DWI Charges: Driver was nearly 4 times legal limit

An Iowa woman was allegedly nearly four times the legal alcohol limit when she was pulled over by a state patrol trooper in St. Peter on Independence Day.

Paula Elizabeth Krogman Tietz, of Spirit Lake, who turned 61 Tuesday, was charged that same day with four counts of misdemeanor DWI.

A criminal complaint says the state patrol received a complaint about a car that was driving varying speeds and couldn’t stay in its lane.

Tietz was eventually pulled over on Highway 169 in St. Peter, shortly before 11:30 p.m.  The patrolman’s report says  Tietz was weaving in her lane, and that she’d remained stopped for 7 seconds at a light that had turned green.  She parked two to three feet from the curb when she pulled over, according to the complaint.

Police say Tietz smelled of alcohol and was unable to multi-task. She allegedly admitted that she had drank alcohol the night before.

The complaint says Tietz failed several field sobriety tests and was unable to perform a portable breath test. Police say a jar of alcohol was also found in her center console.

A breath test at the Nicollet County Jail put Tietz’s blood alcohol level at .30, according to the complaint. The legal limit in Minnesota is .08.  She was transported to a detox facility.

Tietz was also charged with open bottle and no proof of insurance.