By Jon Johnson
SAFFORD – Is it still chivalrous if it is enabling?
A Safford man was arrested for DUI and possession of a narcotic drug after being pulled over while allegedly delivering heroin to his girlfriend.
According to a Safford Police report, Travis Ramsey was erratically driving a gold Chevrolet Malibu on 8th Street around 9:22 p.m. on April 28. The driving caught the eye of an officer, who initiated a traffic stop in the 900 block of Main Street.
Upon contact, Ramsey allegedly told the officer he was actually going to the house he stopped in front to meet a friend. However, while speaking with Ramsey the officer noted several clues of possible drug impairment.
Ramsey then allegedly agreed to a search of his person and car, and while nothing illegal was found on him, a tin with a small quantity of what appeared to be heroin was located in a tin box on the passenger seat. The substance later tested positive for heroin.
Ramsey told the officer he was delivering the heroin to his girlfriend at her behest, according to the report. He said she called and asked for him to bring over a “dub” of heroin for her to use.
Ramsey himself said the last time he used heroin was the previous day along with methamphetamine. However, in Arizona, the prosecution doesn’t need to prove a driver is inebriated by a drug at the time of arrest for a DUI-drug charge, but merely that the drug or its metabolite is present in the driver’s body.
Ramsey agreed to a blood draw, according to the report, and a sample was taken by an Emergency Room staff member at Mt. Graham Regional Medical Center. The sample and the heroin was then packaged to be sent to the Arizona Department of Public Safety’s Lab in Tucson for testing.
Ramsey was then given a ride back to his friend’s residence and released pending charging from the Graham County Attorney’s Office.
