Warwick, RI – A Pennsylvania man in the process of failing sobriety tests after a car crash added two felony gun possession charges to his impending infractions when Warwick officers discovered a loaded Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum in his pickup Sept. 28.
Officer John Zaborski arrived at 219 Main Ave. at 8:12 p.m., responding to a call for a car crash. He found a woman sitting on the ground and a man, ultimately identified as John Davis, 39, of 2199 Garden Way, Freeport, PA, walking in circles around a tree in the front yard at the address, according to his report.
Zaborski called a rescue to check on the woman and spoke to Davis, who said he had been driving west in the left hand lane when his red 2003 Ford F-150 struck another vehicle, according to the officer’s report. Zaborski could smell a strong odor of alcohol on Davis’s breath, and that his speech was slurred.
Davis agreed to take a series of field sobriety tests, which did not go well, according to the officer’s report. He demonstrated a lack of smooth pursuit in his vision, used his arms for balance and broke heel-to-toe cadence during the walk-and-turn, and put his foot down several times during the one-leg stand.
Another officer performed a preliminary breath test on Davis on the driver’s request, getting a reading of .221. Zaborski arrested him and placed him in his cruiser.
As Davis was performing the tests, a second officer on the scene, Manuel Pacheco, discovered a loaded Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum, loaded with six bulltes, on the passenger side floor of the man’s truck.
When Zaborski questioned Davis about the gun, the driver said he had a license to carry in PA. Zaborski informed him that wasn’t sufficient to carry a gun in RI. The officer transported him to Warwick Police Headquarters at 99 Veterans Memorial Drive, where he refused to submit to a breath test.
Zaborski charged Davis with DUI, blood alcohol unknown, carrying a weapon while intoxicated, a felony, and carrying a pistol without a permit, also a felony. The officer also cited him for refusing a breath test.
Author: Rob Borkowski
Rob has worked as reporter and editor for several publications, including The Kent County Daily Times and Coventry Courier, before working for Gatehouse in MA then moving home with Patch Media. Now he's publisher and editor of WarwickPost.com. Contact him at [email protected] with tips, press releases, advertising inquiries, and concerns.
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