By Liz Adkins
InkFreeNews

Kim Cates (InkFreeNews file photo)

PLYMOUTH — Kosciusko County Councilwoman Kim Cates will serve six days in jail and 359 days on probation after driving a vehicle while under the influence.

Cates, 60, 12361 N. Kings Drive, Syracuse, pled guilty to operating a vehicle while intoxicated – endangering a person, a class A misdemeanor. A second misdemeanor OWI charge was dismissed as part of a plea agreement.

Cates was sentenced in Marshall County Superior Court Two on Friday, Aug. 30.

Marshall Superior Court Two Judge Dean Colvin sentenced Cates to 365 days in the Kosciusko County Jail, with six days to be served in KCJ and 359 days on non-reporting probation. Cates’ probation will be under the jurisdiction of the Kosciusko County Probation Department.

Cates must report to KCJ on Sunday, Sept. 8.

The court also suspended Cates’ driving privileges for three months, with this term of suspension already being completed by Cates.

At sentencing, Defense Attorney Scott Reust called Cates for testimony. Cates said after she was arrested, she sought alcohol and substance abuse treatment at the Bowen Center on her own accord. During that time, she completed a four-part treatment program with a counselor.

Cates also said she’s had an ignition interlock device on her vehicle for almost six months.

“I made a really bad choice that night, and feel very remorseful and humiliated,” said Cates. “I wanted to make sure this did not happen again and I work really hard to be a law-abiding citizen.”

Cates offered apologies to both her family and the community for her actions.

Reust noted this was Cates’ first criminal offense and asked the court to consider measures she took on her own to better herself.

Whitley County Prosecutor DJ Sigler, who was assigned as a special prosecutor in Cates’ case, said Cates’ plea agreement was standard for a first-time offense. He told the court Whitley County usually advocates for some incarceration in OWI cases and noted Cates’ blood alcohol content was elevated.

“I just ask that you hold Kim no different from other similar cases,” said Sigler.

After the sentencing, Cates provided a statement to local media, which is as follows:

“After my arrest on March 9, I made a public statement, saying that I very much regretted what had happened and that I would defer to and respect the legal system set up to handle matters of this type. That process has now come to an end.

But nothing contained in the court’s sentence has been, is, or will be as difficult to endure as the dishonor I have brought upon myself and my family.

Throughout my life, particularly in my years as a councilperson and through my church and other community involvements, my sole focus as a wife, mother, councilperson and citizen has been to uphold the highest ethical and personal standards to earn the trust of those around me. I remain committed to those standards of personal and professional behavior and the higher standard to which I am held by virtue of the honor and privilege of being a councilperson. However, on March 9, I failed to live by those standards.

It is a profound understatement to say that I am disappointed in myself. But more importantly, I am pained to the core at having disappointed my family, my community, and the people for who I serve as a councilperson. Being a councilperson is a tremendous honor and privilege.

I offer no excuse for what I did. I have completed a substance abuse assessment and the recommended counseling and believe I have focused and learned from my poor decision. While my actions may be forgiven, they cannot be excused.

I offer only the profoundest apology possible to my community, those citizens who have trusted me to serve as a councilperson, and my colleagues on the county council, for actions such as those in which I engaged certainly show a complete lack of respect and compliance with the law and a failure to uphold and promote the public’s confidence as an elected official. For that, I owe the citizens of Kosciusko County an apology and a promise to re-earn your trust.”

Affidavit of Probable Cause

Around 11 p.m. March 9, a Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office deputy was traveling north on SR 13, just north of North Webster. According to court documents, the deputy noticed a vehicle in front of him weaving within its lane and frequently crossing the road’s fog line. The deputy followed the vehicle for five miles and witnessed the driver continuing to drive erratically.

The deputy pulled the vehicle over near the intersection of SR 13 and North Grandview Drive, Syracuse, and identified the driver as Cates, who was exhibiting physical signs of intoxication. Cates told the deputy she had been at an event in North Webster and had two beers.

Cates failed three sobriety tests and was unable to provide a sample through a portable breath test. She consented to a certified chemical test and was taken by law enforcement to a local hospital for a blood draw. Prior to the blood draw, Cates’ vehicle was moved to a nearby business and secured. She was then taken back to her residence by deputies after the blood draw.

Cates registered a 0.20 BAC.