Relators Application for Order Requiring Citation

CAUSE NO. __________________

THE STATE OF TEXAS, § IN THE ______ JUDICIAL

Plaintiff §

EX REL. RICHARD D. REED, §

Relator §

v. § DISTRICT COURT OF

ROSEMARY LEHMBERG, §

Defendant, §

In Her Official Capacity as District §

Attorney of Travis County, Texas § TRAVIS COUNTY, TEXAS

RELATOR’S APPLICATION FOR ORDER REQUIRING SERVICE OF CITATION AND CERTIFIED COPY OF PETITION

TO THE HONORABLE JUDGE OF SAID COURT:

NOW COMES Relator, Richard D. Reed, and, pursuant to section 87.016 of the Texas

Local Government Code, hereby applies for an order requiring that a citation and a certified copy

of Relator’s Original Petition for Removal be served on Defendant, Rosemary Lehmberg,

hereinafter usually referred to as “Lehmberg.” In support of such application, Relator would

show unto the Court as follows:

I. GROUNDS FOR APPLICATION

1. Prior to the filing of this application Relator filed, pursuant to section 87.015 of the Local

Government Code, a written petition for removal seeking to remove Defendant from the Office

of District Attorney of Travis County.

2. The aforesaid petition satisfies each of the requirements for the commencement of a

proceeding for the removal of a district attorney set forth in section 87.015 of the Local

Government Code, i.e.,

a. it was filed in a district court of Travis County, the county in which Defendant

Filed13 May 30 A11:00Amalia Rodriguez-MendozaDistrict ClerkTravis DistrictD-1-GV-13-000511

Relator’s Application for Order Requiring Service of Citation and Certified Copy of Petition Page 2

resides;

b. it was filed by a current resident of Travis County and the State of Texas who has

lived for at least six months in Travis County and is not currently under indictment therein;

c. the party who filed it swore to it before it was filed with this Court;

d. it is addressed to the Judge of this Court;

e. it sets forth the grounds alleged for the removal of Lehmberg in plain and

intelligible language; and

f. it cites the time and place of the occurrence of each act alleged as a ground for

removal with as much certainty as the nature of the case permits.

3. Relator has heretofore obtained the following records, primarily as a result of his

submission of applications for public information:1

a. a compact disc bearing the handwritten notation “911 Call & Radio Traffic”;

b. a digital versatile disc (DVD) bearing the handwritten notation “Handheld Camcorder Video”;

c. a DVD bearing the handwritten notation “Central Booking Facility Security Video”;

d. a DVD bearing the handwritten notation “Sally Port Video”;

e. a DVD bearing the handwritten notation “Dep. Mallinger In-Car Video”;

f. a DVD bearing the handwritten notation “Dep. Ribsam In-Car Video”;

g. a DVD bearing the handwritten notation “Dep. Paige In-Car Video”;

h. a DVD bearing the handwritten notation “Dep. Reyna In-Car Video”;

i. a DVD bearing the handwritten notation “Lt. Canales In-Car Video”;

j. copies of several pages of Travis County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO) dispatcher notes;

k. copies of the alcohol content laboratory report issued in DPS Laboratory Case No. HDQ-1304-04332, the laboratory submission form, the alcohol analysis worksheet, and other documents associated with the laboratory analysis therein;

1 The only records that Relator obtained by means other than the submission of an application for public information are those described in item (k) infra. Relator obtained those records via a search of the World Wide Web.


l. a copy of a Notice of Suspension and Temporary Driving Permit issued to Rosemary Lehmberg;

m. a copy of a Peace Officer’s Sworn Report signed by TCSO Deputy John Ribsam;

n. a copy of an Affidavit for Search Warrant signed by Deputy Ribsam;

o. a copy of a Statutory Warning issued to Rosemary Lehmberg;

p. a copy of a Search Warrant for Blood issued by the Honorable Stephen Vigorito, Associate Judge of the Austin Municipal Court;

q. a copy of an Officer’s Return on Search Warrant for Blood from the Person of Rosemary Lehmberg signed by Deputy Ribsam;

r. a copy of an Affidavit of Person who Drew Blood signed by Regina Wright;

s. a copy of an Affidavit for Warrant of Arrest and Detention signed by Deputy Ribsam;

t. a copy of a TCSO Crash Report Witness/Observer Statement signed by Mark Thomas Weston;

u. a copy of Supplement No. 7 to TCSO Report No. 13-9122 generated by TCSO Sgt. Patrick Gardner;

v. a copy of a TCSO Isolation Cell Record and/or Application of Protective Restraints Record containing handwritten notes of Senior TCSO Corrections Officer Michelle Hooker;

w. a copy of a TCSO Inmate Incident Report signed by TCSO Sgt. Layla Rendon;

x. a copy of a TCSO report entitled “Documentation of Visual Observations, Including all Unusual, Pertinent, and Critical Events”;

y. the oath of office taken by Rosemary Lehmberg on January 1, 2009; and

z. the oath of office taken by Rosemary Lehmberg on January 1, 2013.

All factual allegations made in this application and all grounds for removal alleged in the

aforesaid petition are supported by evidence contained in the aforesaid records.

4. On November 4, 2008, Lehmberg was elected to the Office of District Attorney of Travis

County. On January 1, 2009, Lehmberg took the oath of office prescribed by article XVI,

section 1 of the Texas Constitution.2

2 The oath taken by Lehmberg reads as follows:

IN THE NAME AND BY THE AUTHORITY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS, I, Rosemary Lehmberg, do solemnly swear or (affirm), that I will faithfully execute the duties of the office of Travis County District Attorney of the State of Texas, and will to the best of my ability preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States and of this State, so help me God.


5. On November 6, 2012, Lehmberg was re-elected to the Office of District Attorney of

Travis County. On or about January 1, 2013, Lehmberg again took the official oath prescribed by

article XVI, section 1 of the Texas Constitution.

6. Article 2.01 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure and article XVI, section 1(a) of the

Texas Constitution set forth the duties of a district attorney. Article 2.01 of the Texas Code of

Criminal Procedure provides as follows:

Each district attorney shall represent the State in all criminal cases in the district courts of his district and in appeals therefrom, except in cases where he has been, before his election, employed adversely. When any criminal proceeding is had before an examining court in his district or before a judge upon habeas corpus, and he is notified of the same, and is at the time within his district, he shall represent the State therein, unless prevented by other official duties. It shall be the primary duty of all prosecuting attorneys, including any special prosecutors, not to convict, but to see that justice is done. They shall not suppress facts or secrete witnesses capable of establishing the innocence of the accused.

TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. art. 2.01. Article XVI, section 1(a) of the Texas Constitution provides

as follows:

All elected and appointed officers, before they enter upon the duties of their offices, shall take the following Oath or Affirmation:

“I, _______________________, do solemnly swear (or affirm), that I will faithfully execute the duties of the office of ___________________ of the State of Texas, and will to the best of my ability preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States and of this State, so help me God.”

TEX. CONST. art. XVI, § 1(a).

7. At approximately 10:35 p.m., on Friday, April 12, 2013, a 9-1-1 operator stationed at

Combined Transportation and Emergency Communications Center3 (CTECC) received the first

of several “reckless driver” calls regarding a Lexus automobile that was traveling westbound on

3 Combined Transportation and Emergency Communications Center receives and processes emergency 9-1-1 calls for service and emergency on behalf of four central Texas entities: the City of Austin, Travis County, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and the Texas Department of Transportation. See <http://austintexas.gov/ department/combined-transportation-emergency-communications-center-ctecc>.


Ranch Road 620 North4 in the western part of Travis County toward the City of Lakeway. One

of the callers, whose identity is currently unknown to Relator,5 reported that he had been driving

eastbound on RR 620 in the vicinity of St. Thomas More Catholic Church,6 which is situated at

10205 RR 620, when his vehicle was struck by an oncoming silver-colored Lexus that was

displaying Texas License Plate No. JLT 094. According to the caller, the Lexus “clipped the

very tail-end quarter panel of his vehicle,” causing minor damage to his vehicle.

8. A Travis County 9-1-1 operator later received a “reckless driver” bulletin from the Austin

Police Department (APD) regarding a silver-colored Lexus sedan that was failing to maintain a

single lane in the 7200 block of RR 620 and was last seen traveling westbound. According to

that report, the driver was possibly intoxicated.

9. At approximately 10:45 p.m. CTECC received another 9-1-1 call regarding a reckless

driver traveling westbound on RR 620. That caller, a Travis County resident later identified as

Mark Thomas Weston, reported that he was driving on RR 620 near Lakeway behind what

looked like a “champagne” colored Lexus driven by “an older woman” who was “incredibly

intoxicated.” According to Weston, he had “never seen anything like it”; the vehicle had been

“swerving all over the place,” and the driver had been driving in what looked “like the bicycle

lane for a good mile.” Weston notified the Travis County 9-1-1 operator that the Lexus had just

pulled off the road in front of St. Luke’s on the Lake Episcopal Church,7 which is situated at

5600 RR 620. Weston subsequently stopped behind the Lexus and waited for law enforcement

4 Ranch Road 620 North is also known as “FM 620 North.” For the sake of convenience, it will hereinafter be referred to simply as “RR 620.” 5 Relator has good reason to believe, and does believe, that the following governmental entities possess information identifying the driver of the aforesaid vehicle: CTECC, the Austin Police Department, the Travis County Sheriff’s Office, and the Travis County Attorney’s Office. 6 St. Thomas More Catholic Church will hereinafter be referred to as “St. Thomas.” 7 St. Luke’s on the Lake Episcopal Church will hereinafter be referred to as “St. Luke’s.”


officers to arrive.

10. While Weston was speaking with the 9-1-1 operator, Travis County Sheriff’s Deputy D.J.

Mallinger happened to be sitting in his patrol car in the St. Luke’s parking lot, writing a report

regarding an unrelated matter. At approximately 10:45 p.m., Deputy Mallinger observed two

vehicles stop immediately to the left of his location on the southbound shoulder of RR 620 in

front of St. Luke’s.8 Within seconds, Deputy Mallinger overheard a radio broadcast indicating

that the reckless driver and the 9-1-1 caller were both in front of St. Luke’s. Recognizing that

the first of the two vehicles that had just stopped there was a silver or gray Lexus, Deputy

Mallinger exited the church parking lot and positioned his patrol car behind Weston’s vehicle,

which was still stopped behind the Lexus.

11. Deputy Mallinger then approached Weston, who was sitting in his vehicle, and asked him

if he was the driver who had called 9-1-1. Deputy Mallinger immediately notified the TCSO

dispatcher of the Texas license plate number (JLT 094) being displayed by the 2001 model

Lexus that was stopped in front of Weston’s vehicle. Moments later, at 10:47 p.m., Deputy

Mallinger approached the Lexus and identified the driver and sole occupant as Rosemary

Lehmberg. While speaking with Lehmberg, Deputy Mallinger observed indications that she

might be intoxicated. Consequently, he detained her for the purpose of conducting an

investigation to determine whether she had committed the Class B misdemeanor offense of

driving while intoxicated. At 10:48 p.m. another Travis County Sheriff’s deputy informed

Deputy Mallinger by radio that the license plate number displayed on the Lexus matched the one

that was displayed on the silver-colored Lexus that minutes earlier had struck an oncoming

vehicle in the vicinity of St. Thomas. Deputy Mallinger subsequently asked Lehmberg whether

8 Directional travel on that portion of RR 620 toward the City of Lakeway is sometimes indicated as “southbound” and sometimes “westbound” because the roadway, which is winding, runs generally from northeast to southwest.


she had been drinking, but she replied, “No.”

12. During the ensuing investigation, several other Travis County Sheriff’s deputies arrived

on the scene, including Deputy Frank Paige, Deputy Miguel Reyna, Deputy John Ribsam, Sgt.

