A Coffee County Commissioner was arrested and charged with public intoxication after he allegedly attended a commission meeting drunk.
An officer with the Manchester Police Department received a tip from another law enforcement officer that Commissioner Steven Jones was drunk.
Several people attending the meeting said they smelled alcohol on him. The officer approached Jones afterward when he was walking to his truck.
Police said Jones admitted to drinking part of a bottle of vodka and slushies from Sonic about an hour before the County Commission meeting.
However, Jones told NewsChannel5 he was not drunk before or during the meeting. He said he had a 2oz pour of vodka in his sonic cup between noon and 2 p.m. The meeting started at 6 p.m. He said the cup he was drinking out of in the meeting video was not the same one that had alcohol in it earlier.
He was arrested and taken to the Coffee County Jail for Public Intoxication.
He said he believed his arrest was politically motivated, and that he's had a target on his back since he ran for City Mayor last year and lost. He said he's taken calls from other commissioners today who said they did not believe he was drunk at the meeting.
Jones claimed he was never given a Breathalyzer nor was he read his rights. He said he just paid the fine to be able to move on from the issue.
