Commissioner Will Plead Guilty To Dui Dick Panabaker Arrested Monday Evening On Highway 95

Kootenai County Commission chairman Dick Panabaker said Tuesday he will plead guilty to driving while under the influence after he was arrested Monday night.

Panabaker, 59, was driving his restored 1940 Nash convertible at about 10:40 p.m. Monday when he was stopped by an Idaho State Police trooper on U.S. Highway 95 near Prairie Avenue.

According to a Kootenai County jail booking sheet, Panabaker had a blood-alcohol content of .18 percent, which is more than twice the legal limit of .08 percent.

“With a nice hot day, at about 6 p.m., I stopped at a friend’s house and had a beer,” Panabaker said just before the commission’s Tuesday meeting. “I continued to drink and had too many.”

Panabaker was arrested about four hours later. He did not say how many beers he drank.

“I tried to drive home and got caught,” he said. “There is no sense in trying to deny it. The same rules apply to me as everybody else.”

Panabaker, who is running for reelection, beat Republican challenger Rich Piazza by 8 percent of the vote in the May 24 primary election. Panabaker faces Democrat Michael Stine in the Nov. 7 general election.

Asked if he thought his DUI arrest will influence the race, Panabaker said: “(Butch) Otter had the same problem and he won” the Republican primary for U.S. representative for Idaho’s District 1.

Panabaker’s DUI arrest comes just two months after the county approved a random drug-testing policy for all employees when they are involved in an accident, if they drive or work near guns and money.

Commissioner Dick Compton said the county is not considering any action against Panabaker.

“It’s his own private business,” Compton said.

Panabaker said he will plead guilty when the case goes to court.

“The judge will know dang well about this before it even gets (to court),” he said. “(The judge) will probably throw the book at me to make everybody happy.”

Panabaker said he had no complaints about how the officer handled the arrest. He said he arrived home at about 1:30 a.m. after posting $500 bail.

“I am being upfront and honest. It was my fault and I will take the consequences,” Panabaker said. “I hope people realize that I am taking the responsibility for this.”