Patrick Gardner, and Lt. Michael Canales. One of the deputies found an open bottle of vodka

that was readily accessible to Lehmberg inside the passenger compartment of the Lexus. Shortly

after Deputy Paige’s arrival, Deputy Mallinger asked him to interview Lehmberg for signs of

intoxication. Deputy Mallinger then began to interview Weston and eventually obtained a

written statement from him recounting the events that had prompted him to call 9-1-1.

13. According to Weston’s statement, he had been traveling southbound on 620 toward

Lakeway when he came upon a light-colored, older model Lexus traveling in the bike lane in

front of The Home Depot.9 Weston observed the vehicle travel in the bike lane for

approximately a mile. He initially thought that the driver was lost. He then observed the vehicle

move back into a southbound lane of traffic near RR 620’s intersection with Ranch Road 2222.

Approximately one-half mile south of that location, Weston observed that the driver “slammed

on her brakes a couple of times” and that she “was swerving in and out of the lane.” Shortly

before the intersection of RR 620 and Comanche Trail, Weston observed that “she drove into the

opposing side of traffic twice” and “then suddenly moved off the road onto the shoulder where

she stopped her car in front of St. Luke’s Church.”

14. Because the license plate number displayed on the Lexus matched the number that was

displayed on the silver-colored Lexus that minutes earlier had struck an oncoming vehicle in the

vicinity of St. Thomas, Deputy Reyna later arrived on the scene and examined the Lexus for any

evidence of damage. On the front left of the vehicle he observed evidence of paint transfer that

9 Located at 7900 RR 620, The Home Depot is equidistant (4.4 miles) between St. Thomas, the vicinity in which the two-car collision reportedly occurred, and St. Luke’s, where Lehmberg finally stopped.


was consistent with damage to the vehicle that had been involved in the collision with the silver-

colored Lexus in the vicinity of St. Thomas.

15. Deputy Ribsam, who was assigned to the Travis County Sheriff’s Highway Enforcement

Unit, arrived on the scene at 11:11 p.m. Immediately after his arrival, Deputy Ribsam spoke

with Deputy Mallinger, who briefed him on the information that he and other deputies had

gathered during their investigation of the “reckless driver” reports and the collision report.

Shortly after identifying himself to Lehmberg, Deputy Ribsam asked her if she had been

involved in a collision earlier.10 Lehmberg vehemently denied having been involved in a

collision.11

16. Deputy Ribsam then asked Lehmberg a series of questions to assist him in determining

whether or not she was intoxicated. He first asked her, “Where were you coming from this

evening?”12 Lehmberg replied, “Well, I went to a friend’s house.”13 Deputy Ribsam next asked

her where her friend’s house was located. Lehmberg replied, “On Enfield,” prompting Deputy

Ribsam to ask her what she did there.14 Lehmberg replied, “Went over ‘n … had dinner.”15

Deputy Ribsam then asked what time she had dinner. Rather than answering that question,

Lehmberg remarked, “This is crazy.”16 Lehmberg later told Deputy Ribsam that she “drove from

Enfield to here,” that she had exited Enfield onto RR 620, and that Enfield connects to RR 620.17

10 See page 5 of Transcript of Audiovisual Recording Made by Deputy John Ribsam, hereinafter referred to as “Tr.,” attached to this application as “Exhibit A.” 11 Id. 12 Id. 13 Id. 14 Tr. 5, 6. 15 Tr. 6. 16 Id. 17 Tr. 12, 13.


In fact, the location where Lehmberg was being detained is more than fourteen miles from

Enfield Road, and Enfield and RR 620 do not intersect.

17. Deputy Ribsam then informed Lehmberg that sheriff’s deputies had received reports of

her driving erratically and a report of a possible collision involving her vehicle near St. Thomas.

Lehmberg responded by shrugging her shoulders and saying, “It wasn’t me.”18 Deputy Ribsam

then informed Lehmberg, “we had a witness that observed you driving in the bike lane for

approximately a mile and then actually cross into oncoming traffic here near, uh, Comanche

Trail.”19 Lehmberg replied, “You know, that’s not me, and I’m sorry, but … that’s false.”20

Deputy Ribsam then informed Lehmberg, “the witness that we had described your vehicle, gave

us your license plate number … as the vehicle that was driving erratically.”21 Lehmberg again

shrugged her shoulders and replied, “That just didn’t happen.”22

18. Deputy Ribsam asked Lehmberg how much she had to drink at her friend’s house.

Lehmberg replied, “I had a couple of drinks,” which she described as “vodka sodas.”23 Deputy

Ribsam then informed Lehmberg that she had some minor collision damage to the front of her

vehicle, damage that he described as “paint transfer.”24 Lehmberg replied, “No, I don’t,” and

repeatedly denied that she had been involved in a collision.25 Lehmberg subsequently insisted

that she had only consumed two small vodka drinks,26 the first at “seven,” and the last an “hour

18 Tr. 6. 19 Id. 20 Id. 21 Id. 22 Id. 23 Tr. 7. 24 Id. 25 Tr. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. 26 Tr. 8. Cf. statements that Lehmberg subsequently made to Judge Vigorito during an arraignment proceeding held


and a half ago.”27

19. Deputy Ribsam subsequently attempted to administer the following field sobriety tests to

Lehmberg to determine whether she was intoxicated: the horizontal-gaze nystagmus test, the

walk-and-turn test, and the one-leg stand test.28 Lehmberg failed the first two tests and refused

to perform the third test.29 Based upon Lehmberg’s performance on the first two tests, her

refusal to perform the third test, and other observations that Deputy Ribsam made during the

course of his investigation, at approximately 11:44 p.m. he formed the opinion that she was

intoxicated and concluded that probable cause existed to believe that she had committed the

Class B misdemeanor offense of driving while intoxicated.30 Deputy Ribsam thereupon read to

Lehmberg the statutory warning prescribed by section 724.015 of the Transportation Code and

requested that she submit to the taking of a specimen of her breath or blood for analysis to

determine the alcohol concentration or the presence in her body of a controlled substance, drug,

dangerous drug, or other substance.31 After reading the statutory warning to Lehmberg, Deputy

Ribsam transported her to the Travis County Jail where she was booked in for the aforesaid

charge.32

20. En route to the jail, Lehmberg made numerous statements and asked numerous questions

between 2:49 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. on April 13, 2013: “I went to a movie, at Lakeway. I had a couple . . . of glasses of wine at the movie, and that’s all I had.” “I went to the movie and had a couple of glasses of wine.” 27 Tr. 8–9. Defendant made the latter statement at approximately 11:30 p.m. If the statement were true, it would indicate that Defendant consumed her last alcoholic beverage at approximately 10:00 p.m. This information, together with the results of an analysis of a specimen of blood subsequently taken from Lehmberg’s body, can be used to estimate, by retrograde extrapolation, Lehmberg’s alcohol concentration when she last drove a motor vehicle, i.e., when she stopped her car in front of St. Luke’s. See n. 48 infra. 28 Tr. 14–25. 29 Tr. 25. 30 Tr. 26. 31 Tr. 27–29. 32 Tr. 32, 37.


that indicated profound confusion, impaired judgment, impaired memory, and impaired

comprehension, all of which are symptoms consistent with alcohol-induced intoxication. On

three separate occasions after asking Deputy Ribsam where her purse was and having been

informed that it was in the trunk of his patrol car, Lehmberg asked Deputy Ribsam if he had her

purse.33 On three separate occasions, after Deputy Ribsam had already informed her that he was

taking her to jail, Lehmberg asked him where he was taking her or if he was taking her to jail.34

21. Despite the fact that Deputy Ribsam was wearing the standard uniform of a Travis

County Sheriff’s deputy, and despite the fact that he had, moments after initially meeting her,

introduced himself as “Deputy Ribsam with the Highway Enforcement Unit of Travis County,”

Lehmberg twice asked him whether he was a “patrol officer” and once whether he was a “police

officer.”35 Despite the fact that Deputy Ribsam worked for Travis County Sheriff Greg

Hamilton rather than APD Chief of Police Art Acevedo, on four separate occasions Lehmberg

asked, or suggested, that he call Chief Acevedo and inform him that he was taking her to jail.36

After finally comprehending the fact that Deputy Ribsam worked for Sheriff Hamilton rather

than Chief Acevedo, Lehmberg asked him, “Does the sheriff know I’m comin’ in?”37 When

Deputy Ribsam replied that he had not spoken with the sheriff, Lehmberg cautioned, “If you

don’t let ‘em know, they’re gonna be pissed off.”38

22. On four separate occasions, Lehmberg complained to Deputy Ribsam that he was going

33 Tr. 30, 32, 38. 34 Tr. 31, 32, 37. 35 Tr. 31, 32, 36. 36 Tr. 31, 32. 37 Tr. 38. 38 Id.


to “ruin” her career.39 Toward the end of her trip to the Travis County Jail, Lehmberg threatened

to sue “the crap out of” him.40 On several occasions, Lehmberg called Deputy Ribsam’s

attention to the fact that she was the District Attorney of Travis County, initially stating, “I’m the

District Attorney,” and eventually proclaiming, in an effort to coerce Deputy Ribsam to remove

the handcuffs from her wrists, “I am the goddamn District Attorney! Take these handcuffs off of

me now!”41 Later, Lehmberg rhetorically asked Deputy Ribsam, “Do you know who I am?”42

When Lehmberg finally realized that any further efforts to persuade Deputy Ribsam to remove

the handcuffs and release her would likely be futile, she castigated him with the following

comments: “I have sent a million people to prison, and, you know, shame on you … for doing

this. Shame on you.”43 When Deputy Ribsam politely replied, “Ma’am, you put me in this

position,” Lehmberg retorted, “Oh, shame on you. I didn’t do—I didn’t put you in this position.

Yeah right. I didn’t put you in this position.”44

23. After arriving at the Travis County Jail Deputy Ribsam transferred custody of Lehmberg

to TCSO personnel at the Central Booking Facility, who subsequently placed her inside Cell No.

512 for protective custody. Between the hours of 12:32 a.m. and 1:30 a.m., Lehmberg acted in a

disorderly and disrespectful manner, repeatedly kicking the door of Cell No. 512, yelling at

TCSO personnel, demanding that they remove her handcuffs and call Sheriff Hamilton.

Lehmberg repeatedly used her status as District Attorney of Travis County in an attempt to

coerce TCSO officers to remove her handcuffs and call Sheriff Hamilton. When the shift

39 Tr. 22, 31, 33, 38. 40 Tr. 33. 41 Tr. 17, 34. 42 Tr. 39. 43 Tr. 40. 44 Id.


supervisor, TCSO Sgt. Layla Rendon, informed her that TCSO officers needed to complete a

pat-down search of her person, Lehmberg made the following statements:

I don’t care. Just call Greg. Get me out of here. This is silly. Y’all have me handcuffed. Y’all have me handcuffed, in jail. At least get the cuffs off. Okay? I’m not drunk. I’m not doing anything. I’m the goddamn District Attorney. Y’all don’t know what you’re doing. Y’all don’t know what you’re doing.

24. When Sgt. Rendon and Senior TCSO Corrections Officers Michelle Hooker and Toni

Orton subsequently entered Lehmberg’s cell to conduct a custodial search and remove her

jewelry, Lehmberg resisted the officers’ efforts to do so.45 As Officers Hooker and Orton were

attempting to remove Lehmberg’s jewelry, Lehmberg made the following statement to them and

Sgt. Rendon:

Y’all better do somethin’ quick, because y’all are going to be in jail, not me, if you don’t do something pretty quick.

Sgt. Rendon clearly understood that, by making the aforesaid statement, Lehmberg was

threatening to file criminal charges that would result in the officers’ incarceration because,

immediately after Lehmberg denied “making any threats” in response to Sgt. Rendon’s warning

that the handcuffs would not be removed as long as she was “making threats,” Sgt. Rendon

replied, “You just threatened that they were going to be in jail.”

