Democrat Lawnmower Driver Faces 9th DWI Charge In Minnesota

[ed...@poste.com]

BLUE EARTH COUNTY, MN — A Minnesota man with eight previous DWI
offenses was arrested for his ninth last month while he was
driving a riding lawnmower. Thomas Edward Grothe, 60, was
observed "driving in an erratic manner" in a lawnmower on the
streets of Madison Lake, Minnesota, July 20, according to the
criminal complaint filed in the case.

A police officer reported seeing Grothe complete a sharp left-
hand turn onto Maple Avenue, where he began driving in the wrong
lane. Grothe had trouble with his balance and smelled of
alcohol, according to the criminal complaint.

Grothe was administered a portable blood-alcohol breath test and
blew a 0.28, more than three times the legal limit in Minnesota.
He also told police he has not had a driver's license since
1978. A computer check of his driver's license indicated that it
was cancelled as "inimical to public safety," according to the
complaint.

Grothe faces two DWI-related charges and one charge for driving
with a suspended license.

In Minnesota, it is a crime to operate any motor vehicle with a
blood-alcohol level of 0.08 or more. "Motor vehicle" is defined
as every vehicle that is "self-propelled and every vehicle that
is propelled by electric power obtained from overhead trolley
wires." The term does not include a vehicle moved solely by
human power.

https://patch.com/new-jersey/cinnaminson/s/g76b5/lawnmower-
driver-faces-9th-dwi-charge-in-minnesota