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Crime & Safety

Dakota County Judge Guilty of DWI Gets Probation, Requests Retirement

The Dakota County judge guilty of DWI after registering a .28 blood-alcohol reading has asked the governor to grant him a medical disability retirement. He was sentenced to two years of probation.

Michael Sovis, the Dakota County judge who was pleaded guilty Wednesday to third-degree driving under the influence (DWI) in a Christmas Eve incident, has been sentenced to two years of probation, according to a Pioneer Press article by Emily Gurnon. Sovis also requested that Gov. Mark Dayton grant him a medical disability retirement.

From the article:

"He's incredibly remorseful," his attorney, David Ayers, said after Wednesday's hearing. "He was truly devastated by this entire incident, not only because of what he did, which he accepts full responsibility for, but because of the impact that it had on the individuals whose cars were hit, and the whole publicity surrounding this incident caused his friends and family a lot of pain."

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In the December incident, Sovis crashed his Lexus sport-utility vehicle into several parked cars along St. Clair Avenue before driving into a snowbank on the side of the road. 

Sovis had difficulty completing field sobriety tests administered by police at the scene, and at one point he needed the support of an officer to keep from falling. Sovis' blood-alcohol level registered at .28, more than three times the legal limit of .08.

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