25. Eventually, Sgt. Rendon made the decision to have Lehmberg placed in a secure restraint

chair to prevent her from injuring herself if she continued to kick on the door of her cell. At 1:29

a.m. Senior Corrections Officers Michelle Hooker, Michael Culin, and Frankie Martinez entered

Cell No. 512 and placed a spit mask on Lehmberg’s face and leg irons on her legs so that they

could safely escort her to Cell No. 513 next door and place her in a restraint chair. As Officer

Martinez was attaching leg irons to Lehmberg’s legs and Officers Hooker and Culin were

45 Sgt. Rendon documented the events with a hand-held camcorder.


restraining her against the rear wall of Cell No. 512, Lehmberg made the following statement to

Sgt. Rendon and the other officers present:

Oh, y’all are so screwed.

As soon as the officers got Lehmberg inside Cell No. 513 they placed her in a restraint chair. As

Officer Martinez was securing her legs to the restraint chair and Officers Hooker and Culin were

restraining her, Lehmberg made the following statements to Sgt. Rendon:

Have y’all called Greg? Have y’all called him? You should. You really should, ‘cause you know what you’re doing. Have you called Greg? You should. You really should.

Lehmberg subsequently made the following statements to Sgt. Rendon:

I need to call a lawyer. Okay? How ‘bout that? Give me my cell phone!46 No, I know, you’re not getting’— What is with y’all? Do you not know what you are doing? But you don’t understand. Y’all had me handcuffed, I’m not drunk, I’m— What is with y’all? Did you call Greg and let him know you got the DA in custody? Did you?

Later, as Officers Hooker and Orton were placing jail-issued pants on her, Lehmberg made the

following statements to Sgt. Rendon and the other officers present:

You know what? You know I’ll—I’ll remember this, probably.

Moments later, as officers were escorting her to be fingerprinted and photographed, Lehmberg

made the following statements to Sgt. Rendon and the other officers present:

So this is how it feels. I’ll remember this.

As Officer Hooker was electronically scanning Lehmberg’s fingerprints, Lehmberg turned

toward Sgt. Rendon and raised her left hand and gestured at Sgt. Rendon as if she were pointing

a handgun at Sgt. Rendon, thereby communicating, in nonverbal conduct intended as a substitute

for verbal expression, her intent to retaliate against Sgt. Rendon.

46 Lehmberg demanded her cell phone numerous times while she was in custody—even going so far as to demand it from the magistrate who was arraigning her—despite the fact that under Texas law a person commits a third-degree felony if the person provides a cellular telephone to a person in the custody of a correctional facility. See TEX. PEN. CODE § 38.11.


26. At approximately 1:46 a.m.—three hours after Lehmberg had stopped her car on the

shoulder of RR 620—Regina Wright, a qualified technician and phlebotomist, pursuant to the

authority of a search warrant issued by Judge Vigorito, withdrew a specimen of Lehmberg’s

blood for analysis to determine the alcohol concentration or the presence in her body of a

controlled substance, drug, dangerous drug, or other substance. Later that same day, Deputy

Ribsam submitted the aforesaid specimen to the DPS Crime Laboratory along with

documentation requesting that such specimen be analyzed to determine the alcohol concentration

or the presence of a controlled substance, drug, dangerous drug, or other substance therein.

27. Between the hours of 2:49 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. Judge Vigorito entered Cell No. 513 to

conduct an official judicial proceeding, i.e., to arraign Lehmberg on charges that she had

committed the Class B misdemeanor offense of driving while intoxicated. As Judge Vigorito

attempted to do so, Lehmberg intentionally hindered the proceeding by tumultuous behavior and

disturbance, i.e., she disrupted the proceeding by uttering the following words in an angry,

agitated, disrespectful, and disorderly manner:

Just go away! Give me my phone!47 Give me my purse! Do something! Just go away! Give me my phone! Let me call somebody. This is s—s—this is stupid! You know that? No! I’m not drunk. Y’all have just ruined my career . . . for no reason at all because some cop pulled me over because somebody made some—and y’all think I’m nuts. Look at this! I’m restrained! Like a criminal.

28. On April 17, 2013, Kathy Erwin, a forensic scientist employed by the DPS Crime

Laboratory, issued a written report stating that the specimen of blood that Wright had withdrawn

from Lehmberg contained 0.239 grams of ethanol per 100 milliliters of blood, a result indicating

that Lehmberg had an alcohol concentration of 0.239 at approximately 1:46 a.m. on April 13,

47 See n. 46 supra.


2013, when the specimen was collected.48 Under the laws of the State of Texas a person who has

an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more while operating a motor vehicle in a public place is

intoxicated per se. TEX. PEN. CODE §§ 49.01, 49.04.

29. On April 18, 2013, Escamilla, acting through one of his assistants, filed an information in

Criminal Action No. C-1-CR-13-206361 entitled The State of Texas v. Rosemary Lehmberg,

charging Lehmberg with the Class A misdemeanor offense of driving while intoxicated based

upon an allegation that an analysis of a specimen of her blood revealed an alcohol concentration

level of 0.15 or more at the time the analysis was performed. The information further alleged

that Lehmberg had an open container of alcohol in her immediate possession.

30. On April 19, 2013, Lehmberg appeared before the County Court at Law No. 8 of Travis

County, the Honorable Carlos Barrera, Judge Presiding, and pled “guilty’ to the aforesaid charge.

Judge Barrera thereupon found Lehmberg guilty of the aforesaid criminal offense and followed

the Travis County Attorney’s punishment recommendation, sentencing her to confinement in the

Travis County Jail for forty-five days and ordering her to pay a fine of $4,000 and the costs of

court.

31. A thorough review of the evidence described in paragraph 3 supra indicates that the State of

Texas currently possesses sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that on April

12, 2013, and April 13, 2013, Lehmberg committed several criminal offenses in addition to the

Class A misdemeanor offense of driving while intoxicated of which she has been convicted.

48 As indicated in ¶ 26 supra, the specimen was taken three hours after Lehmberg had stopped her car on the shoulder of RR 620. The average rate at which an adult’s body eliminates alcohol is between 0.015 to 0.018 percent per hour. See American Prosecutors Research Institute, Alcohol Toxicology for Prosecutors, Targeting Hardcore Impaired Drivers 16 (July 2003), available at <http://www.ndaa.org/pdf/toxicology_final.pdf>. Employing the principles of retrograde extrapolation, one can arrive at a conservative estimate of Lehmberg’s maximum alcohol concentration at the time that she stopped driving by multiplying the number of hours since she had consumed any alcohol, i.e., three, by the minimum elimination rate of 0.015. The result indicates that Lehmberg’s alcohol concentration when she stopped driving could have been as much as 0.284.


Some, but not all, of those offenses involved “official misconduct” as that term is defined in

Subchapter B of Chapter 87 of the Local Government Code.49 Relator has good reason to

believe, and does believe, that during the aforesaid period of time Lehmberg committed the

following criminal offenses:

(1) the Class A misdemeanor offense of driving while intoxicated;

(2) the Class B or C misdemeanor offense of failure to comply with duty to stop and give information;50

49 Subchapter B of Chapter 87 of the Local Government Code, which is entitled, “Removal by Petition and Trial,” provides in pertinent part as follows:

“Official misconduct” means intentional, unlawful behavior relating to official duties by an officer entrusted with the administration of justice or the execution of the law. The term includes an intentional or corrupt failure, refusal, or neglect of an officer to perform a duty imposed on the officer by law.

TEX. LOC. GOV’T CODE § 87.011. The duties of a district attorney are: (1) to see that justice is done; (2) to represent the State in all criminal cases in the district courts of his district and in appeals therefrom, except in cases where he or she has been, before his or her election, employed adversely; (3) when any criminal proceeding is had before an examining court in his district or before a judge upon habeas corpus, and he or she is notified of the same, and is at the time within his or her district, to represent the State therein, unless prevented by other official duties; and (4) to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States and of this State to the best of his or her ability. TEX. CONST. art. XVI, § 1; TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. art. 2.01.

The following criminal offenses committed by Lehmberg did not involve official misconduct: (1) failure to comply with duty to stop and give information, commonly known as “leaving the scene of an accident,” which can constitute either a Class C or Class B misdemeanor, depending upon the amount of economic damage to all vehicles involved; (2) the Class B misdemeanor offense of false report to a peace officer; and (3) the Class A misdemeanor offense of resisting search.

Lehmberg committed the offense of failure to comply with duty to stop and give information by leaving the scene of an accident in the vicinity of St. Thomas More Catholic Church without giving her name and address, the registration number of the vehicle she was driving, and the name of her motor vehicle liability insurer to the driver of the other vehicle involved in the collision.

Lehmberg committed the offense of false report to a peace officer on several occasions by knowingly making, with intent to deceive, several false statements that were material to a criminal investigation and were made to peace officers conducting the investigation, namely, Deputies D.J. Mallinger and John Ribsam. Such false statements included a statement made to Deputy Mallinger that she had not consumed any alcoholic beverage before he had detained her and several statements made to Deputy Ribsam, i.e., that she had consumed only two alcoholic drinks earlier that evening; that those drinks consisted of two “vodka sodas” consumed between approximately 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. that evening; that she had not been involved in a motor vehicle collision prior to stopping in the 5600 Block of RR 620; that she had not driven in an erratic manner prior to stopping at the aforesaid location; that she had not driven in the bicycle lane for approximately one mile; that she had not driven into a lane of oncoming traffic on 620; and that she was not intoxicated when Deputy Ribsam was interviewing her and administering field sobriety tests to her.

Lehmberg committed the offense of resisting search by intentionally obstructing Michelle Hooker, a person she knew was a peace officer, from searching her by using force against the peace officer, i.e., by grabbing Officer Hooker’s right hand while she was attempting to remove a ring from Lehmberg’s left ring finger. 50 Sec. 550.022(a) of the Transportation Code provides in pertinent part that except as provided by Subsection (b) (which is inapplicable to the facts and circumstances involved herein) the operator of a vehicle involved in an


(3) the Class B misdemeanor offense of false report to peace officer;51

(4) the Class A misdemeanor offense of resisting search;52

(5) the Class A misdemeanor offense of coercion of a public servant;53

(6) the Class A misdemeanor offense of official oppression;54

(7) the third-degree felony offense of obstruction or retaliation;55

accident resulting only in damage to a vehicle that is driven or attended by a person shall:

(1) immediately stop the vehicle at the scene of the accident or as close as possible to the scene of the accident without obstructing traffic more than is necessary; (2) immediately return to the scene of the accident if the vehicle is not stopped at the scene of the accident; and (3) remain at the scene of the accident until the operator complies with the requirements of Section 550.023.

TEX. TRANS. CODE § 550.022(a).

Sec. 550.022(c) provides that a person commits an offense if the person does not stop or does not comply with the requirements of Subsection (a). TEX. TRANS. CODE § 550.022(c).

Sec. 550.023 requires that the operator of a vehicle involved in an accident:

(1) give the operator’s name and address, the registration number of the vehicle the operator was driving, and the name of the operator’s motor vehicle liability insurer to any person attending a vehicle involved in the collision; and (2) if requested and available, show the operator’s driver’s license to any person attending a vehicle involved in the collision.

TEX. TRANS. CODE § 550.023. Failure to comply with the requirements of section 550.022(a) is:

(1) a Class C misdemeanor, if the damage to all vehicles is less than $200; or (2) a Class B misdemeanor, if the damage to all vehicles is $200 or more.

