Former California mayor arrested on DUI charge after calling officers ‘pigs,’ police say
The former mayor of a small Northern California city faces a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence after he reportedly parked his vehicle on the front lawn of the town’s police station last week and verbally abused officers.
Frank Crawford, the former Marysville mayor, was taken into custody Friday at the Marysville Police Department on Sixth Street. Crawford was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs, said Marysville police Lt. Adam Barber.
The arrest occurred about 11 a.m. Friday after Crawford’s red SUV was driven onto the Police Department’s front lawn, Barber said. There were no injuries reported. Barber said the incident resulted in “some slight lawn damage.”
Officers at the scene noticed Crawford was exhibiting signs of impairment that morning as he reportedly screamed at the officers about wanting to pay traffic tickets. Barber said Crawford was uncooperative and “abusive” toward the officers, calling them “pigs.”
Crawford was booked on the misdemeanor charge at the Yuba County Jail and was later released on $2,500 bail, according to the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office.
Attempts by The Sacramento Bee to reach Crawford on Tuesday were not successful. The former mayor is currently a member of the Board of Trustees for the Marysville Joint Unified School District. Crawford has held that seat since 2010, and his term is expected to end in 2026, according to the school district’s website.
Randy Davis, the school board’s president, said the school district was notified on Friday that Crawford had been taken into custody by law enforcement on suspicion that he was driving under the influence.
“The (school) district is conducting its own related internal investigation into the matter,” Davis said Tuesday in an email to The Bee. “Since that process is ongoing, the district may not comment further at this time.”
The Appeal-Democrat newspaper, which first reported news of Crawford’s arrest on Friday, contacted Davis on that same day.
“We know Mr. Crawford is still recovering from a severe accident that occurred a couple of months ago and we keep him in our prayers,” Davis said on Friday in an email to the Appeal-Democrat.
Officers at the scene of Friday’s incident reported that Crawford also said he was willing to take a breathalyzer test, but he instead sucked on the device’s tube instead of blowing his breath into it, Barber said.
Crawford then tried to run from the officers, who grabbed and handcuffed him before he was taken to a hospital to obtain a blood test, according to the Police Department. Barber said the officers took Crawford to the hospital before he was booked at the county jail.
The day before his arrest, Crawford announced his intent to run for the Yuba County Board of Supervisors District 2 seat in the March 5 primary election, the Appeal-Democrat reported.
