A Fayetteville man will spend a year in prison plus another six months in the county jail for a hit-and-run DUI that happened as he was fleeing a police officer in October.
Armando Alvarez Morales, 30, pled guilty Wednesday to one felony count of fleeing and attempting to elude a police officer, DUI, driving with a suspended license, hit and run, two counts of failure to maintain lane and driving with an expired tag.
Morales, who was living at a residence at Marnelle Mobile Home Park, was first spotted by a police officer who pulled him over on Ga. Highway 54 near the Walmart store. But when the officer got out of his car, Morales took off eastbound on the highway and he crashed into a SUV at the intersection with Willowbend Road before continuing out of the city limits.
Morales was stopped by Fayetteville police officers and Fayette County sheriff’s deputies a short distance from Marnelle, said Assistant District Attorney Warren Sellers.
Morales admitted to drinking two beers but on a breathalyzer test his lowest alcohol content reading was .183, well above the .08 limit for intoxication under state law.
As part of the plea, Morales was declared a habitual violator, which makes it illegal for him to drive under any circumstance until his driver’s license is restored by the state of Georgia. Once that happens, he must obtain an ignition interlock device for his vehicle to make sure he is sober before he starts the car each time.
Fayette County Superior Court Judge Fletcher Sams also ordered Morales to pay a $3,000 fine and do 30 days of community service.
