Man appears in court after allegedly drunk driving, causing 3-car crash
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IDAHO FALLS – An Ammon man appeared in court recently after being accused of causing a three-car crash.
Cody Joseph Flores, 28, was charged with felony driving under the influence and misdemeanor consuming or possessing alcohol while driving on Nov. 23.
Idaho Falls Police were called to a three-vehicle DUI crash on Nov 22. Officers say when they arrived, they saw Flores in the driver’s seat of a gray Ford Focus.
Court records do not state if anyone was hurt in the crash.
Flores reportedly had a “strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person, which grew stronger as he spoke,” according to police reports.
Flores failed multiple sobriety tasks. After the first few, Flores reportedly told officers he would no longer comply with further tests.
Flores was detained so officers could get a breath sample, but Flores refused to provide one. He was then arrested on suspicion of DUI, and officers searched his car.
Officers reportedly found “an open container of Twisted Tea on the driver’s floor,” noted that it had been spilled, and “smelled strongly like an alcoholic beverage.”
An officer completed an involuntary blood draw warrant request, which was granted, and transported Flores to EIRMC to obtain a blood sample.
The officer also obtained a criminal history check on Flores, and found that he had been convicted of felony DUI in 2016 and 2020, making this his 3rd DUI offense within 10 years.
Flores pleaded not guilty on Nov. 23 consuming or possessing alcohol while driving, but he did not enter a plea to the DUI charge.
He was released to pre-trial services on Nov. 28, but court records show he violated his pre-trial release conditions on Dec 6, so Flores was again booked into the Bonneville County Jail where his bond was set to $10,000.
Court records do not state what the circumstances of the violations were.
If convicted, Flores could face up to 15 and a half years in prison.
Though Flores has been charged with these crimes, it does not necessarily mean he committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.
Flores is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on Jan 6, 2023.