by
Judge Thomas Ludington
U.S. District Judge Thomas Ludington of Bay City pleaded no contest Wednesday to a misdemeanor charge of operating a vehicle while intoxicated, The Detroit News reports. A no contest plea means he accepts the conviction and punishment without admitting guilt.
In exchange for his plea in state court — the 90th District Court in Petoskey — Judge Angela Lasher dismissed the more serious charge of being “super drunk” during a car crash on Oct. 3 in northern Michigan near Petosky. Ludington, 72, faces up to 93 days in jail when he is sentenced May 13.
It is illegal to operate a vehicle in Michigan with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or higher. “Super drunk,” which carries a tougher penalty, is defined as 0.17 or higher. Ludington registered 0.27, Robert Snell of The News reports.
The News reports that when police asked him to recite part of the alphabet during one of the sobriety tests after he crashed a black Cadillac near his lakefront vacation home, Ludington said, “A, B, C, D, E, F, U.”
He was appointed to the federal bench in 2006 by President George W. Bush.
