Hot Springs man arrested for eighth DUI, allegedly drinking on highway

A Hot Springs man was arrested last Friday for drunken driving, his eighth offense since 2005, after he was caught driving while drinking a half-gallon of vodka.

Jeremy Shane Allen, 50, who lists an address in Coolwood Terrace, was arrested shortly before 2:30 p.m. on the King Expressway and charged with DWI, his eighth in 20 years, a felony punishable by up to 20 years prison, a He was charged with misdemeanor drinking on the highway and was cited for improper lane change, failure to yield right of way to an emergency vehicle, driving left of center and failure to yield submit to a chemical test.

Allen was later released on $5,500 bond and is scheduled to appear June 10 in Garland County District Court.

According to court records, Allen was previously convicted of DWI on May 21, 2005, in Malvern; May 28, 2005, in Bryant; March 3, 2012, in Haskell; on November 30, 2013, in Malvern; May 10, 2018, in Hot Springs; on July 4, 2019, in Malvern; and July 7, 2019 in Sherwood. He was also convicted on June 28, 2010, in Hot Spring Circuit Court of misdemeanor DWI, but the charge was later dismissed after he completed a long-term drug treatment program.

According to the probable cause affidavit, on Friday, May 24, at approximately 2:20 p.m., Arkansas State Police Troop K dispatchers received a 911 call regarding a westbound blue 1998 Toyota 4Runner on Highway 270 in the Industrial Park Road area.

The 911 caller said the SUV “almost hit other vehicles” and at one point ended up in the roadside ditch. Dispatchers confirmed it was the same vehicle Hot Springs police were notified of earlier, traveling east on the King Expressway.

Sergeant ASP. Russ Rhodes spotted the SUV in the area of ​​Stanage Drive, still westbound on Highway 270, and noted that it “almost hit another vehicle while changing lanes.” Rhodes attempted to conduct a traffic stop near Lakeside Baptist Church, 3601 Malvern Road, but the driver refused to stop and continued west.

Sgt. Michael Reed managed to park the SUV at the traffic light at Malvern and King Expressway and he and Rhodes made contact with the driver, identified as Allen. They noted a strong odor of intoxicants coming from the SUV.

Reed says Allen was “acting inconsistently” and his speech was “extremely slurred.” He reportedly “had difficulty understanding the instructions” to exit the vehicle and when he finally did, he needed help “to regain his balance.”

Reed allegedly observed a half-gallon bottle of vodka between the driver's seat and the center console, without the lid, and approximately a quarter of the bottle had been consumed. At that point, Allen was arrested for DWI.

Reed notes that he had to help Allen back to his unit and into the back seat. Allen allegedly made several comments on his way to the prison and most were “extremely confusing and difficult to understand.” Once he arrived at the prison, he had to be assisted again so as not to fall and sat on a chair.

Allen allegedly agreed to provide a breath sample and Trooper Tyree Sampson attempted to obtain one, but Allen was unable to provide one “due to his extreme impairment.” He allegedly “used racial slurs” toward Sampson as he attempted to operate the breathalyzer. The test was attempted twice and was found to be insufficient each time.

A Garland County sheriff's deputy was about to attempt to pass a portable breathalyzer, but Allen allegedly raised his voice and said, “(expletive), I already tried it, I'm (expletive) drunk.” He allegedly made several other off-the-cuff comments, claiming he was drunk.

After Allen's prior convictions were confirmed through Hot Springs Driver's Control, Allen was charged with a B felony.