Officer Gregory Gilchrist, 36, was arrested on a drunken-driving charge early Thursday morning in southeastern Clarke County, police said. He had a blood-alcohol content level of 0.185 and allegedly drove his pickup truck through a red light, hitting the side of a car traveling through the intersection.
The woman in the car wasn't injured. Gilchrist said he was making a left turn and the turn arrow was green, police said.
Gilchrist has been placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation, Athens-Clarke Assistant Police Chief Alan Brown said. He also faces possible discipline for breaking departmental policies.
``We make hundreds of DUI arrests every year, and this is the first time we've had to arrest a police officer in many years,'' Brown said. ``DUI is taken very seriously these days because it kills people.''
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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