9 hours Ago
Speeding through Coleman Boulevard and onto the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge earned a local motorist a traffic stop and subsequent DUI 2nd Offense charge during the early morning hours of Oct. 21.
A corresponding Mount Pleasant Police Department crime incident report states that the driver in question was in the process of cutting off another vehicle while traveling at 72 mph in a 55 mph zone. Upon initiating pursuit of the silver Honda Accord, police instructed Rodney Gadson, a 29-year-old Black male, to pull over in the area of Meeting Street and Cedar Street in Downtown Charleston. Responding officers were immediately met with a strong odor of marijuana and alcohol emanating from the subject's breath and proceeded gain his consent for a field sobriety test.
Gadson — who claimed to be driving home from his job at Saltwater Cowboys — was reportedly unable to maintain his balance during his walk and turn, which caused the suspect to respond in anger when a MPPD officer demonstrated the movement for him. Similarly, the accused party was unable to recite the alphabet despite being given a second chance to communicate his ABCs. Upon performing a car search following Gadson's arrest, police located marijuana in the center console, along with a firearm on the driver's side of the vehicle.
Also found was an empty prescription bottle of hydrocodone with the individual's name on it. Further investigation concluded that the suspect was federally prohibited from carrying a firearm — which wasn't loaded. Police also categorized Gadson as a "habitual offender" since March of 2023.
Police advised that the accused male refused to blow during a subsequent breathalyzer test before formally being charged with DUI 2nd Offense..
