A Central Florida man with two prior DUI arrests was recently caught driving impaired again, with kids in his car.
Polk County Sheriff’s deputies patrolling the I-4 area in Davenport recently arrested a Valrico man for DUI and child abuse after observing him driving impaired, in the eastbound emergency lane (shoulder) of I-4, with two kids in the vehicle.
After making the traffic stop around 6:15pm on a Friday, the deputy observed 46-year-old James Ray Tompkins to have glassy, watery, bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, and swaying upon exiting his red SUV. The deputy also detected the odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from him.
Tompkins told the deputy he was taking the two children, ages 5 and 8 years old, from Valrico to Disney World in Orlando. He said he was driving on the shoulder due to all the traffic congestion. He also said that he had had “one bourbon mixed drink.”
According to law enforcement, he showed multiple signs of impairment during the field sobriety tests that were administered, and refused to submit samples of his breath for a breath alcohol content test upon his arrival at the Sheriff’s Processing Center.
A check of his criminal history revealed two prior arrests and five separate convictions for DUI charges in Highlands County and Hillsborough County, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s office.
Tompkins was currently being charged with DUI 3rd or subsequent offense, refusing to submit to BAL test, DUI with children under 18 in car, and two counts of negligent child abuse.
“What a poor excuse for a man in charge of two little kids,” said Sheriff Grady Judd. “This is why my deputies are patrolling the major highways in our county every day in an effort to prevent high-speed traffic crashes and to get impaired drivers off the road. Clearly his previous arrests and convictions have not taught Tompkins a lesson, but perhaps the new felony charges of child abuse will sink in. I’m very grateful those children are okay.”
