Father Sean Thomson had a blood-alcohol content of 0.247

Apr 2, 2014 07:29 GMT  ·  By
Catholic priest has to face a myriad of charges after driving under the influence
   Catholic priest has to face a myriad of charges after driving under the influence

An Alaska parish priest was arrested last week and had to face a myriad of charges after being pulled over by Alaska State Troopers because he was speeding and driving erratically.

Father Sean Thomson of the University of Alaska Fairbanks parish was stopped at 228 Mile Parks Highway, near McKinley Village, after a trooper observed his car was travelling at 79 mph (127 km/h) in a 65 mph (104 km/h) zone, and charged with driving under the influence and a number of misdemeanor drugs and weapons offenses.

According to a criminal complaint filed against the 52-year-old priest on Tuesday, state trooper Christopher Blitz spotted him speeding and weaving his pickup truck on the highway. When the trooper pulled over the car, the driver told him that he was drunk and handed over a receipt instead of his vehicle registration.

Blitz mentioned in his report that Thomson seemed disoriented during the traffic stop.

The Catholic priest's blood-alcohol content was reportedly of 0.247, which is three times the legal limit, New York Daily News informs.

When the officer asked him if he had any weapons, the priest told him that there was a .357-caliber handgun in the 2002 GMC Sierra truck, but failed to mention that he was also carrying a 9-mm pistol in his back pocket.

During a search, Blitz found the other gun, as well as a small bag of marijuana that Thomson had stashed in his hoodie sweatshirt.

The priest was taken to the Healy trooper post, where he was asked to take a more accurate Datamaster test to determine his blood-alcohol content, but he refused, saying that “he was drunk and did not feel the test was necessary,” according to the complaint.

He was charged with DUI, refusal to take an alcohol test, drugs misconduct, carrying a firearm while intoxicated, and failing to inform a state trooper he was carrying a firearm.

Thomson pleaded not guilty at an initial court hearing. He was released on a $5,000 (€3,620) bail and is set to appear in court again on Friday morning, at the Rabinowitz Courthouse in Fairbanks.

Although he still remains a priest for the Catholic Diocese of Fairbanks, Father Thompson has been placed on administrative leave, as revealed by Ronnie Rosenberg, the legal coordinator for the bishopric.

Rosenberg also mentions that The Diocese of Fairbanks plans to fill in the university parish with other priests and personnel during Thomson's suspension.