Visalia cop arrested again on DUI
Eric Woomer,
A former Visalia police officer has been
arrested on suspicion of DUI, again.
Erica Martinez, 33, was arrested just after 3
a.m. Wednesday by California Highway Patrol officers. She was booked at Bob
Wiley Detention Facility and was held on $10,000 bail. She was cited and
released with a promise to appear in court later this summer.
Her blood-alcohol level was nearly three times
the legal limit when arrested near Borderlinks Drive in Visalia.
"The investigating officer observed that
the subject was displaying signs and symptoms of alcohol intoxication,"
according to a CHP report. "Field sobriety tests were administrated, the
subject was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol and
arrested."
The latest DUI arrest comes exactly a week
after Martinez pleaded no contest to DUI charges stemming from an August 2013
DUI.
Martinez was arrested around 2 a.m. on Aug. 4,
2013 after California Highway Patrol officers responded to the scene of a crash
in northwest Visalia. Officers Jesus Magdaleno Jr. and his partner, Robert
Robledo, responded and found a BMW had slammed into a Jeep near Border Links
Drive and Lombard Street.
The officers arrested the driver of the BMW,
Martinez, on suspicion of DUI.
The lead officer on the case, Magdaleno, died
just weeks later in Las Vegas while trying to stop a car thief. His death
caused the District Attorney's Office to reevaluate the case against Martinez
and 61 other arrests made by Magdaleno. The DA's office announced late last
year they would proceed with charges.
Visalia police placed her on administrative
leave and Martinez later returned to patrol. She was fired in May.
Martinez, who was charged with DUI and
excessive blood-alcohol levels, was sentenced last week to three days in jail,
40 hours of community service, five years probation and classes to help prevent
this from occurring again. It's not known if she attended any classes before
being arrested Wednesday.
If Martinez is charged and convicted a second
time, she could face a year in jail, hefty fines and 18 months in an alcoholic
rehabilitation program, as ordered by the court. She will also likely lose her
license for a year and will be ordered to install an alcohol-monitoring system
in any car registered in her name.
The Visalia officer is at least the second
member of law enforcement in Tulare County to face DUI charges since 2011. The
most recent was Tulare officer Shannon Oliver, who was also fired shortly after
charges were filed.
The ex-Tulare cop who wrecked her patrol car
into a fence in Visalia pleaded no contest to drunken driving charges in June
2011, avoiding a public trial.
Oliver was sentenced to eight days in jail and
five years of probation.