Councilman Cody arrested for DWI

PEA RIDGE — Councilman John Cody had nothing to say about his arrest.

Cody, arrested for DWI and refusal to submit to a breathalyzer test following the March 16 City Council meeting, had no statement Tuesday.

When contacted Tuesday, Cody said: “I’ve been advised not to makea statement.” When asked by whom he was advised, he said “my attorney.”

Cody is also the water and street superintendent for Garfield. He was driving a City of Garfield owned truck when he drove to Pea Ridge City Hall March 16.

Elected to the Pea Ridge City Council last year, Cody filed for District 7 justice of the peace seat on the Benton County Quorum Court this year. Joel Jones of Bella Vista has also filed. District 7 includes Bella Vista and the western side of Pea Ridge.

He made an unsuccessful bid for Pea Ridge School Board last year.

At 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 16, at the regularly-scheduled March City Council meeting,there was only one council member present, according to Mayor Jackie Crabtree, who said two of the four council members had advised the city clerk they would not be present. After about 10 minutes, the mayor said he asked Police Chief Tim Ledbetter to call Cody to determine when or if he was attending the meeting.

Ledbetter said Cody told him he was ill. Ledbetter said he told the mayor he was ill and would not be attending, but shortly after, Cody walked into City Hall.

At that time, Crabtree said, Cody appeared to not be feeling well.

“I asked him if he felt like being there and he said ‘no,’ so I told him to go home,” Crabtree said, adding that he knew it was difficult to make good decisions when not feeling well.

Ledbetter said: “When Cody left the meeting, we located him to check on his welfare and found him intoxicated.”

“We asked him to perform some initial tests, which he failed,” Ledbetter said of Cody.

“At that point, it was determined to place Mr. Cody under arrest.”

Once at the Benton County Jail, Cody refused to submit to a breathalyzer test, Ledbetter said, adding that Cody then complained of chest pains and was taken by ambulance to the emergency room of Northwest Medical Center, Bentonville.

After being examined by a physician, Cody was released and returned to the jail.

Cody said Wednesday he is still running for justice of the peace and that the incident occurred on his personal time.

Garfield Mayor Laura Hamilton, when asked about Cody driving the truck on what he referred to as personal time, said: “He is authorized to be in the city vehicle because he is on call 24/7.”

As to the DWI charge, Hamilton said: “We have to wait until a court of law makes a determination.”

“There are a lot of candidates that have a lot more problems than that,” Cody said. “This isn’t that big of a deal.”

Cody also said he has been ill recently and the intoxicant officers smelled may have been medication.

If found guilty of DWI, Cody could still run for Quorum Court. Misdemeanor convictions do not stop candidates from running for public office, according to Natasha Naragon of the Arkansas Secretary of State’s office.

Refusing consent to be tested. “It’s a felony conviction that disqualifies you from voting or holding office,” Naragon said.

Cody is scheduled to appear April 12 in Pea Ridge City Court.

Cody said he bucks the system and that is the reason for his problems with law enforcement.

According to Mark Hayes, general counsel for the Arkansas Municipal League, new law passed in the 2009 session provides for a recall of elected officials. “There are three styled as removal and a fourth as a recall,” Hayes said. Those include removal of elective or appointed officers, removal of municipal officer for federal offense, and removal of certain elected municipal officials.

If there is a felony conviction, the elected official can be removed by the attorney general because he is no longer qualified to hold the position, Hayes said.

IMPLIED CONSENT

“Any person who operates a motor vehicle or who is in actual physical control of a motor vehicle in this state shall be deemed to have given consent to a chemical test or tests of his or her blood, breath or urine, for the purpose of determining the presence and amount of alcohol, controlled substance, or any other intoxicant.

“If you refuse to take the test or tests, none will be given, but you will be in violation of Arkansas Code Annotated 5-65-205, Refusal to Submit, and your driving privilege will be suspended or revoked pursuant to Arkansas Code Annotated 5-65-402.”

The first two paragraphs of a DWI or Refusal to Submit or DUI form.