TEX. TRANS. CODE § 550.022(c). 51 Section 37.08 of the Penal Code provides that a person commits the offense of false report to a peace officer if, with intent to deceive, he knowingly makes a false statement that is material to a criminal investigation and he makes the statement to a peace officers conducting the investigation. TEX. PEN. CODE § 37.08. 52 Section 38.03 of the Penal Code provides that a person commits the offense of resisting search if he intentionally prevents or obstructs a person he knows is a peace officer from effecting a search of the actor by using force against the peace officer. 53 Section 36.03 of the Penal Code provides that a person commits the offense of coercion of public servant if, by means of coercion, he influences or attempts to influence a public servant in a specific exercise of his official power or a specific performance of his official duty or influences or attempts to influence a public servant to violate the public servant’s known legal duty. TEX. PEN. CODE § 36.03. It is noteworthy that the chapter in which the offense of coercion of public servant is defined is entitled, “Bribery and Corrupt Influence.” TEX. PEN. CODE ch. 36 (emphasis added). 54 Section 39.03 of the Penal Code provides that a public servant acting under color of his office or employment commits the offense of official oppression if he intentionally subjects another to mistreatment. TEX. PEN. CODE § 39.03. 55 Section 36.06 of the Penal Code provides that a person commits the offense of obstruction or retaliation if he intentionally or knowingly harms or threatens to harm another by an unlawful act:

(1) in retaliation for or on account of the service or status of another as a: (A) public servant, witness, prospective witness, or informant; or


(8) the Class A misdemeanor offense of abuse of official capacity;56 and

(9) the Class A misdemeanor offense of hindering proceedings by disorderly conduct.57

32. Subchapter B of chapter 87 of the Local Government Code provides that a district judge

may remove a district attorney from office for: (1) incompetency; (2) official misconduct; or

(3) intoxication on or off duty caused by drinking an alcoholic beverage. TEX. LOC. GOV’T CODE

§§ 87.012, 87.013.

II. JUSTIFICATION FOR REMOVAL

33. More than fifty years ago, the Texas Supreme Court articulated the rationale underlying

art. 5970, the predecessor of section 87.013 of the Local Government Code, the removal statute

that governs these proceedings:

While the removal petition will ordinarily charge the officer with the violation of a criminal statute, yet the character of the action is to be determined by the object sought to be accomplished and the nature of the judgment to be entered. It reasonably appears from the constitutional and statutory provisions authorizing this proceeding that the object is not to punish the officer for his derelictions or for the violation of a criminal statute but to protect the public in removing from office by speedy and adequate means those who have

(B) person who has reported or who the actor knows intends to report the occurrence of a crime; or

(2) to prevent or delay the service of another as a: (A) public servant, witness, prospective witness, or informant; or (B) person who has reported or who the actor knows intends to report the occurrence of a crime.

TEX. PEN. CODE § 36.06. Like the offense of coercion of public servant, the offense of obstruction or retaliation is defined in the chapter entitled, “Bribery and Corrupt Influence.” TEX. PEN. CODE ch. 36 (emphasis added). 56 Section 39.02 of the Penal Code provides that a public servant commits an offense if, with intent to obtain a benefit, he intentionally or knowingly violates a law relating to the public servant’s office or employment. Rule 3.09 of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct, entitled “Special Responsibilities of a Prosecutor,” provides that the prosecutor in a criminal case shall refrain from prosecuting or threatening to prosecute a charge that the prosecutor knows is not supported by probable cause. Rule 3.09 is a law relating to a district attorney’s office, and, as District Attorney of Travis County, Lehmberg was subject to that law.

Lehmberg committed this offense by threatening to file against Officers Michelle Hooker and Toni Orton and Sgt. Rendon a criminal complaint that Lehmberg knew was not supported by probable cause and thereby cause Officers Michelle Hooker and Toni Orton and Sgt. Rendon to be unlawfully arrested and incarcerated, and Lehmberg did so with intent to obtain a benefit, namely, the removal of handcuffs from her wrists, the making of a telephone call to Greg Hamilton, Sheriff of Travis County, informing him that Defendant had been arrested and was being held in the Travis County Jail, and Lehmberg’s immediate release from jail. 57 Section 38.13 of the Penal Code provides that a person commits the offense of hindering proceedings by disorderly conduct if he intentionally hinders an official proceeding by noise or violent or tumultuous behavior or disturbance. TEX. PEN. CODE § 38.13.


been faithless and corrupt and have violated their trust.

Meyer v. Tunks, 360 S.W.2d 518, 520 (Tex. 1962) (emphasis added). One of the fundamental

principles upon which our form of government is based is the notion that every public

officeholder remains in his or her position at the sufferance and for the benefit of the public,

subject to removal from office not only by election but also, before that time, by any

constitutionally permissible means. Tarrant County v. Ashmore, 635 S.W.2d 417 (Tex. 1982).

34. “Attorneys are officers of the court appointed to assist the court in the administration of

justice. Into their hands are committed the property, the liberty and sometimes the lives of their

clients.58 This commitment demands a high degree of intelligence, knowledge of the law, respect

for its function in society, sound and faithful judgment and, above all else, integrity of character

in private and professional conduct.” In re Monaghan, 126 Vt. 53, 222 A.2d 665, 676 (1966)

(Holden, C.J., dissenting). Indeed, integrity is a lawyer’s stock and trade. Planned Protective

Services, Inc. v. Gorton, 200 Cal.App.3d 1, 8 (Cal.Ct.App—4th Dist., 1st Div. 1988). It has long

been recognized that prosecutors have special responsibilities in the administration of justice. “A

prosecutor has the responsibility to see that justice is done, and not simply to be an advocate.

This responsibility carries with it a number of specific obligations. Among these is to see that no

person is threatened with or subjected to the rigors of a criminal prosecution without good

cause.” See TEX. DISCIPLINARY R. PROF’L CONDUCT 3.09 & cmt. 1, reprinted in TEX. GOV’T

CODE, tit. 2, subtit. G app. A (Vernon 2005) (TEX. STATE BAR R. art. X, § 9). Like judges,

district attorneys must be persons of unquestioned integrity who are above reproach.

35. Chapter 87 of the Local Government Code prescribes two methods for removing from

58 For prosecutors this statement also applies to those whom they prosecute. This observation is even more important for district attorneys in the State of Texas because, whenever an accused is charged with a capital offense committed within a district attorney’s jurisdiction, into that district attorney’s hands is committed the life or death decision of whether to seek the death penalty.


office county officers who have violated the public trust: (1) removal by petition and trial, TEX.

LOCAL GOV’T CODE subchapter B; and (2) removal by criminal conviction, TEX. LOCAL GOV’T

CODE subchapter C.59 Subchapter B provides that a proceeding for the removal of an officer

may, as a general rule, be begun by filing a written petition for removal in a district court of the

county in which the officer resides. TEX. LOCAL GOV’T CODE § 87.015(a). Any resident of this

state who has lived for at least six months in the county in which the petition is to be filed and

who is not currently under indictment in the county may file the petition. TEX. LOCAL GOV’T

CODE § 87.015(b). At least one of the parties who files the petition must swear to it at or before

the filing. Id.

36. The Texas Legislature believed so strongly in the need to protect the public from

“faithless and corrupt” public officials who have violated the public trust that when it enacted

Chapter 87 of the Local Government Code, it included Subchapter C, entitled “Removal by

Criminal Conviction,” which provides that the “conviction of a county officer by a petit jury for

any felony or for a misdemeanor involving official misconduct operates as an immediate removal

from office of that officer.” TEX. LOCAL GOV’T CODE § 87.031 (emphasis added).

37. By committing a plethora of criminal offenses on the night of April 12, 2013, and during

the early morning hours of April 13, 2013—offenses ranging in seriousness from the Class B or

C misdemeanor offense of failure to comply with duty to stop and give information to the third-

degree felony offense of obstruction or retaliation—Lehmberg has demonstrated that she is

morally and ethically unfit to hold the office of District Attorney of Travis County. A thorough

examination of Lehmberg’s behavior during that eight and one-half hour period reveals a pattern

59 Chapter 87 of the Local Government Code was enacted pursuant to the authority of Article V, section 24 of the Texas Constitution, which provides that “County Judges, county attorneys, clerks of the District and County Courts, justices of the peace, constables, and other county officers, may be removed by the Judges of the District Courts for incompetency, official misconduct, habitual drunkenness, or other causes defined by law, upon the cause therefor being set forth in writing and the finding of its truth by a jury.” TEX. CONST. art. V, § 24 (emphasis added).


of conduct toward both law enforcement officers and judicial authorities that is indicative of the

very sort of character against which section 87.013 of the Local Government Code was designed

to protect the public: dishonest, unethical, faithless, and corrupt. It is evident from Lehmberg’s

behavior during that period that she believes that there are two sets of laws governing the people

of Texas—one set that applies to public officials such as herself, entitling such persons to

exclusive privileges shielding them from criminal prosecution, and another set that applies to

everyone else. Such a belief is incompatible with one of the core democratic principles

embodied in the Texas Constitution, i.e., that “All free men, when they form a social compact,

have equal rights, and no man, or set of men, is entitled to exclusive separate public emoluments,

or privileges, but in consideration of public services.”60 TEX. CONST. art. I, § 3. The people of

Travis County cannot continue to entrust the administration of justice and the execution of the

law to someone who has not only proven to be dishonest, unethical, faithless, and corrupt, but

holds beliefs that conflict with one of the fundamental constitutional principles that she has

sworn to preserve, protect, and defend.

38. No one possessed of the sort of character repeatedly exhibited by Lehmberg on the night

of April 12, 2013, and morning of April 13, 2013, can be trusted to faithfully execute the duties

of the office of District Attorney of Travis County, one of the most important prosecutorial

positions in the State of Texas. Moreover, no one possessed of such character can possibly

command the respect of the rank-and-file prosecutors, investigators, and support staff that

perform the day-to-day work of the office of District Attorney of Travis County. Finally, no one

possessed of such character can provide the sound, judicious leadership that the people of Travis

60 Ours is, to borrow a phrase from John Adams, “a government of laws, and not of men.” John Adams, Novanglus; or, A History of the Dispute with America, From Its Origin, in 1754, to the Present Time, n. VII, first published in the Boston Gazette, available at <http://oll.libertyfund.org/?option=com_staticxt&staticfile=show.php%3Ftitle=2102 &chapter=159724&layout=html&Itemid=27>.


County deserve from their District Attorney.

PRAYER

WHEREFORE, PREMISES CONSIDERED, Relator respectfully requests the Court to

enter an order requiring that a certified copy of Relator’s Original Petition for Removal and a

citation ordering Defendant to appear and answer the aforesaid petition on a date, fixed by the

Judge, after the fifth day after the date the citation is served, be served on Defendant.

