Longtime NBA referee Ron Garretson was arrested and charged with driving under the influence after he sustained injuries in a one-vehicle crash in Arizona this week.
According to a Lake Havasu City Police Department report obtained by ABC 15, Garretson was arrested on Wednesday after officers responded to a call of his Jeep Wrangler crashing head-on into a tree near an intersection. When police questioned Garretson, he told them he circled around and someone hit him. They said his story did not make sense and he appeared to be intoxicated.
One of the arresting officers said Garretson introduced himself twice and “kept repeating things to me that he had already said.” Police said he smelled of alcohol and admitted to having “a beer and a shot” at a cigar bar. When told he could refuse field sobriety tests, Garretson said he is an NBA ref who is “in great shape” and offered to take the tests. Both tests were cut short because he had trouble balancing.
Garretson was treated by paramedics at the scene for swelling on his head and blood on his arms and legs, but he refused to be taken to a hospital. He was arrested and taken into custody, where he registered a blood-alcohol content of 0.192 and 0.195, which is more than twice the legal limit.
As we have shown you with some athletes getting popped for DUI in Arizona in the past, the state has what is known as an “extreme DUI” law. Garretson’s BAC met the minimum threshold for extreme DUI, and his bond was set at $4,500.
Garretson has been an NBA ref for 32 seasons and worked more than 2,000 games.
