Resist making assumptions.
In a startling incident, a Michigan judge found himself in hot water after he collided with a bus while allegedly driving under the influence. Bodycam footage reveals his struggle to perform basic sobriety tasks, such as counting backwards and reciting the alphabet.
Judge John Chmura, 63, who has served for nearly 30 years, reportedly had a blood alcohol content more than double the legal limit when he rear-ended a SMART public bus in March. This incident occurred in Sterling Heights, a suburb situated north of Detroit.
Upon exiting his vehicle, Chmura immediately informed the officers on the scene of his judicial position, as captured in footage recently released by the Detroit News.
He mentioned that he had just attended an event and, when questioned about his alcohol consumption, admitted, “I don’t know. Evidently too much.”
The judge was unable to pass two field sobriety tests administered by the officers.
In one, he slurred his words when asked to count backwards from 87 to 78 — blowing past 78 and then suddenly counting back upward instead, the footage shows.
The judge was also asked to recite the alphabet from C to N, which he started to attempt before stopping and asking the officer to repeat the instructions.
Chmura admitted that his performance was “not OK.”
He initially refused a breathalyzer test, but later consented, police said.
The test revealed that Chmura had a blood alcohol content of 0.162%, just over double the legal driving limit of .08% in Michigan. A blood test later showed his BAC was more than 0.19%, according to C and G News.
Chmura was arrested and charged with driving under the influence with a BAC of 0.17% or higher.
Two bus passengers were treated for minor injuries at the scene after the March 25 crash, officials said.
Because Chmura oversees cases brought by the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office, a St. Clair County prosecutor has been assigned to the case, ClickonDetroit reported.
Chmura, who was elected unopposed to a six-year-term in 2024, is scheduled to appear in court again in August. He has been a judge in Michigan’s 37th District Court in Warren since 1996.
Defense attorney David Kramer, who is representing Chmura, declined to comment on specifics of the case but said that Chmura “is a very respected jurist with a fine reputation, and we’ll deal with this case as it comes.”
