Driver has a Pending Court Appearance for a Previous DWI Arrest

Buffalo, NY – Erie County Sheriff Timothy B. Howard reports Sheriff’s Dispatchers received complaints about a reckless driver operating along Main Street in Clarence Monday around 7:15 p.m.

At 7:22 p.m., Deputies located the vehicle, observed vehicle and traffic violations, and initiated a traffic stop. The Deputies’ investigation discovered the operator’s license is suspended pending a court proceeding for a DWI arrest earlier this year.  A subsequent breath test determined 52-year-old Richard Hooton of Clarence had a BAC level 3.5 times above the legal limit.

Hooton was arrested and charged with a felony count of aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, misdemeanor counts of aggravated DWI – BAC .18 or higher, and DWI.  Hooton was also cited for a vehicle and traffic law violation.

The defendant was released to a sober third party.