BY HARRY FRANKLIN - State Editor | Posted on Wed, May. 09, 2007
TALBOTTON, Ga. --Talbot official tried to get out of DUI
A Talbotton city councilman was rebuffed on March 31 when he asked a Georgia State Patrol officer to help him out as he faced his fourth DUI charge since October 1996.
Councilman Frederick Bernard Cotton, 37, who also is assistant principal of the Talbot County Charter Alternative Academy, was charged with speeding and DUI while driving on Ga. 41 at 8:35 p.m. by Georgia State Patrol Cpl. Jason Raley, according to records obtained from the Georgia Department of Public Safety through an open records request.
Several tests were administered, with Cotton's blood alcohol content registering .152 grams on the first, .167 and .162 on two other Breathalyzer tests. State law presumes a driver to be intoxicated at .08 grams. He also was charged with driving 70 miles per hour in a 55 mph zone. Cotton posted a $3,268 bond and the case was bound over to Talbot County Superior Court at the request of his attorney, Richard Hagler of Columbus.
Cotton also is assistant director of the Talbot County Recreation Department.
Cotton admitted Tuesday that he asked Raley to help him out of the DUI, saying he was a city councilman in Talbotton. The trooper told Cotton that if he registered .08 grams, which is legally intoxicated in Georgia, he would charge him with DUI, the report states.
"If there was anything in his power, he could do it," Cotton said. "That's why I asked him. Maybe he could have let me call someone and they could pick me up."
Raley's narrative about the arrest also shows that Cotton called Talbot County Chief Deputy Sheriff Herman Howard, who called the trooper to ask if he could help Cotton, but again the corporal declined. He had transported Cotton to the Talbot County Jail.
Previous incidents
Records from Talbot County Probate Court and Superior Court show Cotton pleaded no contest in Probate Court to a DUI charge he received Oct. 9, 1996, and was fined $579. He had registered .08 grams on a test after being stopped by the Georgia State Patrol in Talbot County.
On Sept. 30, 2001, Cotton again was charged by a state trooper with DUI and speeding on Ga. 41. Reports show he registered .16 grams on a breath test. That case was transferred to Talbot County Superior Court. He also was charged with driving 69 mph in a 55 mph zone. He pleaded guilty in Superior Court to DUI and was sentenced by Judge William Smith to 12 months probation, 20 hours of community service, was ordered to spend 48 hours in the Talbot County Jail and to pay a $500 fine.
On Oct. 21, 2002, Cotton was charged in Harris County with driving on a suspended license, after he was stopped on Georgia Highway 315. He pleaded guilty in Harris County Probate Court on Dec. 3 and was fined $377, court records show. His license had been suspended for a DUI conviction.
Cotton also was charged with DUI on Aug. 6, 2006, in Upson County, but pleaded guilty to a reckless driving charge and paid a $1,650 fine on Dec. 8, 2006, in Upson County Probate Court, according to records from Upson County Probate Court.
Personal business
Jerome C. Harris, director of the charter academy, said: "What Mr. Cotton does on his personal time is his business. He didn't get a DUI on school time or in a school vehicle. I couldn't care if he got 50 DUIs because there's nothing I can do about what he does on his personal time. It's not my job to check. You print that the way I said it."
He said the academy doesn't require faculty or staff to report DUIs they receive on their own time.
"I can assure you none of the kids know I have a DUI," Cotton said.
Asked whether he considers this a problem he needs to address, Cotton said, "Yes sir, I do consider this a problem."
But Talbot County Manager Sandra Higginbotham said, "I'm going to really have to look at this. He's on my list. It doesn't sound good to me. It's not setting a good example for our young people.
"It's not acceptable behavior," she said. "My concern is for him and for other people who are on the roads."
Higginbotham said the Talbot County Commission discussed the matter Monday night in a closed session. No action was taken and Higginbotham said at this point she does not expect any.
Cotton is up for re-election to the city council this fall.
