Austin ISD staff member charged with DWI with children in car
AUSTIN, Texas - An Austin ISD staff member is accused of drunk driving with three children in the car.
37-year-old Ralph Hutchens, a physical education teacher's assistant at Summitt Elementary School, is on administrative leave after being charged with driving while intoxicated with child passengers in Comal County.
The New Braunfels Police Department says this happened on Feb. 11 around 2 p.m. on I-35. There were three children in the car, two 11-year-olds and a nine-year-old.
Attorney Charlie Baird, who is not affiliated with the case, says the age of the passengers affects the charge.
"Normally, a driving while intoxicated offense is a class B misdemeanor, but if there is a child in the vehicle that is younger than 15 years of age, the offense is elevated to a state jail felony," he said.
If a passenger is over 15, it would still be a misdemeanor.
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Court paperwork says multiple drivers called in Hutchens' car because it was driving recklessly. The officer saw it "swerve over multiple lanes which spanned from the far inside lane to crossing the 'fog line' on the outside." It was "observed to nearly strike other vehicles on the interstate."
The paperwork says police found a "1L bottle of Deep Eddy vodka with only about a shot left inside" and Hutchens stated he was driving the children from Six Flags in San Antonio and "denied any alcohol this date at Six Flags because it is too expensive," but said he drank the day before.
The kids were released to family members and Hutchens was arrested.
Baird says even though there were three children in the car, it's still one charge.
"It is only a single offense of DWI, even though there were multiple children in the car," he said. "Because the offense is the driving, he was only driving one vehicle."
In general, the punishment range for felonies and misdemeanors also varies.
"A class B misdemeanor carries a range of punishment of up to 180 days, confinement in the county jail, and a fine of up to $2,000, whereas the offense of a state jail felony is up to two years confinement in a state jail facility, that is a day for day sentence and a fine of up to $10,000," he said.
According to Comal County court records, Hutchens has been charged with a state-jail felony.