Man Charged with Driving Zamboni While Intoxicated

Having been Orange County DUI attorneys for over 30 years, we were pretty sure that we had heard it all. Then this story out of Minnesota came across our desks, and we realized that we probably will always be surprised by new and outrageous ways that people get charged with DUI.

Patrons at a local ice rink in Apple Valley, MN called police reporting that the Zamboni driver was missing large chunks of ice on his passes and was crashing into the boards repeatedly. When police arrived on scene, they discovered Joel Keith Bruss on the Zamboni trying to free the machine as it had gotten wedged against the boards.

Police questions Bruss and reported a strong smell of alcohol on his breath, then administered a sobriety test, which Bruss reportedly failed miserably. After taking a urine test, Bruss’ alcohol content showed to be .32, four times the legal limit. Police records show that Bruss has three other DUI convictions dating back as far as 1999.

In California, the punishment for multiple DUI convictions is extremely severe. If a person is convicted of a 3rd DUI in a 10 year period, they can server as much as 1 year in county jail and have their driving privileges revoked for up to 3 years. A 4th conviction in a 10 year period can lead to a felony conviction and up to 3 years in jail. The person’s driver’s license can also be suspended for 4 years.

While we’ve heard of people getting DUIs for operating a riding lawnmower while intoxicated, drunken Zamboni driving is a first for us.