St. Paul man charged in 20th DWI arrest

Prosecutors said they're frustrated they can't charge a St. Paul man with a felony after he was arrested for the 20th time on suspicion of drunken driving.

Minnesota law makes a fourth drunken driving offense within 10 years a felony punishable by three years in prison and a fine of at least $14,000. But only two of 55-year-old Paul Garay's convictions for driving while intoxicated were in the past 10 years, so prosecutors said Monday they could only charge him with gross misdemeanors that carry a maximum sentence of one year in jail.

Washington County Attorney Doug Johnson said it's another example of a system that's too lenient with drunken drivers.

"No one is really serious about getting drunk drivers off the roads," Johnson said. "Because if we were, we'd crack down on the first time much harder than we are, we'd crack down on the second one much harder than we are."

Garay crashed into a snowbank at Highway 61 and Interstate 494 in Newport on Thursday evening. His blood alcohol level was 0.16 percent, twice the legal limit, according to a criminal complaint.

"I know I did wrong. I've been sober for seven years. ..." authorities quoted Garay as telling troopers. "I know I screwed up."

Garay had a valid driver's license. Public Safety Commissioner Michael Campion said Garay had fulfilled the statutory requirements to get his license reinstated.

Since Garay can't be charged with a felony, the case has been handed over to Fritz Knaak, the Newport city attorney, who prosecutes misdemeanors and gross misdemeanors for the St. Paul suburb. He said the state's drunken driving laws usually work, and this case is highly unusual.

"There's going to be meaningful and harsh consequences for him," Knaak said, noting that Garay remains in jail on a parole violation.

Along with 19 drunken driving convictions that go back to 1974, Garay was imprisoned from 2003 to 2006 on a drug conviction. He still has 10 months left to serve on his 90-month sentence.

"It's very irritating that the law has not caught up to folks like this," said Lynne Goughler of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers in Minnesota. "It's scary. He's not done harm to anyone else, or property, just to himself. But the odds are that he will at some point hurt somebody, or drive into their property."

Garay remained in the Washington County jail where he couldn't be reached for comment. Jail and court records don't list his public defender's name, and a message left at the county public defender's office was not immediately returned.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)