(WPXI) – A Pennsylvania State Police trooper in Washington County is facing charges, including DUI, after investigators said he was found intoxicated with an open bottle of rum in his patrol unit.
According to authorities, Trooper Jared Johnson was on duty on May 12th when he was dispatched to reports of a deer in a section of Interstate 70 in Buffalo Township. Johnson marked himself at the scene and is said to have told dispatch that the deer was gone. The dispatcher had trouble understanding Johnson and asked him to repeat his information, with Johnson repeating that the deer was gone. But after continuing to receive calls about the deer – his supervisor went to find Johnson. He says Johnson had slurred speech, glassy eyes, and had trouble standing, and when he went to secure Johnson’s unit, he noticed a bottle of rum on the front passenger seat in a brown paper bag. Johnson was then taken to Washington Hospital where he refused to sign a consent form for a chemical blood test. He was then taken to PSP Washington and released. It was later discovered through his dashcam that he had been involved in an accident on Jefferson and Tyler Avenue while responding to the deer call. Johnson has since been suspended without pay pending the outcome of the case.