Oneida-based state police charged a Rome man with felony DWI under Leandra’s Law following an arrest in the town of Verona Friday evening.
At approximately 6:20 p.m. Oct. 28, 2016, Troopers Terry Horton and Richard Kosakowski were dispatched by Oneida County 911 to the Dunkin Donuts on Willow Place in Verona to check the status of a patron who appeared to be highly intoxicated driving with a child in his vehicle.
Upon arrival, witnesses directed the troopers toward a 2002 Honda Odyssey parked in front of the store with a man sitting in the driver’s seat. Troopers were advised the man had driven the minivan up to the store drive-through and appeared to be highly intoxicated. They also were advised that there was a small child in the back seat of the van. The troopers interviewed the driver,
Troopers interviewed driver James F. Moriarty, 35, of William Street, Rome, and observed that he had a strong odor of alcoholic beverage on his breath and an open container of an alcoholic beverage in the center console of the vehicle. Field sobriety tests indicated that Moriarty was intoxicated and he was taken into custody for DWI.
A 3-yearold- child was observed to be secured in a child restraint in the backseat of the minivan. The child’s mother was notifed, and she responded to the scene to take the child. Moriarty was transported to the Oneida state police barracks, where a breath test determined his blood-alcohol content to be .18 percent.
A DMV check showed Moriarty’s license had been revoked for a previous DWI conviction within the past 10 years. He was processed on the charges of felony DWI, felony aggravated DWI with a child in the vehicle, aggravated DWI with a BAC of .18 percent or greater, first-degree felony aggravated unlicensed operation, operating without an ignition interlock device, consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle and endangering the welfare of a child.
Moriarty was arraigned in Verona Town Court and remanded to the Oneida County Jail in lieu of $10,000 cash or bond and is scheduled to reappear in Verona Court Nov. 1, 2016.