Hunter
07/18/24
An Iowa City man who hit a pole on a service road reportedly had a blood-alcohol level over three times the legal limit.
The incident occurred just before 3 am on June 10th. 30-year-old Gerardo Ramirez-Rodriguez was on the service road, which is not open to normal vehicle traffic, near the intersection of Madison and West Bloomington streets when he crashed his 2014 Toyota Corolla into a pole. When contacted, his vehicle allegedly smelled of ingested alcohol, and a nearly-empty bottle of rum was reportedly found behind the driver’s seat.
Ramirez-Rodriguez was transported to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, given the implied consent advisory, and was asked to provide a blood sample. He agreed, and the sample was sent to the state lab. It was determined Ramirez-Rodriguez had a blood-alcohol level at the time of the crash of .280 percent, over three times the legal limit to drive.
Ramirez-Rodriguez had a previous Johnson County OWI conviction in 2019. He was charged with his second offense, an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by a jail sentence of up to two years if convicted.