UPDATE: DUI charges against former Grundy deputy dropped
A Grundy County Sheriff's Office deputy has been terminated after being charged Wednesday with driving drunk.
Sheriff Clint Shrum said Joseph L. Greenwell had missed three shifts of work, including his shift on Wednesday, when the sheriff decided to check on Greenwell and sent a deputy to find out what was happening.
The deputy spotted Greenwell in a vehicle and pulled him over, Shrum said.
"He wasn't able to maintain his lane. They stopped him and when they approached him they could smell alcohol," he said. Greenwell did poorly on a field sobriety test and submitted to a blood-alcohol test, said Shrum.
Shrum, who was at the scene for the sobriety test, said Greenwell was then charged with driving under the influence and booked at the jail. He was not on duty or in a county vehicle, the sheriff said.
Greenwell had no prior DUIs on his record but Shrum said Greenwell had missed work before and had been suspected of having an alcohol problem for which he'd been asked about in March and offered help.
Joe Greenwell, formerly a Grundy County deputy, who was charged this morning (4/15) with DUI. Shrum said Greenwell's behavior "won't be tolerated."
"It hurts to have this happen but we're going to deal with it and we hope that he'll get some help, and we'll do what we can do to help him," the sheriff said. "Law enforcement must be held to a higher standard and we're not going to condone this kind of behavior."
Jail officials could not give a court date for Greenwell.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or twitter.com/BenBenton or www.facebook.com/ben.benton1 or 423-757-6569.