Titus Norton
April 25, 8:33 pm
DWI, Navajo Charge
McKinley County Sheriff’s Sgt. Elreno Henio was patrolling County Road 1 as part of the DWI task force when he noticed a car coming toward him at a high rate of speed. He engaged his radar and clocked the vehicle going 40 mph in a 25 mph zone.
He conducted a traffic stop and talked to the driver, Titus Norton, 29, of Mentmore. When he asked Norton for his driver’s license, Norton said he didn’t have one. He also told Henio he only had one beer that day.
Henio said Norton agreed to take the field sobriety tests and when he failed, he was given a breath alcohol test, during which he posted two samples of .12. Since the arrest took place on reservation land, he was turned over to the Navajo police who booked him on charges of DWI, speeding, and having no driver’s license.
Tanita Martinez
April 22, 7:20 pm
2nd DWI, Aggravated
Gallup Police Officer Justin Foster said he was dispatched to a two-vehicle accident on the 3800 block of East Highway 66.
When he got there, he found a car with Arizona license plates. The car was in the middle of the road and appeared to be heavily damaged. He said when he inspected the vehicle he also saw several malt liquor bottles on the floor near the passenger and driver’s seats.
The driver was not at the scene but firefighters told Foster that she was inside the nearby laundry. When he went inside, he was told the woman was standing by the door with a phone in her hand.
He said the woman identified herself as Martinez. The police report did not give her age or address.
Foster said as he spoke to her he could smell liquor coming from her breath. She also showed other signs of being intoxicated. He asked her if she was injured and she said she was not and was not in need of medical attention.
When he checked with Metro Dispatch, he discovered her license had been suspended and when he asked her why, he was told it was because of a previous DWI. As he walked her to his unit, he said she was not able to maintain her balance.
He asked her if she was willing to take field sobriety tests and she said no. She also refused to take breath alcohol tests, so he placed her in his unit and transported her to the county jail.
Along the way, Martinez asked if he could drop her off at her relative’s house and he explained to her that was not going to happen because she was under arrest.
Martinez was then booked on DWI charges, driving on a suspended driver’s license, having no insurance, and having open liquor containers in her vehicle.
Gary Morgan
April 17, 8:23 pm
DWI, Aggravated
GPD Officer Justin Foster said he heard Metro Dispatch put out an attempt to locate a 2002 black Chevy that was registered to Vivian Johnson. She said she had loaned it to her boyfriend and he failed to return it.
About 90 minutes later, Johnson’s daughter reported seeing the vehicle on Aztec Avenue. She said she was following it and saw Morgan, 39, of Gallup, driving it. She also reported that Morgan had sideswiped a parked vehicle on Strong Drive and then kept on driving.
She said she then saw him drive up to a house on Vista Drive and get out of the vehicle. A few minutes later Foster said he arrived at the address and found another law enforcement officer at the scene with Morgan.
He said he asked Morgan if he would take field sobriety tests and at first he said he would. But when Foster started the tests, he refused to take it. He also agreed at first to take a breath alcohol test but then later declined, saying he knew he wasn’t going to pass it.
Foster said Morgan smelled strongly of liquor and was barely able to walk.
Foster said he was able to get a search warrant signed and then took Morgan to the Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital where technicians drew a blood sample for testing for alcohol.
He was then transported to the county jail where he was charged with aggravated DWI and failure to give immediate notice of an accident.
Donovan Tom
April 16, 12:01 pm
DWI, Aggravated
MCSO Dep. Frank Villa Jr. was on patrol driving on Mendoza Road when he saw a blue car pass him and sway to cross over the edge line. The car swayed once more before Villa pulled the driver over. As he came close to the car, Villa saw the driver crawl into the backseat, as the “driver’s legs were kicking in the air as he maneuvered himself.”
Villa knocked on the window and had the man open the rear door. A man, soon identified as Tom, 33, exited and faced the deputy. Tom told Villa he jumped into the back seat because he was scared, according to the police report. Tom added that he was scared because he had a warrant.
Villa asked Tom if he had anything to drink before driving, and Tom admitted to drinking a beer. Villa said he could smell alcohol coming from Tom, and asked him to perform field sobriety tests for him, during which he showed signs of intoxication. He refused a breath test and was booked.
Cheryl Begay
April 6, 8:34 pm
3rd DWI, Aggravated
A man approached GPD Officer Justin Benally in a downtown walkway to tell him that he had seen a couple fighting in a car, and the woman was throwing things at the man. The man pointed to the car, which he saw heading west on Aztec Avenue.
Benally followed the car and stopped the driver on Coal Avenue. When he arrived at the car, he saw a 30-pack of Bud Lite in the back seat. Benally spoke with Begay, 36, to ask if she was ok. Begay said she had an argument with her boyfriend, and that he spilled beer on her, which is why she smelled like alcohol.
Begay agreed to field sobriety testing. She showed signs of intoxication, and was given a breath test, where she blew a .25 and a .24 before being booked for her third DWI.
Jolene Yazzie
April 1, 10:41 pm
2nd DWI, Aggravated
MCSO Dep. Lorenzo Guerrero spotted a brown car without tail lights, and pulled over the driver. Guerrero “right away” smelled alcohol coming from the car, according to the police report, and spotted alcohol in the car near the passenger side seat.
Guerrero asked Yazzie, 44, if she had anything to drink before driving, and she said she had “a couple,” according to the report. When Yazzie left the vehicle, Guerrero wrote that she was scared, and began to cry. When Guerrero asked if she would take field sobriety tests, Yazzie allegedly began to yell, saying she would not take the test, and began talking to the other passengers in the car.
Guerrero again asked Yazzie to take the tests, and she agreed. She struggled through the first tests before giving up, saying to just take her in, according to the police report. When Guerrero did attempt to make the arrest, Yazzie allegedly became angry, and began to yell at the officer.
She refused breath testing, and told Guerrero she would kill him, according to the report. Guerrero took her to the hospital and then the jail, and Yazzie threatened to kill him throughout the ride, according to the report.
