Passed Out Motorist Arrested On DUI Charge In New Canaan: PD

NEW CANAAN, CT — A 31-year-old Westport man was arrested on a driving under the influence charge in New Canaan on Aug. 11 after he was found asleep in a parked vehicle with the engine running in Waveny Park, according to police.

Christopher M. Parent, of Terra Nova Circle, was asleep in the driver's seat at about 6 p.m. when he was discovered in the park.

"Responding officers observed the stated vehicle in a parking space in the park and made several attempts to wake up Parent (the operator) by verbally asking him to wake up, this did not work," wrote New Canaan police in a statement. "Finally an officer was able to reach through an open window and shake Parent's shoulder to finally get Parent to wake up."

While speaking with Parent, officers smelled alcohol and marijuana on Parent's breath and inside the vehicle, and officers found both marijuana and drug paraphernalia in the vehicle. The discovery of those items led police to additionally charge Parent with possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of less than half an ounce of marijuana.

Parent failed Standardized Field Sobriety Tests and was taken into custody. At police headquarters, he submitted to a blood alcohol content test, which registered 0.14, an amount above the legal limit.

He was released after posting a bond of $260, and he is scheduled to appear in Norwalk Superior Court on Aug. 20.