A 33-year old man from Renton was arrested Tuesday, May 22, for felony driving under the influence, violation of ignition interlock device and driving with a suspended license (second degree) after crashing his black Honda Accord into a power pole on NE Valley Road.

The driver has two prior DUI convictions, police said, and reportedly asked several witnesses to Tuesday’s crash not to call the police as he was intoxicated.

The crash happened at about 1:25 p.m. May 22. Two men helped the driver out of his car before paramedics arrived. Upon examing him, they advised he be taken to the hospital to seek care for his injuries.

To the medics, the driver reportedly said he’d consumed an entire bottle of whisky in less than two hours before driving.

Speaking with police, the driver at first denied he had been driving the car, but then said, “Whatever man, it’s over. I was driving and I’m drunk.”

As his injuries prevented the man from performing a field sobriety test, police administered a preliminary breath test, and the results were .297.

The man asked repeatedly if he could smoke a cigarette before taking the breath test, but was told no. One officer said he believed the man knew that doing so would invalidate the sample.

When asked if he felt capable of performing a breathalyzer test at the police station, the driver said he needed to go the hospital immediately. Medics agreed that he should go “sooner rather than later,” due to his injuries.

When asked if he would consent to a blood test, he again said no.

So, police then obtained a warrant, via phone, and the man’s blood sample was taken by a medic from the Bainbridge Island Fire Department.

The driver was taken to a hospital in Bremerton, then to Kitsap County Jail, where he was booked without bail due to his prior arrests.