BY JANICE MORSE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
When people hear about Charles W. Jodrey of Milford being arrested for drunken driving after eight earlier convictions and a fatality, "they are absolutely alarmed," said Nora Banks, president of the southwestern Ohio chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
"They say, 'How can he get away with it?' But they don't realize how many other people are getting away with it, too," Ms. Banks said.
Even though officials are using new and stronger weapons to attack the enemy, some repeat drunk drivers seem unstoppable. "Once you've done everything you can do to them -- take their cars, put them in jail, fine them -- they still continue to drive. And that's the problem," said Leo Skinner, spokesman for the Ohio Department of Public Safety. "We can take away their privilege to drive, but we can't take away their ability to drive."
More than 40,000 Ohioans -- including 500 in Cincinnati -- have four or more driving under the influence (DUI) convictions and are considered DUI felons, Mr. Skinner said.
And although Mr. Jodrey's case seems shocking, 1,300 other Ohioans also have eight DUIs.
But those aren't Ohio's worst DUI offenders.
According to state records, there's a three-way tie for the most DUIs, among Dennis R. Cayse of Hillsboro, Todd R. Manley of Monroe Falls and Roger D. Collison of Orrville.
Each has been found guilty 18 times.
"And that's 18 times they've been caught," Mr. Skinner said. "Imagine the number of times they may have been driving drunk without being caught. . . . To me, that's frightening."
Among about 50,000 DUI arrests in Ohio last year, almost one-fourth had a previous DUI conviction, Mr. Skinner said. These multiple offenders have more than a driving problem, he said. They apparently have an alcohol abuse problem -- and, Ms. Banks said, these offenders often are in denial about it.
She cited the case of Cincinnati Bengals player Tremain Mack, 24, who was sentenced Wednesday to almost a year in jail for violating probation on an alcohol-related driving offense, his second within a year.
"He obviously didn't think he had a problem," Ms. Banks said. "Now he's in jail. Maybe he'll begin to realize, 'Wow, I do have a problem,' and he'll get serious about going through a treatment program."
Ms. Banks says the state's planned 500-bed DUI prison, being constructed near Cleveland, is a good idea because it will emphasize treatment of DUI offenders.
She also would like to see stricter enforcement of existing laws. Fewer DUI offenders should be allowed to plead guilty to lesser charges, she said.
But no law can stop multiple offenders, who, like Mr. Jodrey, continue to drive drunk even after a jail stint.
Mr. Jodrey, 55, last held a valid driver's license in 1984, when he was involved in a drunken-driving crash that killed Martin Ackermann of Anderson Township. For that, Mr. Jodrey was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and served 10 years in prison.
But two months after his release, he was arrested in
Anderson Township and again was charged with DUI. He was sentenced to 1 1/2 years in the Hamilton County Justice Center.
Last year, he was convicted in Hamilton County of disorderly conduct while intoxicated and was sentenced to five days in jail.
On Aug. 23 in Milford, he was arrested for DUI while allegedly using a fictitious license bearing the name of Daniel Murphy. Police say that deception went undiscovered until Thanksgiving Day, when Miami Township police arrested him on another DUI charge and a Clermont County corrections officer recognized him.
While awaiting action of a Clermont County grand jury, Mr. Jodrey will remain in the county jail unless he posts $702,000 bond.
"It's very unusual that he went out and created a false identity to get another driver's license," Mr. Skinner said. "These people will do anything not to get caught."
Among Ohio's 7.5 million motorists, nearly 800,000 have at least one DUI conviction.
Nevertheless, there is reason to believe that Ohio's anti-DUI efforts are making a difference among some drivers, Mr. Skinner said.
The number of Ohio's alcohol-related fatalities has been cut by more than half in just over a decade.
In 1986, 809 people died in alcohol-related crashes. By last year, that number had dropped to 390.
Still, Ms. Banks said, "Our job isn't finished until there are no more needless deaths from crashes involving alcohol -- and I can see that we're going to be here forever."
Ohio adds creative penalties to arsenal
