Video from a police body camera has recently been released of Lieutenant Brian Filipiak of Washtenaw County, MI resisting arrest for “super drunk” driving. After refusing a field sobriety test, Filipiak was taken to the police station where his blood alcohol concentration was found to be 0.28, over three times the legal limit for operating a vehicle. He is currently on unpaid administrative leave until an investigation into the incident is concluded.

Deputy Zachary Morrison responded to the situation on November 13 around 1:00 pm, when he received multiple reports of a truck weaving around the road, almost hitting several vehicles on a Northern Michigan highway. When he pulled Filipiak over, he could “smell a strong odor of intoxicants emitting from inside the vehicle.” Morrison also spotted an open bottle of vodka in Filipiak's backseat.

According to police reports, Filipiak also pulled out his police badge and ID, and told Morrison that he would just “sleep it off” on the side of the road. In the video, you can see what happens next. Filipiak refuses to exit the vehicle, throwing his head back, fidgeting, and pleading with the arresting officer to “give him a break.” You can hear Morrison tell Filipiak, “I'm not losing my career over you.” The officers then try to pull Filipiak out of the vehicle, and he resists. Morrison finally threatens Filipiak with a stun gun before he submits to the officer's demands.

After exiting the vehicle, reports say that Filipiak was “staggering, swaying from side to side, and slurring his words.” He refused to take a field sobriety test, so he was brought into the police station for blood and breath tests, which registered 0.28 and 0.27 respectively.

Officer Morrison wrote in his report, “During the entire investigation, Brian was very uncooperative. Brian would try and use that he is a Lieutenant for the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office to try and persuade me by letting him go.” Filipiak was extremely uncooperative and refused both to be handcuffed and to get into Morrison's police car, so he was forced to do both.

Filipiak paid ten percent of his $3000 bond to be released from jail and is scheduled for a pretrial conference on January 6, 2017. He could face up to 180 days imprisonment, a $200 to $700 fine and up to 360 hours of community service. Washtenaw County Police Chief Derrick Jackson said he has no comment on the situation, although he says he is “extremely disappointed.”

In the state of Washington, if you are arrested for drunk driving and register a blood alcohol concentration of 0.15 or higher, there are higher minimum penalties. The mandatory minimum jail time will be 48 hours instead of 24, or 30 days of electronic home monitoring instead of 15. In addition, a DUI with a BAC of 0.15 or higher will carry a minimum fine of $500 instead of $350.

If you are facing charges for driving under the influence, call Seattle attorney Steve Karimi today at (206) 661-8777 or contact him online to schedule a consultation.