Dorn charged with DUI, remains silent on arrest

If a police officer hadn't thought he was speeding, or driving a car with a defective taillight, then Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn might not be facing a charge of drunken driving.

Those were the reasons the officer pulled Dorn over about 1:30 a.m. Sunday as Dorn was driving home through Orting, in Pierce County. Then the officer smelled alcohol, and what could have been a simple $124 fine turned into a more serious matter.

Dorn, 56, was charged Wednesday with a single count of driving under the influence of alcohol. The allegations already are raising questions about his judgment as a public official, especially as the state's top schools official.

All Dorn has said so far is that he was stopped while driving home after a community event he attended with his family, where he drank beer with dinner.

In a prepared statement Tuesday, he said he looks forward to the day when he can provide more details but isn't at liberty to do so yet. His attorney, Tom Ellington, said Wednesday he's still conferring with Dorn about when to speak publicly. An arraignment date has not yet been set.

In his report, the officer who arrested Dorn said he smelled alcohol when he first approached Dorn's car. The report said Dorn took two sobriety tests and a preliminary breath test at the scene, and failed all three.

When Dorn got out of the car, the officer said he could smell a "strong odor of intoxicants" and observed that Dorn's "eyes were watery, droopy, bloodshot and his face was flushed."

In two breath tests done at the police station about an hour and a half later, Dorn's blood alcohol was reportedly 0.11 percent, higher than the 0.08 percent that is the legal limit.

The officer's report doesn't say whether anyone else was in the car.

Dorn was elected as the state's top school official in 2008. In that job, he oversees everything from state school funding to teacher certification and state exams. He also enforces state education laws and advises the Legislature on education issues.

Some elected officials have weathered drunken-driving charges or convictions and remained in office. Former state Supreme Court Justice Bobbe Bridge was one, and King County Councilmember Jane Hague is another.

King County Assessor Scott Noble resigned, but he was charged with vehicular assault after he caused a head-on accident that injured two women, as well as himself.

Political consultants say a lot depends on the details of Dorn's case and how he handles the matter.

A drunken-driving conviction is a gross misdemeanor, with a maximum penalty of one year in jail and a $5,000 fine.

Linda Shaw: 206-464-2359 or lshaw@seattletimes.com