BANGOR, Maine — The Bangor police detective charged last month with drunken driving while he was on duty has pleaded not guilty through his attorney.
Erik Tall, a 15-year veteran of the force who has spent the last three years keeping tabs on the the city’s roughly 200 registered sex offenders, was scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday at the Penobscot Judicial Center on one count of operating under the influence of intoxicants.
His blood alcohol level was 0.13 percent, well above the legal limit of 0.08 percent, Penobscot County District Attorney R. Christopher Almy said last month.
Tall did not appear in court himself. Instead, his attorney, Marvin Glazier of Bangor, earlier this week submitted to the court a waiver of arraignment and a not guilty plea on the detective’s behalf.
An attorney entering a waiver and plea on behalf of a client is not unusual.
Glazier declined to comment Wednesday afternoon on Tall’s case. The attorney said it was his practice not to comment on cases until they had been concluded.
On Tuesday, the attorney for Ted Nugent’s drummer Mick Brown, 55, of Cave Creek, Ariz., entered a guilty plea to a drunken driving charge and paid a $1,000 fine on Brown’s behalf. Brown never appeared in court in Maine.
Tall, 39, of Bangor is scheduled to appear in court again on Jan. 10.
The detective was placed on unpaid administrative leave after his Oct. 3 arrest. Acting Police Chief Peter Arno said Wednesday that Tall remains on unpaid administrative leave.
The charge was lodged against Tall after someone contacted Bangor police around 6:30 p.m. Oct. 3 to say an on-duty detective was intoxicated at the Airport Mall on Union Street, the prosecutor said last month. Fellow police officers went to check on him.
Lt. Mark Hathaway, the city’s interim police chief at the time of Tall’s arrest, charged the detective with operating under the influence, according to a previous report.
Before he joined the Bangor police force, Tall worked for the Orono Police Department and the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office, according to the Bangor Daily News archives.
throw away the key
Ridiculous.
Deal with him in the same way everyone else is treated under the law.
No more, no less.
No, he was driving drunk on COMPANY TIME. The tax payers were paying him while he was getting drunk, and using a car as a weapon. If he had killed or injured someone, it would have been OUR money paid out through law suits, and in additional insurance fees.
If I was driving one of my boss’s vehicles while drunk, there would not be much discussion in the head office as to my fate.
Cities and towns buy liability insurance
Yeap they do, and you know what happens to insurance rates when these folks have to pay out.
Seems all people in this life are capable of making mistakes.
It’s called being human.
Wouldn’t a mistake be throwing out some important files you need in the trash, or not stopping at the store to buy a loaf of bread? Drinking. Then Driving, Could possibly be considered a mistake to an average person, but a cop? He forgot that it is against the law to drive drunk?
This man is a full adult, supposedly with some knowledge. A point 13 is not a mistake, that is a “I don’t care.”
Would it still have been just a “”mistake” if he had run over one of Sarah Smiley’s children?
I made a simple observation.
I cannot speak for everyone, but i will say this. If i had to keep tabs on 200 Sex Offenders, i am not so sure i wouldnt need to hit a bottle of something on a pretty regular basis as well. Certianly not saying what he did was right, but there is at least, an obvious reason as to why. Hopefully if this guy has a problem, they will not ostricize him and will help him get the help he needs to get back on the job.
Yes. That has to be a very depressing job.
Not an excuse for a police detective to drink and drive especially while on duty. I understand that people make mistakes but, this isn’t a mistake – it is a really bad judgement call and very irresponsible. I have no sympathy for him and I hope they throw the book at him. He is supposed to uphold the law, not break it!
Would the average citizen get a break for such a “mistake”?
Great point!
I’m a little confused by your reply – I was replying to the poster @Tailtiu:disqus. Please read it again and then see if your question to me still makes sense.
No, I wasn’t asking you that-I was reinforcing your point.
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This wasn’t a mistake – it was intentional, reckless and irresponsible. This guy at some point made a conscious decision to drink on the job. That’s not a mistake (it’s a drinking problem).
Right … a disease!
Knew better..
Is this the first time he drove intoxicated? He didn’t know it was illegal and unsafe?
