The mayor of Surfside Beach is out of jail, after being arrested Thursday night for Driving Under the Influence.
A police report says Allen Deaton, 54, was pulled over by a Surfside officer around 11:30 Thursday night.
The report says the officer noticed a strong smell of alcohol in Deaton's car, and that Deaton had glassy eyes and slurred speech. Deaton refused to take a breathalyzer test.
He was taken to J. Reuben Long Detention Center, where he posted a $1,000 bond, and was released Friday morning
Deaton is the latest in a list of public officials who have gotten in trouble with the law lately. From the governor to local police, town mayors and county council members, a number of public officials have been making headlines for the wrong reasons.
Now Surfside Beach's Mayor has been arrested for driving under the influence, and some folks who live in his town say if he's guilty, he should pay the price, like everybody else.
"If he was DUI, he should be arrested. We don't need those type of drivers on the road. It could cause an accident, kill someone, himself or anybody else," said Surfside Beach Resident Tom Unrue.
Some residents say public officials should know better than to get in trouble with the law. "He's human like everybody else, but he also represents Surfside Beach and should have better judgements about that. If he's going to drink, he should stay at home," added Doreen Martin from Surfside Beach.
Others point out that public officials may not get in more trouble than anybody else. But when they do, it tends to make headlines. "Police officers have been arrested for drunken driving here. They're human too, they're all human. Just get more attention," Unrue said.
The state's general rule is that an elected official has to be indicted for a crime of moral turpitude before he or she can be suspended from office by the governor.
That would be something involving dishonesty, like theft or perjury.
Though officials say the governor has some leeway in suspending an official without an indictment.
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(Update 12:10pm) Surfside Beach Police release mayor's DUI incident report
Surfside Beach Mayor Allen Deaton was arrested by Surfside Beach Police early Friday morning and charged with driving under the influence.
According to an incident report, an officer was checking for speeders at 11:26pm Thursday evening in the median of 10th Avenue South in Surfside Beach when the officer observed a vehicle traveling southbound at a high rate of speed. He says he followed the vehicle and caught up to it in the area of Melody Lane and Hwy 17.
When he pulled the car over, the officer says he observed the driver, later identified as Kemp Allen Deaton, having a difficult time gathering papers from the glove box. The officer says in the report there was a "strong odor of alcohol coming from the passenger compartment." The report also says Deaton had trouble focusing on the officer and that "there was a strong odor of alcohol emitting from his person as he spoke."
The officer asked Deaton if he'd been drinking. The incident report quotes Deaton as saying "Umm, actually I just came back from the Moose Lodge and I played pool tournament and I apologize."
The officer called for a sergeant who then called for another officer, cited in the report as being an "Advanced DUI "SFST" detection officer."
Deaton submitted to a field sobriety test, and the results listed in the police report show the officer believed Deaton to be "materially and appreciably impaired" and his BAC estimated to be "over the legal limit."
The report says Deaton refused to provide a breath sample.
Based on the field sobriety test, Deaton was arrested and charged with driving under the influence.
A bond hearing was held for Deaton this morning at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center. His bond was set at $1,022. Deaton has been released from jail.
NewsChannel 15 had a news crew at the jail awaiting Deaton's release, but according to Deputy Jail Director, Joey Johnson, Deaton was let out a back door. Johnson says he will look into how that happened because inmates are usually released through the front door.
Click here to read the arrest reports. Page 1 Page 2
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(9:18am) Surfside Beach mayor charged with DUI
Surfside Beach Mayor Allen Deaton is in jail booked for Driving Under the Influence according to the J. Reuben Long Detention Center website.
According to the site Deaton is still in custody and no bail has been set yet.
NewsChannel 15 is working to see what agency arrested Deaton and when.
Earlier this week the Surfside Beach Public Works Director returned to work after being arrested for having alcohol in a town vehicle. Town Administrator Ed Booth told NewsChannel 15 Robert Taylor faced disciplinary action.
Police arrested Taylor for an open container last week. They say he was driving a town-owned pickup on the beach.
Stay with NewsChannel 15 and CarolinaLive.com for the latest information.
