Friday, September 01, 2000
Householder had other alcohol offenses
By Debra Jasper
Enquirer Columbus Bureau
COLUMBUS — Larry Householder, expected to become the next speaker of the Ohio House, has been convicted of four alcohol-related offenses in the past 16 years — including one DUI that inexplicably does not appear on his driving record.
Larry Householder
|
Three years ago, the 41-year-old Perry County Republican legislator acknowledged a DUI conviction. He was charged with DUI and failure to control after driving his car into a ditch on July 4 near Thornville in southeast Ohio's Perry County.
Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicle (BMV) records indicated it was his first alcohol-related offense.
However, files in Athens and Perry counties reviewed by the Enquirer this week reveal Mr. Householder was arrested twice in the 1980s for operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and a third time for disorderly conduct while intoxicated.
Mr. Householder, a two-term state representative and insurance agency owner who is considered a shoo-in for the third most-powerful job in state government, said he no longer even “sniffs the cap” on a bottle of liquor and deeply regrets his mistakes.
“It was reckless youth, I guess,” he said. “I am what I am. Some folks won't like that, but I'm just as human as everybody else.”
Some are wary of Mr. Householder's past. His Democratic foe in November's 78th House District race predicts it will be a campaign issue. Also concerned are Mothers Against Drunk Driving, who want to push through the Ohio General Assembly tougher drinking-and-driving legislation.
Mr. Householder said he does not know why his first DUI conviction never surfaced in the state's driving records. He also said he never denied in 1997 that a previous DUI conviction existed.
“I never misled anybody,” he said. On the other hand, “I didn't go out on the stump and bleed my heart out in '97. I felt bad enough as it was.”
Mr. Householder said he has no intention of letting the revelations affect his desire to become Ohio's next speaker of the House.
“When I was asked about this, I thought, "Oh, crap.' But then I thought about it and I felt good about my ability to come back from adversity time and time again,” he said.
“When things have hit me hard I've survived, pushed through them and kept on going,” Mr. Householder said. “I ran on my legislative record, not my driving record.”
Records reviewed by the Enquirer show Mr. Householder:
• Was convicted on the first DUI charge in 1984 in Perry County. He was sentenced by Judge Linton Lewis to three days in jail, and his license was suspended for 120 days.
• Pleaded guilty in 1988 in Athens County to an amended charge of reckless operation. He paid a $100 fine and had his license suspended for 30 days.
• A year later, he again entered a guilty plea — this time for being intoxicated and disorderly outside an Athens bar. He paid a $63 fine.
Mr. Householder is described even by his foes as a shrewd, scrappy politician who has outmaneuvered his opponents in his bid for the speakership. In the Statehouse pecking order, it ranks behind the governor's job and state Senate president.
But before Mr. Householder can ascend to the post, he must win re-election in November to the 78th House District, which includes Hocking and Perry counties, along with parts of Licking and Athens counties.
His Democratic opponent, Athens city prosecutor Lisa Eliason, said Mr. Householder's arrest record is an issue.
“Character is what you do when no one is watching, and I'm very concerned about what he is doing when no one is watching.”
Susan Gwinn, chairwoman of the Athens County Democratic Party, said Mr. Householder had to be aware the media was erroneously reporting in 1997 that he had never had a previous DUI, but he did not set the record straight.
“He led the public to believe in 1997 that this was his first DUI. He let everybody believe that,” Ms. Gwinn said. “Why wasn't it on his driving record? I'm amazed by this whole thing.”
Julie Stebbins, spokesperson for the BMV, said she cannot explain why the agency did not have Mr. Householder's first conviction on file. DUI convictions are to remain on drivers' records permanently.
“It should be there,” she said. “But we rely on counties to submit that information to us.”
Perry County Judge Dean Wilson oversaw the 1997 case against Mr. Householder. He said he did not know about Mr. Householder's 1984 DUI conviction before sentencing him to a weekend in an alcohol counseling program in 1997.
Mr. Householder also lost his license for six months, except for work-related driving, and was fined $250 plus $35 for failure to control his vehicle.
“The only record I can rely upon when sentencing someone is the BMV,” Judge Wilson said.
The judge said he was not required by Ohio law to give Mr. Householder a tougher sentence because the legislator had not received a DUI in the previous six years. Judge Wilson said he doubts if he would have done anything differently if he'd had known the full record.
Mr. Householder said that after his 1997 conviction he went to counseling for a weekend at the Wellness Center in Columbus as part of his sentence. “If I had a problem, I wanted to know about it,” he said.
After the session, he stopped drinking alcohol, he said.
“Normal people who have a drinking problem can't stop, but I've stopped,” he said. “People who know me will understand. We have a large Christian community where I'm from and the first thing Christians are taught to do is forgive. In 1997 I paid a severe price and it cost me pride and it made me humble.”
House Minority Leader Jack Ford, D-Toledo, said Mr. Householder's situation has more serious ramifications than just political ones. It raises questions about how thoroughly the state is enforcing laws requiring counties to report all DUIs to the bureau, he said.
“If I get stopped for speeding, my insurance goes up. If we have some counties where you can get stopped for DUIs and it is not reported, we need to change that,” Mr. Ford said. “We need to look at whether this is something happening elsewhere in the state and if it is, then we've got some folks on highways that shouldn't be there.”
Backers of Mr. Householder say that although they didn't know until now about his earlier arrest record, it doesn't affect their support.
Joy Padgett, director of the governor's office on Appalachia, said she has known Mr. Householder — an advocate for the residents in Ohio's Appalachian counties — for years. People in that corner of the state understand he has made mistakes, she said.
“When he got a DUI in 1997 and he stood up and said this is what I did, you did not have a ripple,” she said.
“I would hope Larry will be judged on who he has been since he has come to the House,” she said.
Supporter Jeff Jacobson, R-Brookville, said the legislator has addressed the problem and is moving forward.
“What you did as a young man shouldn't be an issue if that's not how you are today,” Mr. Jacobson said.
He added that Mr. Householder had no reason to volunteer information about his past when he was convicted in 1997.
“I don't believe that one has the responsibility to recount every story that one's not proud of since the time one was born,” he said.
Judy Mead, executive director for the state office of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, said the group will be lobbying this year for legislation that would make drivers who test .08 blood-alcohol content on a Breathalyzer presumed to be intoxicated. The current level is .10.
She said the organization will keep a close eye on how Mr. Householder votes on such legislation and other alcohol-related laws. As speaker of the House, Mr. Householder would have significant influence on the flow of legislation.
“It concerns me that it's been not just one alcohol-related offense, but four,” she said. “Naturally, we're a little on edge about that.”
Cop dragged to death
Householder had other alcohol offenses
6-year-old drowns in closed pool
XU to build 273-unit apartments
Corbett pledge for arts school campus: $2.6 million
Councilmen: Jet firm overreacts
Holiday patrols on full alert
Former minister denies swindling his investors
Summer heat late, but it had to come
Blood donors needed
Bush defends health-care record
Cincinnati police union wants city to preserve promotion-test results
Education Notes
Educator wins severance fight
Hamilton police to honor officer who saved woman
He got the area soccer ball rolling
Humane group lobbies county
“I built that stadium”
Mobile home residents can stay
Project could spell relief
Reading to update residents on school delay
Suspect indicted in rape, slaying
Teachers reduce demand for raise
Trustees want lawsuit dismissed
UK president search panel finishes tour
Get to it
In the schools
Kentucky News Briefs
Pig Parade: Porker's Wild
Tristate A.M. Report
