Current Revolt has obtained video of Sen. Schwertner’s arrest for suspicion of driving while intoxicated.
Texas State Senator Charles Schwertner was arrested back on Feb. 7 around 12:45 AM when an Austin police officer pulled his Cadillac over for driving between two lanes.
The original video is incredibly long, so we took the video and cut it down to the parts we found interesting.
Here are notable timestamps for the video:
1:00 - Officer approaches Schwertner’s vehicle and states why he stopped him. An unidentified woman is in the car with him. He states he picked the woman up from the airport and then grabbed Whataburger. The officer states he notices a smell of alcohol.
3:40 - An officer talks with the unidentified woman in the car explaining Schwertner’s situation.
4:30 - Officer calls in, seemingly to a supervisor, saying that he pulled over a state official, says the woman in his car is his wife.
5:05 - Officer scolds the woman multiple times, telling her she needs to “step back” as to not interrupt the investigation.
5:44 - Officer tells a woman they offered Schwertner the opportunity to blow into a breathalyzer but he declined. The woman says “good!” The officer then refers to a different woman as his wife. This is confusing as it seems there are two women here now.
6:18 - Schwertner is patted down for weapons etc.
6:52 - Questioning of Schwertner begins. He explains again that he came from Whataburger and he had nothing to drink.
8:40 - An incredibly long, annoying, field sobriety test begins. We actually feel for Schwertner here as the entire process and instructions seem overtly complicated and sometimes confusing.
13:45 - One-leg stand test begins. Schwertner struggles heavily with this.
18:10 - Schwertner gets annoyed with the officer: “Are you done yet officer?” A small argument with the officer begins.
19:26 - Schwertner is offered the opportunity to take a breathalyzer test. He declines and is put in handcuffs and arrested.
21:05 - Schwertner’s personal and arrest info is confirmed with him by an officer.
24:00 - Schwertner is again asked if officers can take a specimen of his breath. Schwertner says: “You may not.”
24:15 - Schwertner knocks his head in the car seemingly out of frustration of the situation. A conversation is had between an officer and an unknown person off camera regarding the arrest.
24:55 - “Motherfucker.” Schwertner complains that the handcuffs are too tight and asks the officer to loosen them.
25:50 - An officer informs Schwertner that his “colleague” (what happened to wife?) is asking for his phone to get his attorney’s phone number.
28:07 - BIG SPEED BUMP. These Austin streets… Schwertner has a casual conversation with the officer. Thanking him for his service.
28:50 - “I voted for him.”
Travis County later chose not to pursue DWI charges against Schwertner.
Travis County Attorney Delia Garza said there was not sufficient evidence to “prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt” and that her office will not pursue charges.
“Mr. Schwertner also voluntarily submitted to alcohol counseling and alcohol monitoring with no violations,” she said in a statement Tuesday.
Garza said Schwertner’s case was given the same consideration as other individuals facing a first-time DWI offense. Her statement came hours after Perry Minton, an attorney for Schwertner, announced that the charges were being dropped.
The arrest report for the incident is more heavily redacted than an Area 51 document:
Unconfirmed rumors circulated around the capitol that the woman in the car with Schwertner the night of the DWI was Texas Democrat State Rep Claudia Ordaz.
They were also spotted together a month later in an Austin bar:
Video: Lawmaker’s Bipartisan Foreplay Spotted at Austin Bar
Either way, looks like Schwertner got off with a slap on the wrist, possibly still has the thing going with his shorty, and is right back at work.
All’s well that ends well we suppose.
Texas Sen. Charles Schwertner's Arrest Video