He was tested at 0,13%. I look at it like this 0,13 % of him was incapable of driving safely and it was all above his shoulders or take a half- inch off the top of his brain.
Cop on cop hate. How would someone other than a fellow cop know he was on duty at the time?
Perhaps the person that saw him drinking saw the badge and gun on his belt.
I assumed a detective wore plain cloths
They do.
So what are you trying to say, that it was wrong for one of Tall’s colleagues to report that Tall was drunk? And just how does reporting that equal “hate”?
Do as I say.not as I do.
A mistake is dropping a plate and breaking it. Drunk driving is an intentional act. I will let the judicial process decide. I have a fairly good idea of the outcome.
I understand no one ever pleads guilty, but in the world of prima facia evidence.. If he was tested for his BAC and is over the limit of .08 how can one plead not guilty, unless they think some method of the law was not followed that they are going to try and fight.. But it seems getting it over would be the best interest. Most normal oui cases they never relase the BAC content until after court why were they able to release BAC for this case?
to make the prosecution reveal the evidence against you. Perhaps there are some issues with the BAC machine, for example. You can always change your plea to guilty later on once you (+lawyer) see that the evidence is solid and that the opposing side would likely win in court.
I never plead guilty . I just love to watch cops or DAs twist the truth in court . Like the time a sercurity Garde (who is now a cop) called the police after he jump started my car for me then call the police to tell them I was drunk driving . His story under oath was I brought the police to help him with his car . Wow when you need a jump start just call the police no need for a wrecker .
Slap on the wrist at worst.
I would take him back,the officer.
Would you take him back if he had been smoking dope?
There are a lot of remarks here about DUI and his BAC level We have to remember that any level at all in an on duty cop (even a beat cop) is too much. He obviously had more than a beer with his supper.
I won’t be vindictive enough to say he should be fired, but a strong punishment is required.
Aren’t we warned with stern messages on tv and radio that buzzed driving is drunk driving and that we shouldn’t do even that? And here is a police officer who was full-on drunk driving. I think the any police officer should be dealt with in the same manner that we should expect to be dealt with should WE be caught driving drunk.
Aren’t we warned with stern messages on tv and radio that buzzed driving is drunk driving and that we shouldn’t do even that? Here is a police officer who was full-on drunk driving. I think the any police officer should be dealt with in the same manner that we should expect to be dealt with should WE be caught driving drunk.
Good luck to you MR. Tall . I think you are going to need it . In the Greenleaf case no one was arrested . Those boys were much more lucky.
Irrelevant.
Man may have made a mistake .I am sure if found guilty he will be looking for another job. just because he made a mistake dose not make him a bad person.. I fact I do not see what he is accused of as being nearly as bad a crime as those who covered for Carlson. I know for many in law enforcement who have driving while impaired . Most have never been caught . He is only human and dealing with the stress an politics is way too much for most people.
Well…we (or at least I) was not present at the mall when it went dowe. My thoughts are what ever happened to cops taking care of cops? Must have ticked someone off. Was he driving in the mall parking lot? Note that I do not condone DUI…maybe more critical if it is a public servant sworn to protect and serve.
Grow a pair and take your lumps. If he didn’t think he was drunk, then he doesn’t have the judgement skills to be a “detective”.
Hmmmm… let me see if I understand this… a .13 BAT… He says he is not guilty…now, if somewhere along the way the plea changes to guilty, can he be acused of lying?
No. We all have the right to plead not guilty.
A “not guilty” plea simply means you’re denying that the state has enough evidence to convict you.
No, cause he’s not lying. “Guilty” is a legal term and no one is “guilty” under our system of justice till the Judge accepts that finding, and the court finds the defendent “guilty”
Pleading “not guilty” simply means you contest the charges.
So, how Tall is he ?
The man knows he’s guilty. Oh wait did I say man? I guess he isn’t if he can’t admit to what he has done. And I don’t want to hear anything about how it’s standard to plead not guilty at first. Bull cookies.
We do not have the facts. Never plead guilty unless you are giving a deal or just want it to be over. Most people in this world have done things that could have landed you in jail just most have not been caught. Tall probably knows a lot of stuff he should be given a deal to keep his mouth shut. If I were him I would tell all I know .