Respectfully submitted,

______________________________ Richard D. Reed, Relator 316 W. 12th Street, Suite 313 Austin, Texas 78701-1820 www.maverickcounsel.com Telephone: 512-322-9443 Email: [email protected] State Bar No. 16686100

Exhibit A

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIOVISUAL RECORDING 1

MADE BY DEPUTY JOHN RIBSAM 2

DEPUTY MALLINGER: We do have a witness who was behind the vehicle. 3

His statement is basically that he was traveling southbound on 620, uh, over by The Home 4

Depot toward Lakeway— 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. 6

DEPUTY MALLINGER: —when he came across that vehicle. It was 7

traveling in the, uh, bike lane for approximately a mile. At first he thought that she was lost, 8

and then she moved back into the, uh, the lane at, uh, 620 and 2222, drove maybe another half 9

mile. Then she slowed down and hit her brakes a couple of times, when she was swerving in 10

and out of the lane, and she drove down the opposite side of the, lane of traffic— 11

DEPUTY RIBSAM: So she was driving— 12

DEPUTY MALLINGER: On the oncoming traffic. 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —southbound in the northbound lanes? 14

DEPUTY MALLINGER: That’s correct. 15


DEPUTY MALLINGER: Uh, the, right before Comanche Twail [sic]—Trail 17

twice—two times, and she suddenly stopped her vehicle on the side of the shoulder, where 18

she stopped her car, which is right here in front of St. Luke’s Church. 19


DEPUTY MALLINGER: And maybe—about a minute—after a minute of 21

stopping, the first officer arrived—I did—[unintelligible] was up here report-writing, and I 22

saw the car stop, but I wasn’t paying attention to it. 23


DEPUTY MALLINGER: And then he, um, he’s saying the vehicle was a 25

2

light-colored model Lexus—that’s the plate. That’s the plate, and he said the car was 1

traveling in the bike lane. I was driving inside [sic] the vehicle, and he did observe her behind 2

the wheel. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. All right. 4

DEPUTY MALLINGER: And so I still got him on the scene just in case you 5

need to talk to him for a few more seconds. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No. This, thi—this is fine here. 7

DEPUTY MALLINGER: Okay. 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Um, Mark Thomas Weston? 9


DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. No, that’s good. That’s fine. That’s all I need. 11

DEPUTY MALLINGER: Okay. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Uh, is it somethin’ about a collision, you were sayin’? 13

DEPUTY MALLINGER: We’re working on that part. 14

DEPUTY PAIGE: Yeah. We got a call about an LTS [leaving the scene] 15

collision up at St. Thomas More Church up on 620 and Boulderish— 16


DEPUTY PAIGE: Uh, the vehicle description of the vehicle that left the scene 18

matches the description of this vehicle right here. 19


DEPUTY PAIGE: This vehicle right here has damage to the left front— 21


DEPUTY PAIGE: —which is possibly consistent with the damage on the 23

LT—on the victim vehicle up at— 24


3

DEPUTY PAIGE: —We have a deputy that—that was on that scene who 1

should be on his way here— 2


DEPUTY PAIGE: —to look at the damage to see if it’s consistent with what 4

he witnessed to that vehicle up there. 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Did somebody see the collision up there, or how 6

did we get the information on that collision? 7

DEPUTY PAIGE: The witness of the collision—the victim of the collision is 8

there, and they described the vehicle as a—I’d have to look at the call card— 9

DEPUTY MALLINGER: They said a Lexus, possibly a SUV with blue-10

colored headlights, and then I, and I was still report-writing at that time—this was like ten 11

minutes before this—I came down and hit like three or four silver cars. It wasn’t it. Then I 12

came back up here and sat on the, uh, top of the church, uh, writing— 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Uh-huh. 14

DEPUTY MALLINGER: —got this other, uh, reckless driver BOLO [be on 15

the lookout] call again, pulled up, and then I was sittin’ there, and I saw the, the, that silver 16

Lexus or whatever it is—gray Lexus pulled over and that car behind it— 17

DEPUTY RIBSAM: It looks like it’s like a two-tone— 18

DEPUTY MALLINGER: Yeah. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —kind of like a [unintelligible] 20

DEPUTY MALLINGER: —and I observed that vehicle behind it. I wasn’t 21

paying attention, but as the BOLO kept on coming, they’re saying, “Oh, now they’re in front 22

of St. Luke’s Church.” I’m like, “Oh, that’s exactly where I’m at.” 23


DEPUTY MALLINGER: So, that’s where we’re at with all that. 25

4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. All right. 1

UNIDENTIFIED DEPUTY: What was this, uh—apparently, she stopped here 2

of her own volition? 3

DEPUTY MALLINGER: She stopped on her own, and he stopped right 4

behind her. 5

UNIDENTIFIED DEPUTY: That’s when you pulled up. Okay, so, now, did 6

this witness see this from way over there? 7

DEPUTY MALLINGER: All the way from Home Depot. 8

UNIDENTIFIED DEPUTY: Okay, but did not witness the wreck? 9

DEPUTY MALLINGER: Did not witness the wreck. 10

UNIDENTIFIED DEPUTY: Has she said that she was—got in a collision with 11

anything? 12

DEPUTY MALLINGER: I’m not even investigating that part, Sir. 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’ll a—I’ll ask her about that. I mean, that’s all, that’s all 14

I can do is— 15

DEPUTY MALLINGER: And so I can let Mr. Weston go? 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, he can go. … Hey, Frank. I don’t even— 17

DEPUTY PAIGE: Hey, John. How ya doin? 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: All right. Hey, Ms. Lehmberg. How are you? I’m 19

Deputy Ribsam with the Highway Enforcement Unit of Travis County. What’s going on 20

today? 21

LEHMBERG: I don’t know. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: You don’t know? 23

LEHMBERG: I’m trying to go home. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Where, where do you live? 25

5

[Audio from 23:20:13 to 23:20:19 redacted by Travis County Sheriff’s Office.] 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —you were involved in a collision or something today? 2

Nothing? 3

DEPUTY MALLINGER: He was saying right here. 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Yeah. Okay. Okay. 5

LEHMBERG: I have not been involved in a collision. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. All right, Ms. Lehmberg. Can we come on—let’s 7

go—I want to come up here onto the parking lot and get off the road a little bit safer. I want 8

to go talk in front of my car, Ma’am. 9

LEHMBERG: Okay. Sure. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Watch your step. Right over here. Okay? 11

LEHMBERG: But, I’m gonna. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: You want to hold on ‘em? 13

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 14


DEPUTY RIBSAM: —right there. Just a little. 16

LEHMBERG: I’ve not been—I was not involved in an accident in any case. 17

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Well, we have some other questions about some—18

something else that somebody saw as well. I just wanted to get up here on stable ground, 19

Ma’am. Right over here. Just watch your step. Right here. Okay. All right. Well, where 20

were you coming from this evening, first of all? 21

LEHMBERG: Well, I went to a friend’s house. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Where was there—where’s your friend’s house 23

located at? 24

LEHMBERG: On Enfield. 25

6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: On Enfield? 1

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 2

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. And what did you do over there? 3

LEHMBERG: Went over ‘n … had dinner. 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Had dinner? 5

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. What—what time did you have dinner? 7

LEHMBERG: This is crazy. 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, well, okay, let—let me tell you. We had a report 9

of you driving erratically … on the road. Okay? We also have a report of a possible collision 10

involving your vehicle up near the church. 11

LEHMBERG: What church? 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Uh, More Church up here at 620 and Boulder. 13

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg shrugs her shoulders.] It wasn’t me. 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: It wasn’t you? Okay. And we have—we had a witness 15

that observed you driving in the bike lane for approximately a mile and then actually cross 16

into oncoming traffic here near, uh, Comanche Trail. 17

LEHMBERG: You know, that’s not me, and I’m sorry, but … that’s false. 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: That’s false? 19

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 20

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, well, as I said, the witness that we had described 21

your vehicle, gave us your license plate number … as the vehicle that was driving erratically. 22

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg shrugs her shoulders.] That just didn’t happen. 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: That didn’t happen? 24

LEHMBERG: No. 25

7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, you were at your friend’s house having dinner. 1

Okay? How much did you have to drink at your friend’s house? 2

LEHMBERG: I had a couple of drinks. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: A couple? What did you have, Ma’am? 4

LEHMBERG: Vodka. 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Vodka? Was it straight vodka? Or was it like a vodka … 6

cranberry or something like that? 7

LEHMBERG: Vodka sodas. 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Vodka & sodas? Uh, a couple of those? 9

LEHMBERG: You know, I, I want to know what you’re talking about about 10

this collision. 11


LEHMBERG: ‘cause I didn’t, I didn’t do anything. 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: What about the damage to the front of your vehicle? Is 14

it— 15

LEHMBERG: What are you talking about? 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: There, there—you got some, some minor collision—17

collision damage to the front of your vehicle. 18

LEHMBERG: No, I don’t. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: There’s paint transfer … and paint scrape. 20

LEHMBERG: Let’s go look. 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m, I’m more than happy to show you here in a moment, 22

Ma’am. 23

LEHMBERG: Yeah. Let’s go do that, because I haven’t had an—a collision. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. I don’t—why you getting so defensive with me, 25

8

Ma’am? 1

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] Because you’re crazy. I, I didn’t have a 2

collision. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Well, I’m just saying, I know—I observed some 4

paint transfer on the front of your vehicle. 5

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg shrugs her shoulders.] I have not had a collision. I 6

have not done any of that. 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: All right. Well, let, let—we’ll get back to that in a 8

moment then. Okay? All right. 9

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: So, you had a couple of vodka—vodka & sodas at your 11

friend’s house. Correct? 12

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. About how large were those drinks? 14

LEHMBERG: Uh … small drinks. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Small drinks? How many of those? 16

LEHMBERG: A couple of ‘em. 17

DEPUTY RIBSAM: A couple? Well, how—a couple, two, three? 18

LEHMBERG: Two. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Two? Okay. 20

LEHMBERG: Uh-huh. 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: What time do you think your first drink was? 22

LEHMBERG: Uh… seven. 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Seven? And without looking at a timepiece, what time 24

do you think it is right now? 25

9

LEHMBERG: I don’t know. It’s, uh— 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Without looking at a timepiece. 2

LEHMBERG: Well, you said that. It’s eleven-thirty. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, 4

LEHMBERG: Ten-thirty. 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ten-thirty, eleven-thirty. Okay. And what time was your 6

last drink tonight? 7

LEHMBERG: Hour and a half ago. 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Hour and a half ago? Okay, so two drinks in about a two 9

hour period. 10

LEHMBERG: I’m more interested in, in what is this thing about a collision, 11

because I have not had a collision. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, there’s a deputy up there checking on that right 13

now, and he’s gonna come down and brief me. 14

LEHMBERG: Well, y’all need to—y’all need to cor—check on that ‘cause I, I 15

haven’t hit anybody. 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. I’m just saying there’s paint transfer on the front 17

of your vehicle. 18

LEHMBERG: Let’s go look at it. Want to? 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. I, I said we’d go up there—I just looked at it, 20

Ma’am. 21

LEHMBERG: No. Let’s go look at it. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, Ma’am—Okay. 23

LEHMBERG: I, I have not hit anybody. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. You don’t need to get so upset and so defensive 25

10

with me, Ma’am. 1

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] I’m not upset, but I have not hit anybody, 2

and you’re saying I have a collision and I have not done that. I haven’t hit anybody tonight. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. What about the other driving that I described to 4

you? Driving in the bike lane for almost a mile? 5

LEHMBERG: No, I haven’t done that. [Lehmberg turns, takes four steps 6

away from Deputy Ribsam, turns, and staggers backwards several steps.] 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Please, Ms. Lehmberg, I need you to st— 8

LEHMBERG: Oh, I know, y’all are going to detain me [unintelligible]. 9

[Lehmberg chuckles.] 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m, well, I’m conducting an investigation right now. 11

Yes, Ma’am. 12

LEHMBERG: Right. I know you are. 13


LEHMBERG: But I haven’t hit anybody. Okay? 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Let—let me ask you this— 16

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 17

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Um, [Audio from 23:25:27 to 23:26:19 redacted by 18

Travis County Sheriff’s Office.] 19

LEHMBERG: Pork chop. 20

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Pork chop? What else? 21

LEHMBERG: Salad. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Anything else? 23

LEHMBERG: No. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Just pork chops and salad? 25

11

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. And your friend lives over there on Enfield. 2

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: And [Audio from 23:26:31 to 23:26:37 redacted by 4

Travis County Sheriff’s Office.] 5

LEHMBERG: All right. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Is this the way you normally travel to get back to, 7

to there from here? 8

LEHMBERG: Yes. 9

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, this—I’m detecting an odor of alcohol coming 10

from your breath. 11

LEHMBERG: Is that right? 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am, I am. Okay. You’re speech is a little bit 13

slurred. 14

LEHMBERG: I didn’t, I didn’t, I didn’t hit anybody tonight. Okay? 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. And I’m telling you that what we have as far as 16

the other, the other witness that followed you from almost The Home Depot all the way down 17

to here— 18

LEHMBERG: Home Depot— 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: On 620. 20

LEHMBERG: That’s amazing. Okay. 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Like I said, they observed you dri—riding in the bicycle 22

lane for almost a mile and crossing into oncoming traffic. 23

LEHMBERG: That didn’t happen. 24


12

LEHMBERG: Okay. 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, you— 2

LEHMBERG: No. Seriously, that didn’t happen. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: You under—you understand that we have a responsibility 4

to make sure not only that you’re safe to drive, but everybody else on the road is safe? 5

