Resident physician accused of drunk driving in Morganton

A resident doctor was suspended from employment after police in Morganton arrested and charged him with driving while impaired last Sunday evening. The 29-year-old man was pulled over by police and charged with the crime at approximately 7:50 p.m.

The accused doctor is serving as a first-year internal medicine resident at Carolinas HealthCare System Blue Ridge. Officers pulled him over after he ran through a red light not far from a brewery in Morganton. Police say that the doctor first denied having drunk anything before getting into his vehicle that night. Later, however, he allegedly told police that he had drunk two 16-ounce beers.

Police performed two breath tests on the man in the field, and he allegedly showed a .15 and .12 blood alcohol content, meaning that — if the test results were accurate — his blood alcohol content was over the legal limit of .08 percent.

After police arrested and transported the doctor to the Burke-Catawba District Confinement Facility, he refused to submit to a breath test. This resulted in a magistrate issuing a warrant to draw his blood. They took his blood at the hospital to later perform a chemical and drug test on it.

The hospital that employs the doctor has suspended him from employment. Whether that suspension is temporary or permanent is unknown at this time.

This case is an example of how a drunk driving arrest and charge — even before conviction — can wreak havoc on one’s career. Therefore, to avoid negative career consequences following any kind of driving while intoxicated arrest, accused individuals may want to take action immediately to defend themselves against the charges.