A Johnstown police sergeant lost his job after arriving for work intoxicated in a police vehicle, wearing his uniform and carrying his firearm. But as of Friday morning, September 25, William Ward was not facing DUI or prohibited use of a weapon charges, according to court records cited by The Denver Post.
The concerns came from officers he supervised. Shortly after Ward arrived around 6 a.m. on May 28, they suspected he had been drinking and confronted him. According to the department’s disciplinary report, Ward volunteered for a preliminary breath test, which registered a blood alcohol concentration of 0.107. He said he would go home and did not feel drunk.
Additional testing followed that morning. A department member reported that Ward had glassy eyes and smelled of alcohol. He was taken to a testing facility, where his final recorded result was 0.097 at 9:41 a.m. Ward admitted to having approximately 15 drinks the night before and going to bed around 11 p.m., according to the report.
The department sustained findings involving reporting to work intoxicated or impaired and driving a town-owned vehicle while intoxicated or impaired. Ward was fired July 20. His termination is documented, but the disciplinary report does not explain whether a separate criminal investigation or referral occurred.