Correct? Would you agree with that? 6

LEHMBERG: I’m just telling you there’s—[Lehmberg chuckles.]—I didn’t 7

come from 620. Uh, how could somebody— 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: What road is this here? 9

LEHMBERG: No, I, there’s nobody who followed me that far. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I have a, a written statement. 11

LEHMBERG: Okay! 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay? Okay. So— 13

LEHMBERG: Be sure. 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: It’s not true? 15

LEHMBERG: That’s— 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: What do you mean, be sure? 17

LEHMBERG: No. That didn’t happen—somebody followed me from that far. 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Then, where, where would they be following you 19

from? 20

LEHMBERG: Well, you’re telling me that somebody followed me from 620? 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, this is 620. 22

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg throws up her arms.] I drove from Enfield to here. 23


LEHMBERG: Okay. 25

13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Which way did you come—how did you get to here from 1

Enfield? 2

LEHMBERG: I drove this way from, and then I, I got the … the exit. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. You left Enfield? 4

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, from Enfield what road did you get onto? 6

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg throws up her arms and gestures toward the 7

roadway.] This. 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: So, Enfield connects to 620? 9

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 10


LEHMBERG: Nobody followed me from there and, and did any kind of erratic 12

driving. 13


LEHMBERG: That didn’t happen. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Are you aware where—uh, do you know where 16

the, uh, St. More Church is up there on 620 and Boulder? 17

LEHMBERG: What? 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: The Catholic Church up on 620 and Boulder? 19

LEHMBERG: Here— 20

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Um-hm. 21

LEHMBERG: —where the, um? Yeah. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Did you drive past that tonight? 23

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Okay. Then you drove past The Home Depot? 25

14

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg nods head.] 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. What caused you to pull over and stop right here, 2

on the side of the road? 3

LEHMBERG: Because you pulled me over. 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: We pulled you over? 5

LEHMBERG: Yeah. Y’all did. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. I have a deputy that says that you were actually 7

stopped on the side of the road when he pulled up, when he already got here. 8

LEHMBERG: No. Why would I pull over? 9

DEPUTY RIBSAM: That’s what I’m—that’s what I’m curious, why, why you 10

stopped and pulled over. 11

LEHMBERG: I don’t know what you’re talking about. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Let me have you do this, Ma’am. Do you have any 13

problems with your, your knees or your ankles or anything like that? 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: What’s wrong with your knees and ankles? 15

LEHMBERG: I have—are you going to put me in jail? 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No, Ma’am. I’ve not made that determination. No, 17

Ma’am. 18

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] 19


DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, are you able to stand with your feet together and 21

your hands at your side, like so? 22

LEHMBERG: I think I am. 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m gonna take a look at your eyes, Ma’am. Will you 24

stand with your hands down at your side for me, please? Do you wear glasses or contacts, 25

15

Ma’am? 1

LEHMBERG: I wear … contacts. 2

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Do you have ‘em in right now? 3

LEHMBERG: I do. 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Are you able to remove those or no? Do you have 5

somethin’ to put ‘em in? 6

LEHMBERG: Well, if you want me to. 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m asking you—uh, do you have something you can put 8

‘em in? 9

LEHMBERG: No. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No, you’re fine. Can you see this light, Ma’am? 11

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: What color is that light? 13

LEHMBERG: It’s green. 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, what I need you to do is with your eyes, and with 15

your eyes only, I need you to follow this light. Do not move your head. Do you understand, 16

Ma’am? 17

LEHMBERG: I get it. 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. [Deputy Ribsam begins administering Horizontal 19

Gaze Nystagmus test.] Don’t, don’t look at me. You gotta, you gotta follow the light. 20

LEHMBERG: I’m tryin’. 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Keep your head straight for me, please. Just, just use 22

your eyes to follow the light. … You’re, you’re turning your head. I need you—your nose 23

pointing straight toward the center of my chest, and just, just using your eyes, please. 24

LEHMBERG: I get it. … Huh. I’m sorry. This is just so … silly. … But, 25

16

anyway— 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay— 2

LEHMBERG: —I’m gonna 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —so, can we, are we gonna continue with this? 4

LEHMBERG: Yeah. … Huh. … [sighs] … I do not understand why you 5

think you smell … alcohol on my breath, ‘cause I had a couple of drinks. Seriously— 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: But I— 7

LEHMBERG: —it is not … [Lehmberg chuckles.] 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, I, but I’m needing you to keep your head still. 9

You’re, you’re, you’re moving your head. Okay? I just need you to follow this. Okay, and 10

I’ll talk to you some more, Ma’am. 11

LEHMBERG: No, you’re not. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Why do you say that? 13

LEHMBERG: Because … you know … this is silly. … I’m not drunk. 14

[Lehmberg chuckles.] I don’t know why you pulled me over. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. And again, I’ve already stated that we didn’t pull 16

you over. You pulled over on your own. You stopped on your own. 17

LEHMBERG: Well, you stopped me. What do you mean, “I didn’t pull over”? 18

You pulled me over. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I didn’t. 20

LEHMBERG: He did. 21

DEPUTY PAIGE: No, Ma’am. It was not me. It was the other deputy, and I 22

told you that. 23


DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay— 25

17

LEHMBERG: Somebody pulled me over. I wouldn’t have stopped— 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Your, your veh— 2

LEHMBERG: I’m going home. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Your vehicle was stopped here. 4

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: The witness actually pulled in behind you when you 6

stopped, and then the deputy arrived on the scene. 7

LEHMBERG: What do you think? I, I just stopped? What are you talking 8

about that you didn’t’ pull me over? 9


LEHMBERG: Y’all pulled me over. I’m gonna always stop when you pull me 11

over. 12


LEHMBERG: I’m the d— [Lehmberg chuckles.] I’m the District Attorney. I 14

mean, do you think I’m not gonna pull over? 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No, I’m aware of who you are, Ma’am. I’m— 16

LEHMBERG: No, I don’t care who you—what is he doing? [Lehmberg 17

chuckles.] Do y’all think I’m a drug dealer, or what’s going on here? 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No, Ma’am. 19


DEPUTY RIBSAM: Not at all. 21

LEHMBERG: Okay. What do you want? 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, I, I, I’m still trying to look at your eyes. I 23

wanna— 24

LEHMBERG: Yeah, I’m fine. 25

18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, again, can you put your feet together? 1

LEHMBERG: And so, I, I went o—I had a—I went to a friend’s house 2

tonight— 3


LEHMBERG: —had a couple of drinks. I am not drunk, and 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, and that’s what these tests are gonna help me 6

determine, Ma’am. 7

LEHMBERG: And, what are y’all doing? 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well—that’s what I’m doing right now. 9

LEHMBERG: Good. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m determining if you’re okay to drive. 11

LEHMBERG: Okay. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: And that’s what these tests help me determine. 13

LEHMBERG: I know, but, you know, this is crazy, you—okay, go ahead. 14

What do you want? 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Again, feet together, just like so, Ma’am, and hands down 16

at your side, please. Again, just follow this light with your eyes only, Ma’am. Do not move 17

your head. … Keep your eyes on the light. … You’re, you’re not following the light, 18

Ma’am. 19

LEHMBERG: I did it. 20

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Your eye—your eyes were right here, and my light was 21

out here. 22

LEHMBERG: [unintelligible] whatever you want. 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Don’t, don’t try to get ahead of the light. Just, just stay 24

with your eyes on the light, Ma’am. 25

19

LEHMBERG: Okay. 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I, I’m just kinda—I’m looking at your eyes and I can see 2

which way your eyes are pointing. 3

LEHMBERG: That’s good. Whatever you want. 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Nose, nose right here, please. … You’re turning your 5

head. Keep your head straight, straight at me, and just your eyes, eyes all the way out, just 6

like so. Okay? 7

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Keep your hands down at your side for me, please. 9

You’re, you’re still, you’re still turning your head like so. I need your head to stay 10

completely straight right here. 11

LEHMBERG: I’ll do whatever you want. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, I’m—but I’m explaining it to you. I’ve explained 13

it to you several times. I need your head to stay straight, your nose pointing right here at all 14

times, and it’s just your eyes that move. 15

LEHMBERG: Okay. 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Again, feet together, hands at your side, please. 17

Feet together, just like so, please. So that they’re touching. Can you do that, Ma’am? Look. 18

Can you see my feet? How my feet are together? Are you able to do that? Thank you. 19

LEHMBERG: Just let me go home. [Lehmberg chuckles.] 20


LEHMBERG: I’m not drunk. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Thi—this is what I— 23

LEHMBERG: I just need to go home. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —these, well, these are the tools I determine, determine 25

20

that, Ma’am, and, if, if you’re not gonna follow the lights and do those things then I, I take 1

that as a refusal. 2

LEHMBERG: I—it’s not a refusal. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: But, you’re, you’re moving your head. You’re not 4

keeping your head still, you’re not fol—you’re not following my instructions. 5

LEHMBERG: What are they do [sic] with my car? 6

DEPUTY PAIGE: They’re just looking at it, Ma’am. Listen to the deputy. 7

Okay? 8

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] That’s crazy. 9

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Let’s try this one. Okay? Can you stand right here on 10

this line? 11

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: And then turn and face the end of the line, right here. 13

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Can you take your left foot and place it on that line? 15

LEHMBERG: I might. 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: And it’s, it’s up to you if you wanna keep your flip flops 17

on or go without shoes, or if you have a pair of shoes in the car, we can go with that. 18

LEHMBERG: No. I really do have a bad hip. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, and I’ll keep, I’ll keep that in mind. 20

LEHMBERG: What do you want me to do? 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: With your left foot on that line— 22

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —I want you to take your right foot and place it in front 24

of your left foot, so that we’re touchin’ heel-to-toe, and keeping your hands at your side, and 25

21

stand in that position until I instruct you to do otherwise. 1

LEHMBERG: I can’t do that. [unintelligible] I can’t. 2

DEPUTY RIBSAM: You’re unable to do that at all? 3

LEHMBERG: Do you want me to do that? 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I, I’m just want you to stand just like this, Ma’am. … 5

Watch yourself. 6

LEHMBERG: That hurts. 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: And what I’m going to ask you to do, Ma’am, is to take 8

nine heel-to-toe steps down this line. 9

LEHMBERG: I can’t do that— 10


LEHMBERG: —because I, you know, I’ve just got a bad back… and I could 12

probably do that, but I can’t—I can’t do that, not for very long. 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, if you’ll stand right here, I’m, I’m gonna explain 14

everything to you. Okay? 15

LEHMBERG: And it doesn’t have anything to do with being drunk. It has to 16

do with [unintelligible]. [Lehmberg chuckles.] 17


LEHMBERG: I’m about done with this. Okay? 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Well, and that’s your choice, but I’m gonna 20

explain— 21

LEHMBERG: I am. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —I’m gonna explain everything to you. 23

LEHMBERG: And I am. I’m about done with this because— 24


22

LEHMBERG: —if you want to take me to jail, take me to jail. Okay? 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, what I’m, what, like I said— 2

LEHMBERG: And you’re gonna ruin my career … and that’s fine— 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: That, that’s not, that’s not the intent of what I am here 4

for— 5

LEHMBERG: But, I’m not drunk. [Lehmberg chuckles.] Just either do it, or 6

don’t. Okay? 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Well, I don’t, I don’t want to take a person to jail 8

that doesn’t deserve to go to jail, but I— 9

LEHMBERG: You just make your decision 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —use these—I can’t make these decisions until—okay, 11

let me tell you, the reason I do these is to make that determination. If you don’t do these 12

things— 13

LEHMBERG: I’m gonna do it. 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —you limit, you my ability to— 15

