Hillsborough detention deputy charged with DUI

A Hillsborough County detention deputy was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence, the Sheriff’s Office announced Thursday.

Deputy Nathan Weaver, 42, was arrested by Clearwater police early Thursday morning after officers clocked him going 61 mph in a 45-mph zone at Chestnut Street and Oak Avenue just before 2:30 a.m. He also was weaving in and out of his lane, an arrest report states.

Officers noted that Weaver smelled of alcohol, had bloodshot, watery eyes and that his speech was slurred. He told officers he was coming from the Shephard’s beach bar on Clearwater Beach and that he had five or six “Crown and Cokes,” the arrest report states.

The report states that Weaver did poorly on field sobriety tests and that a test showed his blood-alcohol count was 0.094, which is more than the 0.08 amount at which Florida law presumes impairment.

Weaver, of Riverview, was assigned to the Department of Detention Services. He has been suspended without pay pending an internal investigation, the Sheriff’s Office said.

“We hold our employees to the same standard that we expect from the public,” Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a statement. “Driving under the influence is never an option, and this deputy’s poor decision is a great disappointment.”

Times Staff Writer Chris Tisch contributed to this report.