Villager escapes DUI conviction after refusing to provide breath sample

A speeding villager who refused to provide a breath sample after being caught speeding in a Lexus has escaped a drink-driving conviction.

Richard Frederick Ebbrecht, 60, of the Town of Pennecamp, pleaded no contest to a lesser charge of reckless driving earlier this month in Marion County Court, allowing him to avoid conviction on one count of driving under the influence. He has been placed on probation for 12 months and ordered to do 40 hours of community service.

Ebbrecht was driving a white Lexus utility vehicle 65 miles per hour in a 55 mph zone around 2 a.m. June 12 in Ocala, according to a Marion County Sheriff’s Office arrest report. The vehicle also seemed to weave.

During a traffic stop, the deputy detected “the strong odor of an intoxicating beverage emitting” from Ebbrecht’s mouth, although he denied that he had been drinking. He agreed to participate in field sobriety exercises, but swayed and lost his balance.

The New York native refused to provide a breath sample. A criminal record check revealed that he had been convicted of operating a vehicle while impaired by alcohol in 1988 in Nassau County, New York.