tool name

Wednesday, Feb. 03, 2010

Ex-detective going to jail for DUI

Attorney says client maintains innocence, despite plea.

A former detective with the Merced Police Department is scheduled to report to jail this week after being convicted of driving under the influence for a second time.

Hector Ortiz pleaded no contest Jan. 25 to a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence with a prior conviction, according to Deputy District Attorney Travis Colby, the prosecutor in the case.

Despite the plea, Ortiz's attorney says his client steadfastly maintains his innocence.

Ortiz, 47, was arrested May 25 last year after he rear-ended a car at the intersection of Yosemite Avenue and Stadium Way shortly after 11:30 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.

He submitted to two breath tests and was determined to have blood alcohol concentration results of 0.12 and 0.13 percent, which is above the state's 0.08 legal limit, Colby said.

Five months before that incident, Ortiz was arrested for DUI by the CHP after his truck was pulled over for a vehicle code violation on Yosemite Avenue, west of R Street.

Colby said the May 25 incident was investigated by the CHP's Major Accident Investigation Team (MAIT). Ortiz had claimed a 36-year-old woman had been driving the car, not him. However, the CHP determined the woman was a passenger in the car and wasn't behind the wheel.

CHP investigators found an impact smudge from makeup on the passenger side airbag, Colby said, leading them to believe that Ortiz was driving. Colby also said there were witnesses who'd seen Ortiz driving. "Obviously, there was a lot of investigation done to get to the bottom of it, and I think the truth came out," Colby said.

Ortiz couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday. His attorney, Carlos Fuentes, said Ortiz decided to enter a no contest plea, rather than go through a lengthy, costly trial. If the case had gone to trial, Ortiz also would have faced a stiffer penalty if found guilty, Fuentes said.

Still, Fuentes said his client maintains he wasn't driving the car and is an innocent man.

There were also "very credible" witnesses who saw that Ortiz wasn't driving, Fuentes said. He added there was also DNA evidence in the case that would prove Ortiz wasn't driving. "This is a case where the evidence was very evenly distributed," Fuentes said.

Despite Ortiz's recent arrests, Fuentes said he hopes people will consider that his client served nearly 20 years in law enforcement and has done many good deeds in the community.

Ortiz was sentenced to 20 days in jail and is scheduled to report Saturday to the jail. Colby said he may have other options to complete his sentence, such as home confinement with an ankle bracelet, or signing up with the sheriff's work-in-lieu program.

Ortiz must also pay a fine of $2,160, and his driver's license was suspended. He must complete at least half of an 18-month court-mandated DUI class before he can be considered for a restricted driver's license, Colby said.

Merced police officials said they couldn't comment on details about Ortiz's case, citing personnel issues.

Ortiz, who was hired by the Merced Police Department in 1999, was employed as a domestic violence investigator.

After his latest arrest, Ortiz was placed on administrative leave. He resigned from his position last week and is no longer employed with the department, according to Chief Norm Andrade.

Reporter Victor A. Patton can be reached at (209) 385-2431 or vpatton@mercedsun-star.com.