Capitol Alert: Martin Garrick pleads no contest to drunken driving charges

Capitol Alert

The latest on California politics and government

July 29, 2011

Martin Garrick pleads no contest to drunken driving charges

Assemblyman Martin Garrick, R-Solana Beach, will lose his driver's license for four months and perform 48 hours of community service after pleading no contest today to drunken driving charges.

Three California Highway Patrol officers arrested Garrick on June 15 after they saw him speed past a stop sign and red traffic lights near the Capitol. Garrick's plea came more than two weeks before his scheduled Aug. 15 court hearing.

"I have accepted responsibility for my actions and apologized to family, friends and constituents," Garrick said in a statement late Friday. "I will now take the necessary steps to resolve this incident and immediately begin the process of complying with the judgment."

A blood test revealed Garrick had a blood-alcohol level nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08 percent on the night he was arrested. Officers never booked the former Assembly GOP leader into jail because they said in an arrest report that he was suffering from severe vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pains. Garrick's attorney, Don Heller, said Garrick had contracted a stomach flu earlier in the day. An Assembly sergeant-at-arms drove Garrick home.

In addition to the driver's license suspension and community service, Garrick must pay fines and fees totaling $2,416.01 and must log 30 hours at a three-month alcohol treatment program, according to court documents cited in the release.

PHOTO CREDIT: In this Sept. 27, 2010 file photo Assemblyman Martin Garrick, R-Solana Beach, talks with reporters at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif. Garrick was arrested by California Highway Patrol officers for suspicion of drunken driving after he was spotted driving erratically in his state-issued vehicle in Sacramento, Wednesday night.(AP Photo/ Rich Pedroncelli, File)

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