LEHMBERG: You want me to do this, that’s fine, look— 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No, Ma’am. I want you to stand right here so I can 17

explain everything to you— 18

LEHMBERG: —but I have a bad back, and it hurts— 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Watch it. Watch it. 20

LEHMBERG: —and I’m fine. Leave me alone. 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, well you’re, you’re falling backwards. We don’t 22

want you to fall over. 23

LEHMBERG: No. I’m not gonna fall. I just have a bad back. 24


23


DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Like I said, what I want you to do is stand— 2

LEHMBERG: One, two, 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —just like this and not do anything until I instruct you to 4

do so, Ma’am. 5

LEHMBERG: Okay. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: What I’m gonna ask you to do is take nine heel-to-toe 7

steps down the line. On the ninth step— 8

LEHMBERG: But I can’t do that. 9

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m gonna explain it to you anyway. On the ninth step— 10

LEHMBERG: I’m gonna try… but it hurts, and I can’t do it very well, and it 11

makes me hurt. 12


LEHMBERG: Stand back. I’m not gonna fall down, but I am sixty-three and it 14

hurts [unintelligible] but I’m not drunk, you guys. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Again. I’m gonna explain this again because I, every 16

time I, I start to explain, you interrupt, and you, and you continue before I ask you to start. 17

Take nine heel-to-toe steps down the line— 18

LEHMBERG: Okay. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —On the ninth step, leave your lead foot planted. You’re 20

gonna take a series of small steps, turn around, and take nine heel-to-toe steps back down the 21

line, and it’s gonna look like this, Ma’am. From this position— 22

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. I can’t do it. 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, I’m trying to demonstrate. I haven’t asked you to 24

do anything yet. I’ve simply asked you to stop and watch. 25

24

LEHMBERG: Well, I can’t. 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine. Ninth 2

step, this lead foot stays planted. Take a series of small steps, turn around, take nine heel-to-3

toe steps back. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine. 4

LEHMBERG: Are y’all havin’ a good time watchin’ this? I can’t do it. 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m—no, Ma’am. I’m not having a good time watchin’ 6

this. 7

LEHMBERG: Yes, you are. I can’t do it. Okay? 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: How about this? Go ahead and stand right there for me. 9

Are you able to, are you able to lift and stand on one foot? 10

LEHMBERG: I can’t. It hurts me. Do you understand that? 11

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Well, you’re saying this side, your, your left hip 12

hurts. 13

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: What about your right hip? 15

LEHMBERG: Okay. What do you want? 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I … would like you to stand right there where my light is 17

and turn and face me, Ma’am. 18

LEHMBERG: Okay. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Again, with your feet together, hands at your side, 20

with whatever leg that you choose, I’m gonna ask that you lift that foot— 21

LEHMBERG: I can’t do it. Do you not understand? 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, I understand that, but I’m—all’s I’m asking you 23

to do is to stand there. You stand on a daily basis. Correct? I’m, I, I’ve only asked you to 24

stand here for a couple of minutes. 25

25

LEHMBERG: Um-hm. 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. I’m just trying to explain these things to you. 2

Again, with whatever foot that you choose, you’re gonna lift that foot approximately six 3

inches off the ground. You’re gonna keep your leg straight and your hands at your side, and 4

with that toe pointed straight, and your foot parallel to the ground, you’re gonna look at the 5

raised foot, and you’re gonna count out loud, one-thousand one, one-thousand two— 6

LEHMBERG: I’m not gonna do that. 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —one-thousand three— 8

LEHMBERG: I’m not gonna do that. 9

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —one-thousand four and so on. Okay. Well, I’m gonna 10

demonstrate it for you anyway. So, I’m gonna choo—use my left leg. I’m gonna lift it six 11

inches, pointing my toe out straight, both of my legs straight, hands at the side, lookin’ at that 12

raised foot. One-thousand one, one-thousand two, one-thousand three, one-thousand four— 13

DEPUTY PAIGE: There’s a bunch of rocks over here. See. 14

LEHMBERG: No. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, he’s just trying to keep you from tripping over. 16

You don’t need to be slappin’ away—slappin’ his hands away from him. He’s tryin’—he’s 17

tryin’ to keep you from falling over. So, you’re not willin’ to do that either? 18

LEHMBERG: I’m not. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. And again, you understand that this is what I use 20

to determine if somebody’s intoxicated. 21

LEHMBERG: I get that. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: You, you leave me with only the facts that I have, which 23

is your erratic driving, driving in a bike lane, crossing over, going southbound in a 24

northbound lane of traffic— 25

26

LEHMBERG: What? 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —crossing over. Yes, Ma’am. I’ve already explained 2

that. The odor of alcohol, you admitting to drinking. 3

LEHMBERG: Do you smell alcohol? 4

DEPUTY PAIGE: Yes, Ma’am. 5

LEHMBERG: Do you? I don’t think so. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: And so you, so you, that’s what you leave me with for me 7

to make my decision on, Ma’am. Do you understand? 8

LEHMBERG: I don’t think you smell alcohol, and I haven’t erratically drived 9

[sic]. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Well, I believe you have, Ma’am. 11

LEHMBERG: Okay. So here we are. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am. Go ahead and put your hands behind your 13

back for me. 14

LEHMBERG: Wow. [Lehmberg chuckles.] That’s amazing. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Our lieutenant’s here, and our sergeant’s here. 16

LEHMBERG: Really. Are you going to put handcuffs on me? 17

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am. 18

LEHMBERG: Wow. That’s pretty weird. So who’s gonna take my car in? 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’ll let you know that shortly, Ma’am. You don’t have 20

any weapons or anything on you, do you? I don’t know if you’re, if you’re able to carry or 21

anything like that. I don’t know if you have— 22

LEHMBERG: No. I don’t. 23


LEHMBERG: I don’t have any weapons. 25

27


LEHMBERG: This is pretty interesting. Are you going to take me to jail? 2


LEHMBERG: You really are. 4


LEHMBERG: Huh. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Have a seat, please. 7

LEHMBERG: Okay. 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Watch your head. 9

LEHMBERG: Huh? Wait a minute— 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: If you want to turn, turn around and just sit down and 11

then we, you can swing your seat in. 12

LEHMBERG: —if you’ll just be still for a minute. 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m just trying to help you, Ma’am. 14

LEHMBERG: No, you’re not. … Huh. … Huh. 15

DEPUTY PAIGE: We’ll bring her medication and stuff like that, but makeup 16

and stuff like that we can leave that in the car because they won’t take that. 17

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, Ma’am. 18

LEHMBERG: Huh. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m gonna read this form to you. All of it may not apply 20

to you, but I need to read the whole form anyway. Okay? 21

LEHMBERG: You, you, nee—no, I get. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: You are under arrest for an offense arising— 23

LEHMBERG: —no, I get. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —out of acts alleged to have been committed— 25

28

LEHMBERG: You need to take these handcuffs off of me. 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, I cannot take the handcuffs off of you. 2

LEHMBERG: Yes, you can. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —committed while you were operating a motor vehicle in 4

a public place, or a watercraft, while intoxicated, or an offense under Section 106.041, 5

Alcoholic Beverage Code. You will be asked to give a specimen of your breath and or blood. 6

The specimen will be analyzed to determine the alcohol concentration or the presence of a 7

controlled substance, drug, dangerous drug or other substance in your body. If you refuse to 8

give a specimen, that refusal may be admissible in a subsequent prosecution. Your license, 9

permit, or privilege to operate a motor vehicle will be suspended or denied for not less than 10

180 days, whether or not you are subsequently prosecuted for this offense. If you refuse, if 11

you refuse to submit to the taking of a specimen, the officer may apply for a warrant 12

authorizing a specimen to be taken from you. If you are 21 years of age or older and submit 13

to the taking of a specimen and an analysis of the specimen shows you have an alcohol 14

concentration of 0.08 or more, your license, permit or privilege to operate a motor vehicle will 15

be suspended or denied for not less than 90 days, whether or not you are subsequently 16

prosecuted for this offense. If you are younger than 21 years of age and have any detectable 17

amount of alcohol in your system, your license, permit or privilege to operate a motor vehicle 18

will be suspended or denied for not less than 60 days. However, if you submit to the taking of 19

a specimen and an analysis of the specimen shows that you have an alcohol concentration of 20

less than 0.08, you may be subject, subject to criminal penalties less severe than those 21

provided for under Chapter 49 of the Penal Code. If you were operating a motor vehicle and 22

you refuse to give the specimen or provide a specimen that shows you have an alcohol 23

concentration of 0.0, 0.08 or more, you may be disqualified from driving a commercial motor 24

vehicle for a period of not less than one year. You may request a hearing on the suspension or 25

29

denial. This request must be received by the Texas Department of Public Safety at its 1

headquarters in Austin, Texas, no later than 15 days after you receive or are presumed to have 2

received notice of suspension or denial. The request can be made by written demand, fax, or 3

other form prescribed by the Department. I certify that I have informed you both orally and in 4

writing—and I will give you a copy of this, Ma’am—of the consequences of refusing to 5

submit to the taking of a specimen or providing a specimen. I have provided you with a 6

complete and true copy of this statutory warning. I am now requesting a specimen of your 7

breath and or blood. Paige, can you reach in over there? I’m gonna hand you the seat belt. 8

LEHMBERG: What are you doing? 9

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Just gonna put the seat belt in there. 10


DEPUTY RIBSAM: It’s hard to seatbelt this, Ma’am. 12

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] Hello! 13

DEPUTY PAIGE: I don’t know what if she was driving because I didn’t get 14

his story. He just kind of walked off. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Are the keys to the car in it? 16

DEPUTY PAIGE: Yeah, the keys are in the floorboard. Yeah, I’ll, I’ll, I’ll tow 17

it. 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yeah. Do that. Uh, and D.J., where’s D.J.? 19

DEPUTY PAIGE: D.J. took off to go write his report. 20

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay, but he was first one on the sce—D.J. was the first 21

one here? 22

DEPUTY PAIGE: Yeah. He, he, well, I came here, prob—he was here 23

probably a couple of minutes. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Okay. Just get with him. I’m gonna need a detailed 25

30

supplement. 1

DEPUTY PAIGE: All right, I’m gonna, I’m gonna write a supplement. 2

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I need detailed supplements from everybody. 3

DEPUTY PAIGE: Sure. 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Everybody. 5

DEPUTY PAIGE: All right. Go ahead. I guess well, I’m the, I’m the, I’m the 6

night unit. That’s why he goes, “This is yours.” 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No. No. Yeah, but, he’ll know, but, yeah, I need to, I 8

need to— 9

DEPUTY PAIGE: I’ll write it. I appreciate it. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —I need to go and get out of here. 11

DEPUTY PAIGE: I guess if you could wait a couple of hours [unintelligible]. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: We’ll see. I don’t know. I don’t know if she 13

[unintelligible]. 14

DEPUTY PAIGE: Yeah, I got nothin’. I got here twenty minutes late. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yeah. All right. Thanks. Thank you. 16

LEHMBERG: This is very interesting. … So, what happens to my purse, 17

and— 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I have your purse. I have your credentials. I have your 19

medication with me. 20

LEHMBERG: What medication? 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Whatever medication bottle was in your purse. 22

LEHMBERG: Do you have my purse? 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am. It’s in the trunk of the car. 24

LEHMBERG: And the, um, did you lock my car? 25

31

DEPUTY RIBSAM: It’s right here. The deputy’s gonna take care of your car. 1

LEHMBERG: What’s he gonna do to it? 2

DEPUTY RIBSAM: It’s gonna be impounded right now. 3

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] Okay. 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, that’s per our, that’s per our policies. 5

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] Oh, that’s amazing. So, you’re taking 6

me to jail, right? 7


LEHMBERG: Oh, that’s cool. You have just ruined my career. [Lehmberg 9

chuckles.] This is pretty interesting. … Is this a patrol car? 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am? 11

