Iowa fire chief let go after arrest for driving ambulance while drunk
Police officer first heard chief slurring his words on the radio
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Eva Andersen & Rachel Droze, weareiowa.com:
Grand Junction (Iowa) Fire Chief Thomas Launderville was arrested early Saturday morning for driving under the influence, according to the Jefferson Police Department.
The arrest happened early Saturday morning.
According to the activity report from Jefferson police, an officer overheard radio traffic between the Greene County Dispatch and Launderville late Friday night. Launderville was transporting a patient to the Greene County Medical Center via ambulance.
The officer noticed Launderville was slurring his speech and decided to meet with the ambulance at the medical center.
The officer spoke with Launderville and noticed more signs of intoxication. Launderville refused to complete a sobriety test and was placed under arrest.
AP:
Greene County court records say 39-year-old Thomas Launderville is charged with operating while intoxicated, second offense. The records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for him.
The records say the officer arrested Launderville at the hospital, and a breath test later showed Launderville had a blood alcohol content of more than twice the legal limit.
Launderville has since been dismissed as Grand Junction’s fire chief.
