Hunter
01/02/23
Nearly 20 area drivers were taken off the road over the weekend for operating under the influence.
According to Johnson County Jail admission statistics, 4 were arrested Friday and 7 each Saturday and Sunday. The offenders range in age from 19 to 46 and include both alcohol and drug impairment.
Among the arrests:
38-year-old Justin McIntyre of Indianola was arrested for his 3rd OWI after allegedly driving recklessly on eastbound Interstate 80 at 4:15 am Saturday. A trooper reportedly observed him cross over the dividing line between the two lanes and nearly sideswipe a semi that was trying to pass him.
Upon contact, McIntyre allegedly admitted that he had too much to drink to drive, and repeatedly asked the trooper if he could just pay him to move the vehicle off the road and have someone come pick him up instead of going to jail. Those requests went unfulfilled, and McIntyre was taken to the Johnson County Jail. Chemical testing reportedly showed his blood-alcohol level nearly twice the legal limit to drive. He faces up to five years in prison if convicted.
19-year-old Damon Conzemus allegedly called attention to himself after speeding on the 300 block of 1st Avenue in Coralville in the midnight hour of New Year’s Day in a vehicle with no license plates. His blood-alcohol level was reportedly measured at .132 percent and he was charged with OWI first offense.
And 34-year-old Dustin Hobbs of Ainsworth reportedly nearly collided with a squad car around 130 am Sunday after he was observed driving erratically and at speeds as slow as 20 miles per hour on southbound Interstate 380. He allegedly admitted to smoking meth approximately 30 minutes before he was stopped. Additionally, bags of suspected meth and a meth pipe were reportedly found in the vehicle. Hobbs was charged with first offense OWI, Meth possession and possession of drug paraphernalia. He could face over two years in jail if convicted.