LEHMBERG: Is this a patrol … car? 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, it is. 13

LEHMBERG: And are you a patrol officer? 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I work for the DWI Unit. Yes, Ma’am. 15

LEHMBERG: Huh? So, where are we going? 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Going downtown to the Central Booking. 17

LEHMBERG: The main? To the main? 18


LEHMBERG: Would you call Art and tell him you’re taking me there? 20

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Who, Art Acevedo? 21

LEHMBERG: Yeah. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I can’t call him, Ma’am. 23

LEHMBERG: Yes, you should. You should, you should call him … 24

[Lehmberg chuckles.] 25

32


LEHMBERG: ‘cause I’m not drunk. … You really should call him. … You 2

really should call him. He would want to know. You know that? … You’re not listening to 3

me. [Lehmberg chuckles.] Okay. … Where they gonna take my car? 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Once I find out who the wrecker company is, I’ll let you 5

know. 6

LEHMBERG: What? 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I do not know who the wrecker company is at this time, 8

but I will let you know. 9

LEHMBERG: But do you have my purse? 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am. I do. I have your purse. 11

LEHMBERG: Are you a patrol officer? 12


LEHMBERG: Where are you taking me? 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: To the Travis County Jail, Ma’am. 15

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] That’s where my office is. You know 16

that. Um— 17

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m aware of that. 18

LEHMBERG: —these, um… these, um, handcuffs hurt. … Are you really 19

going to put me in jail? Really? 20

DEPUTY RIBSAM: At this time, yes, Ma’am. 21

LEHMBERG: Are you really? [Lehmberg chuckles.] … That’s crazy! I can’t 22

believe y’all are gonna do that. … I would tell you this— 23


LEHMBERG: —that if someone said that I was driving erratically, that was 25

33

wrong, and I will—I am gonna to contest that— 1

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m sorry. 2

LEHMBERG: —because that is bullshit. And you, you need to call Art and 3

tell him you’re [Lehmberg chuckles.] gonna put me in jail ‘cause he’s not going to like it. 4

Okay? 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, unfortunately, Cheace Ah—Chief—Chief 6

Acevedo’s not over me. 7

LEHMBERG: You need to, you need to call Art and tell him. 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Uh, he’s not over me. There’s nothing I need to— 9

LEHMBERG: What? 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Cheat Ah— Cheace Ah—Chief Acevedo’s not over me. 11

LEHMBERG: I can’t hear you. 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: There’s nothing he can tell me. 13

LEHMBERG: If you’ll just let my hands off, I’ll call Art myself. 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, you’ll be able to call him, Ma’am, but— 15

LEHMBERG: Y’all are nuts! You’re crazy. 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: There’s nothing that, that he can say to me that, that’s 17

gonna change this right now. 18

LEHMBERG: I can’t hear you, anything that you’re saying, but this is about to 19

end my career and y’all are just absolutely nuts. … And you’re towing my car, and you’re 20

doing all kinds of crap, and I am absolutely going to sue you the, the crap out of you. … I 21

can’t believe you have me handcuffed. [Lehmberg chuckles.] You need to take these 22

handcuffs off of me. Okay? 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I can’t take ‘em off of you right now, Ma’am. 24

LEHMBERG: I mean like right now! Okay? 25

34

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No, Ma’am. 1

LEHMBERG: I mean like right now! This is stupid! Like you need to pull 2

over and take these handcuffs off of me. Okay? 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I can’t do that, Ma’am. 4

LEHMBERG: I don’t know who you are, but take these goddamn handcuffs 5

off of me! Now! I mean like now! This is stupid! I am not drunk. I am not a criminal. I’m 6

the goddamn District Attorney! Take these handcuffs off of me now! Okay? Pull over. Get 7

‘em off of me. 8


LEHMBERG: Just stop and get ‘em off of me. Get ‘em off of me! 10


LEHMBERG: I know, you think you’re doing what you’re supposed to do, but 12

get these handcuffs off of me! … They hurt. Do you get that? 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m sorry, Ma’am. I put them on as loose— 14

LEHMBERG: They hurt! 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I put ‘em— 16

LEHMBERG: Get ‘em off of me now! 17

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, stop banging on the cage. 18

LEHMBERG: I mean now! Pull over and get ‘em off of me. 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, I’m not taking the handcuffs off. 20

LEHMBERG: No, now! I am gonna call the chief and tell him— 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: That’s fine. 22

LEHMBERG: —if you don’t get ‘em off of me now. 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: You call—you can call the chief, Ma’am. 24

LEHMBERG: This is stupid! Do you get that? I am not a criminal, and 25

35

you’ve got handcuffs on me, and I am not gonna handle it much longer if you don’t pull over 1

and get ‘em off of me. Okay? Uhh, stop it! Stop it! Pull over now! 2

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m not stopping, Ma’am, to take the cuffs off. 3

LEHMBERG: Stop it! … Uhh, this is crazy. You have got me handcuffed, 4

and it hurts. And you better stop pretty quick! Pretty quick. This hurts. Uhh, ouch. Where 5

are we? 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Right now, we’re on 2222. 7

LEHMBERG: Yeah, why are we going so long? 8

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, this is the direct route from where we were, Ma’am. 9

LEHMBERG: I’m telling you something that, this hurts. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, I put ‘em on, I— 11

LEHMBERG: These handcuffs hurt, so pull over and, uh, release ‘em now! 12

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I cannot take the handcuffs off. I put ‘em on. I can put a 13

finger in between them. 14

LEHMBERG: And stop it now! Yeah, what are you doing? Why do you—15

why are we on 2222 when you pulled me over on Barton Hills Drive? 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I didn’t, Ma’am. You, you were stopped on 620— 17

LEHMBERG: Huh? 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: You were stopped on 620, not on Barton Hills. 19

LEHMBERG: These handcuffs hurt. 20

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, there’s nothing I can do about it. They’re not 21

made for comfort. 22

LEHMBERG: You better pull over pretty quick! Okay? You better … pull 23

over … pretty quick … and loosen ‘em. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I will stop, and I will check ‘em, but they’re not coming 25

36

off. 1

LEHMBERG: Are you a police officer? 2

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am. I am. 3

LEHMBERG: Well then pull over! 4

DEPUTY RIBSAM: All right, there’s no place for me to pull over right here 5

safely. 6

LEHMBERG: Well, I don’t care, pull over and find a way! 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I will find it. There’s a parking lot coming up here. 8

LEHMBERG: —because this hurts. 9

DEPUTY RIBSAM: When we get to the next available parking lot, I will pull 10

in, and I will check the cuffs for you, Ma’am. 11

LEHMBERG: Why are we on 2222? You pulled me over on Barton—on 620. 12

This is getting pretty silly. … Why are we on 620— 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: That’s where you were, Ma’am. That’s where you were. 14

LEHMBERG: —by the way? Oh, no we weren’t. These handcuffs hurt. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I, I told you, I told you, once we get up here— 16

LEHMBERG: You better, you better do somethin’ pretty quick because I’m 17

getting pretty pissed off. 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m gonna pull into a parking lot, and I will check ‘em, 19

but they’re not coming off. 20

LEHMBERG: There’s a parking lot here. You better do somethin’ pretty 21

quick. 22

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m stopping to check out her handcuffs— 23

LEHMBERG: Yeah, right. 24

DEPUTY RIBSAM: —it’s at 2222 and Northland Hills. Okay, Ma’am. I’m 25

37

gonna check your cuffs, but I’m gonna need you to lean forward if you can. 1


DEPUTY RIBSAM: Can you, if you can put your foot down, if you can lean 3

forward, I’ll check your cuffs for you, Ma’am. 4

LEHMBERG: Yeah, right. 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I can get a finger in that one, Ma’am. I can’t loosen that 6

anymore. What you need to do is bring your hands up so you’re not putting pressure on ‘em, 7

Ma’am. But I can get a finger up in between that cuff. The way you’ve got your hands 8

twisted under there, that’s why they’re hurtin’ you, Ma’am. 9


DEPUTY RIBSAM: All’s you can do is lift that hand up and release the 11

pressure, but I can slide a finger in between there, Ma’am. I cannot loosen that cuff up 12

anymore than what it is. 13

LEHMBERG: So, what makes me feel better? 14

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Just like, you see I can get my finger in there? That’s as 15

loose as I can make it, Ma’am. Okay? We’re almost there. 16

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] Ouch. That really hurts. … Where you 17

taking me? 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: We’re going downtown to the Travis County Jail, 19

Ma’am. 20

LEHMBERG: The Travis County Jail! 21


LEHMBERG: Okay! And what are you going to book me for? 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Driving while intoxicated. 24

LEHMBERG: Is that right? 25

38


LEHMBERG: Okay! So, my career’s over. [Lehmberg chuckles.] Thank you 2

very much. Where they takin’ my car? Where they takin’ my car? 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: That’s, that’s what I’m tryin’ to find out right now, 4

Ma’am. 5

LEHMBERG: Yeah, I know, you care. 6

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m not seeing a wrecker company. Once I find a 7

wrecker company, or who it’s released to, I will let you know. 8

LEHMBERG: Does the sheriff know I’m comin’ in? 9

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Uh, I don’t know that yet, Ma’am. 10

LEHMBERG: Somebody needs to know it. 11

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I have not talked to, I have not talked to the sheriff. 12

LEHMBERG: If you don’t let ‘em know, they’re gonna be pissed off. 13


LEHMBERG: You know that. 15

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Well, I can’t do anything right now, Ma’am. I don’t have 16

his number. 17

LEHMBERG: Okay. Whatever you want. [Lehmberg chuckles.] … Do you 18

have any water? 19

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No, Ma’am, I do not. 20

LEHMBERG: Of course you wouldn’t give me any water. 21

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Nothing that I can give you, Ma’am. 22

LEHMBERG: What time is it? 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: A quarter after twelve. 24

LEHMBERG: You got my purse? You haven’t got my purse? 25

39

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am. The purse is in the trunk. 1

LEHMBERG: Where are we? 2

DEPUTY RIBSAM: We’re at Mo-Pac and Enfield. 3

LEHMBERG: Why is it taking so long to get there? … Ouch. Damn! You 4

really need to get these handcuffs off of me. … Are we close? 5

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am, we are. 6

LEHMBERG: “Yes, Ma’am, we are.” Where are we? 7

DEPUTY RIBSAM: We’re on Enfield coming up to Lamar. 8

LEHMBERG: You know, you really need to take these stupid handcuffs off of 9

me. 10

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Once we get into Central Bookin’, you’ll be able to work 11

on ‘em. 12

LEHMBERG: Do you know who I am? 13

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Yes, Ma’am, I do. 14

LEHMBERG: [Lehmberg chuckles.] Why do you have me handcuffed? 15

[Lehmberg chuckles.] It hurts. 16

DEPUTY RIBSAM: I’m sorry it hurts. I know they’re not made for comfort. 17

LEHMBERG: Y’all are full of shit is what you are. 18

DEPUTY RIBSAM: But I, I stopped and checked ‘em for you ‘cause I said I 19

would. 20

LEHMBERG: I can’t believe you handcuffed me. That is crazy. And some—21

somebody called in about me, and it wasn’t me. … Does that make you feel really good that 22

you’ve brought me in with handcuffs on? 23

DEPUTY RIBSAM: No, Ma’am. It doesn’t. 24

LEHMBERG: Yeah, it should. 25

40

DEPUTY RIBSAM: But, I’m, why that— 1

LEHMBERG: I have sent a million people to prison, and, you know, shame on 2

you … for doing this. Shame on you. 3

DEPUTY RIBSAM: Ma’am, you put me in this position. 4

LEHMBERG: Oh, shame on you. I didn’t do—I didn’t put you in this 5

position. 6


LEHMBERG: Yeah right. [Lehmberg chuckles.] I didn’t put you in this 8

position. Yeah. 9

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Documents

Relators Application for Order Requiring Citation