Go 2 Guy: Admitting he was a Blazers fan didn't help Sexson

I suppose I could get high and mighty and lecture him about the dangers of mixing alcohol with driving, but that would be hypocritical and something he knows already anyway.

Sexson was pulled over for speeding Feb. 5 about a mile from Evergreen High School. According to the arrest report, Clark County Sheriff's Deputy Greg Chaney said Sexson was going "like a bat of out hell."

How fast is that? More than 50 mph in a 35-mph zone, according to Chaney's estimate. If that qualifies as bat-out-of-hell-like, then I've driven like a bat out of hell, too.

Nonetheless, it is my duty as the lone member of MADD -- Man Against Dumb Drivers -- to chastise Sexson for two major screw-ups.

Officers generally don't like to see six-packs in back seats, particularly ones with two open containers.

Sexson was driving a black 2000 Mercedes 500 sedan. I'm assuming it has a trunk. Next time, use it Richie!

If that weren't enough to raise the arresting officer's suspicions, Sexson had beer on his breath, or in police lingo "a strong odor of intoxicants."

Something much more incriminating came out of his mouth. He told Clark County Sheriff's Deputy Greg Chaney that he was in a hurry to get home because he was going to a Portland Trail Blazers game.

That did it. Admitting you're a Blazers fan and in a hurry to watch them is a sure sign of being plastered, or at least impaired. Also not good: telling the officer you had one beer when there are two empties in the back.

So who could blame Chaney for asking Sexson to perform field sobriety tests?

(Incidentally, in an interview with the Go 2 Guy on Dec.16, Sexson said he has season tickets to Blazers games and called the players' frequent off-court problems "frustrating.")

Whether Sexson butchered the finger-to-the-nose or the heel-to-toe thing, I don't know, but he was said to have done poorly.

Sexson refused to take the portable Breathalyzer at the scene but consented to two tests at the state patrol office, blowing 0.069 and 0.070, below Washington's drunk-driving standard of 0.080.

Even so, Sexson could still be convicted of DUI, though that seems unlikely according to Go 2 Legal Analyst Mike Hunsinger.

Returning home from tear-jerking testimony at the Rick Neuheisel trial, Hunsinger said: "Charging him with a DUI ... that's extremely, extremely unusual. Prosecutors and police have jurors so convinced of the sanctity of Breathalyzer readings.

"It's pretty damn hard to get the jury to convict a DUI when the Breathalyzer says it's substantially below the level of intoxication."

Hunsinger acknowledges the possibility of extenuating factors. How long did it take from the time Sexson was stopped to the time he arrived at the state patrol for his Breathalyzer tests?

If it were as much as an hour, it perhaps could be argued that Sexson was legally lit when he was pulled over.

"Maybe there's something unusual, like he was falling-down drunk. But that's really inconsistent with the readings," Hunsinger said. "I'll be very surprised if they proceed with prosecution for a DUI."

Because it's an "off-duty" incident -- Mariners position players don't report for spring training until Feb. 22 -- the team's general manager, Bill Bavasi, would not comment, aside from saying: "We encourage all of our guys to cooperate fully with the authorities, which he's doing."

P-I columnist Jim Moore can be reached at 206-448-8013 or jimmoore@seattlepi.com. His columns appear Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

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