to the State Administered Chemical test of his blood pursuant to the GA Implied Consent Law and James agreed to submit to the blood test.

[End of Narrative]