UPDATE @ 6:22 p.m.: Montgomery County Sheriff's Deputy Abby Dudley has taken a personal leave and right now, the sheriff's office has taken no action against her, Sheriff's Maj. Jeremy Roy said.
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"Once the criminal case is disposed of, then we will start an internal investigation," he said in an interview Thursday afternoon.
One of the charges against Dudley is that her driver's license was expired.
"If the court decides they will not give her driving privileges, it will be up to the sheriff's office to reevaluate her status," the major said. Even if your license is revoked, he said, you can't be a deputy sheriff because in any moment you may need to get in a cruiser in case of an emergency.
"If you don't have a valid license, we can't have you here," he said.
"I think if she is stripped of her license, at that time the sheriff will decide if it will be a leave or transfer."
Roy said discipline for any misconduct in the sheriff's office can range from a letter of reprimand, suspension or termination depending on the facts of the internal investigation.
INITIAL REPORT
A Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputy has been charged with OVI and driving with an expired license following a traffic stop Tuesday morning in Beavercreek.
Abby Dudley, 37, was stopped by the Ohio State Highway Patrol around 12:25 a.m. as she was driving east on U.S. 35 exiting onto Interstate 675, court records show.
“The vehicle was observed exiting onto Interstate 675 and traveled outside its lane of travel multiple times,” court records showed.
Troopers said Dudley’s eyes were “bloodshot and glassy and her speech was slurred.”
Dudley told troopers she had a couple of beers at a friend’s house and troopers also found a “cold, open Bud Light aluminum bottle in the driver’s door pouch,” records read.
The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Dudley was a deputy with the department Thursday morning. News Center 7 has requested records surrounding Dudley’s employment with the sheriff’s office.
According to court records, Dudley also provided troopers with an expired Ohio driver’s license, which records show expired at the beginning of April.
While troopers were explaining the instructions for the walk and turn portion of the field sobriety test, Dudley asked “if she could refuse the rest of the sobriety test,” court records showed.
Dudley also told troopers she had a loaded gun in her purse. Troopers seized the weapon during the traffic stop.
Prior to the traffic stop, troopers encountered a silver pickup truck that was trying to prevent them from pulling over Dudley.
The driver of the pickup was later identified as a friend of Dudley’s and told troopers he thought she was impaired and was trying to stop them from stopping her, according to court records.
“He also stated he was trying to get me to stop him instead, so she would not get into trouble with her work,” a trooper wrote in court records.
Dudley pleaded not guilty to the charges on Wednesday in Fairborn Municipal Court.
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