ASTROS ROOKIE ARRESTED ON DUI CHARGES

Posted On April 4, 2011 In Personal Injury

Authorities arrested Delino DeShields Jr., Houston Astros minor-league baseball player, last month in Athens, GA on suspicion of drunk driving, according to the Athens Banner-Herald. Police booked 18-year-old DeShields at Clark County Jail at 1:06 am on January 16.

DeShields told Athens police he was leaving a gathering at a Kappa Alpha house and “admitted to having a sip of beer earlier in the evening,” according to The Houston Chronicle.  DeShields registered a .076 BAC; the legal limit in Georgia for individuals under 21 is .002. A blood test at the Clark County Jail recorded a .094, according to The Houston Chronicle.  Police also found four open bottles of liquor in DeShields’ 2010 Cadillac Escalade.  DeShields posted his $2500 bond and was released early the next morning.

DeShields faces charges of drunk driving, underage possession of alcohol driving the wrong way down a one way, according to the Athens Banner-Herald.  All three charges are misdemeanors.

“Our position is it’s a private police matter, and we don’t have any comment on it,” said Astros General Manager Ed Wade.

DeShields offered an apology to the public on his Facebook page.  “I take the responsibility of being a role model seriously and apologize to my fans, my community and the Astros organization, who continue to support my family and I during this unfortunate incident,” DeShields wrote. “I look forward to putting this incident behind me and sincerely appreciate the respect of privacy during this personal matter.”

DeShields, who is 18 years old, was the Astros’ top pick and the eighth overall draft pick in 2010 and is the son of long-time major leaguer Delino DeShields.

According to CenturyCouncil.org, there were 1,235 alcohol-related auto fatalities in Texas in 2009.  185 of those fatalities involved an impaired driver who was under the age of 21.