Mora County man charged with eighth DWI
A Guadalupita man has been charged with DWI for the eighth time following a traffic stop last week.
Shawn Romero, 45, was arrested Aug. 21 and charged with his eighth or subsequent DWI, a second-degree felony. Romero was also charged with having an improper plate or registration number, and driving with a revoked license, both misdemeanors.
New Mexico State Police stopped a vehicle driven by Romero around 9 p.m. along NM Highway 518, in Mora, because the license plate on the vehicle was not registered. According to a criminal complaint filed in Mora Magistrate Court, an officer could smell alcohol inside the vehicle, and when the officer asked for Romero’s driver’s license, he told the officer he did not have one, and instead handed the officer a New Mexico identification card. Police later learned that Romero’s license had been revoked.
Romero was asked to exit the vehicle, and according to police, an officer could smell a “heavy odor” of alcohol on Romero’s breath. The officer gave Romero several roadside sobriety tests, and according to the criminal complaint, Romero failed those tests.
Police arrested Romero and booked him into the San Miguel County Detention Center. Results of a breath test indicated Romero’s blood alcohol concentration to be .13; the legal limit is .08.
At an Aug. 22 hearing, Romero’s bond was set at $5,000, cash or surety. In an order setting conditions of release, the court cites Romero’s long criminal history as the reason for the high bond.
Romero’s criminal history dates back to 1993, and he was found guilty of his first DWI in 2009 in Bernalillo Metropolitan Court. Romero also has convictions for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated stalking and in 2012, he pleaded no contest to violation of a restraining order.
No further court dates had been scheduled as of this writing, and Romero remained booked into the San Miguel County Detention Center.
