VIDEO: Farmington officer arrested for DWI with kids in car
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – A Farmington police officer is accused of drunk driving with his two kids in the car. Newly obtained police video shows how deputies reacted to a fellow officer accused of being so reckless and the moment the officer’s wife took their kids back.
Mother: I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry! Daddy didn’t mean to do it! I don’t know what he did, baby.”
That’s the moment a mother was reunited with her kids after San Juan County deputies arrested their dad for drunk driving. Deputies already knew his name.
“Robert Shuttleworth. Do you know him?” says a deputy in the video. “I’ve seen him on calls before,” answers another deputy.
Police release surveillance video of crash involving APD chief
they also knew where he worked. “Hey, it’s a …it’s a Farmington officer. I just wanted to give you a heads up,” a deputy says.
Deputies caught up with Shuttleworth just outside Aztec in February after responding to a call of a reckless driver. When they got to the scene, Shuttleworth was parked on the side of the road.
Deputy 1: Bobby, let’s step out of the vehicle, alright?
Deputy 2: Come on, Bobby. You’ve got your kids in the back, dude.
They even had to help Shuttleworth stand upright. Searching Shuttleworth’s SUV, deputies found five empty bottles of alcohol and one half-empty one.
Community mourns the loss of NMSP Officer Justin Hare
The deputies couldn’t hold back their feelings.
Deputy 1: I don’t know, should know better.
Deputy 2: Yeah, especially with your kids in the car.
The kids, uninjured, were released to their mother. Shuttleworth refused a field sobriety test and was taken to the San Juan County Detention Center. The video shows he passed out on the way.
Shuttleworth blew a .27 on a breathalyzer, even suggesting he didn’t know why he was in custody.
NMSP arrests man in Las Cruces facing child sex abuse charges
Deputy: Bro, you’ve been drinking tonight, man.
Shuttleworth: Yeah, you too.
Deputy: You made that decision, not me Bobby.
Shuttleworth: I did?
Deputy: Yes sir.
The San Juan Sheriff’s office determined Shuttleworth drove off of the road through buses and a tree, then into a ditch. He’s facing aggravated DWI, leaving the scene of a crash, and two counts of DWI with a minor.
