A Twin Cities Sheriff's deputy who killed a man with his squad car is accused of breaking the law again.
On Aug. 30, 2007, Dakota County Sheriff's Deputy Joshua Williams pulled his squad out in front of motorcyclist Bill Wallace, hitting and killing him on Highway 3 in Empire Township.
On Saturday, he was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving and having an open bottle of beer in his car .
A fellow deputy clocked him doing 68 miles per hour in a 55 mile per hour zone shortly before 2 a.m. on County Road 46 in Empire Township, just minutes away from where he hit Wallace's motorcycle 15 months earlier. Authorities said Williams failed both a field sobriety and breath test, was arrested at the scene, and his car was impounded.
Williams was booked in the Dakota County Jail and placed in general population until his release several hours later. Williams has worked for Dakota county since Aug. 2000. After his careless driving conviction May 13, 2008, he was prohibited from driving county vehicles and re-assigned to court security as a bailiff.
Wallace's family wants to know why he was allowed to drive at all.
"He could have taken another life," step-brother Joe Geror said.
Williams was suppose to have his license suspended for one year, but state records show it was reinstated Oct. 7, 2008--five months after his conviction.
The Wallace family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Dakota County. The attorney for Williams declined to comment, since no charges have been filed.
Dakota County Chief Deputy Dave Bellows said Williams is on paid leave and told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that the incident "makes us angry."
If convicted, this would be William's second DWI in under 10 years. He already has a DWI conviction in North Carolina from December 1998.
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