Graves faces fifth DUI charge

A man well known to local law enforcement for driving under the influence is now facing his fifth drinking and driving charge in Lincoln County District Court.

William Raymond Graves Sr., 65, pleaded not guilty during his June 7 arraignment. The charge carries a penalty of up to five years with the state Department of Corrections as well as a maximum fine of $10,000. The minimum sentence is 13 months with the Department of Corrections.

If found guilty Graves must forfeit his vehicle and be placed in a residential alcohol treatment program.

Graves came to the attention of law enforcement after Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Derek Breiland spotted his vehicle driving erratically on U.S. Highway 2 about 1:50 a.m., May 23. According to an affidavit, Graves’ sports utility vehicle was jerking around the road and traveling at varying speeds of between 25 and 45 miles per hour.

The posted speed limit for that stretch of road is 50 miles per hour, Breiland noted.

He also recalled seeing the vehicle parked outside of a Libby bar during the day. When he called in the license plate, Breiland learned it belonged to Graves.

Graves, Breiland wrote, was familiar to law enforcement in general and to him in particular. During a past conversation, Graves boasted about his prowess driving while intoxicated, Breiland recalled.

“Graves has told me previously that we cannot catch him driving drunk because he is too quick, or something to that effect,” the deputy wrote.

Breiland pulled Graves over after following him for about one-and-a-half miles. When he explained the reason for the stop, Graves allegedly blamed the layout of the road.

“My car don’t stay even with the tracks in the line because it’s not a big vehicle. It’s a little vehicle so it goes like this,” Graves told Breiland, according to court documents.

Breiland wrote that Graves gesticulated with his hands to demonstrate how his vehicle went.

In the affidavit, Breiland wrote that he smelled the odor of alcohol on Graves as they spoke. The other man talked with a slurred speech and boasted watery eyes.

Graves also struggled to get his license out of his wallet, but Breiland wrote that his arm was in a cast and that may have contributed to the difficulty. While Graves looked for his paperwork, Breiland asked for backup. In the affidavit, he wrote that Graves “has been known to be violent in the past.”

Waiting for assistance, Breiland asked Graves what was going on at the bar that evening. Graves replied that he was playing poker at a Libby establishment and that his cousin was the dealer. That was enough for Breiland to confirm he had spotted Graves’ vehicle at the bar during the day, court documents said.

After Deputy James Derryberry arrived on scene, Breiland began conducting field sobriety tests. Before they began, Breiland asked how much Graves had to drink prior to the stop. According to court documents, Graves admitted to consuming six drinks, having finished his last drink about a half hour prior.

“I noticed that Graves had some kind of liquid on his shirt and I could not tell if it was spilled beer or vomit, and did not ask,” Breiland wrote.

According to the affidavit, Graves exhibited multiple clues of being under the influence during the battery of tests. He admitted as much to Breiland, allegedly telling him, “That wasn’t very good. I know that wasn’t.”

He also asked Breiland to send him home rather than charge him with driving under the influence, court documents said.

But given the driving, the odor of alcohol, his mobility and the test results, Breiland had probable cause for an arrest. According to the affidavit, Graves refused both a breath test and blood test.

Given the four previous driving under the influence convictions — in August 2003, January 2007, June 2008 and December 2008 — Breliand applied for a warrant for Graves’ blood. Going back to the Lincoln County Detention Center to drive him to a nearby medical center, Breiland wrote that Graves greeted him warmly and asked for his name. When Breiland asked Graves if he knew him, Graves replied that he did not.

“Graves forgot who I was in the 30 minutes he was with detention [center personnel],” Breiland wrote.

The blood draw proceeded without incident, he wrote in the affidavit.

An omnibus hearing is scheduled for Aug. 23 with a pretrial conference to follow on Oct. 18. If it goes to trial, it likely would begin Nov. 16.