BG man arrested after reportedly found asleep behind wheel on East Wooster Street

A Bowling Green man was arrested for OVI and illegal conveyance of a drug into a detention facility after he reportedly fell asleep behind the wheel on East Wooster Street.

William Garner, 33, was traveling westbound Monday, at 9:34 p.m., when an officer reportedly noticed his SUV cross the centerline three times. According to the police report, Garner braked multiple times and then accelerated to catch up with the vehicle in front of him.

The SUV then came to a complete stop at the pedestrian crosswalk in front of 820 E. Wooster St. There were no pedestrians at the crosswalk at the time the SUV stopped. The SUV sat there for several seconds before the officer activated overhead lights, and found Garner asleep at the wheel.

When the officer tapped on the window, Garner woke up and opened his door.

Garner reportedly said he stopped because the vehicle in front of him was stopped, as he pointed to a vehicle parked in Founder’s Hall driveway.

The officer asked Garner how much alcohol he had to drink, and he said he hadn’t had any alcohol but was tired because he had been out of town all day.

According to the police report, Garner then looked down at his lap and began brushing off a white powder that was on his shorts. The officer then asked if he had used any drugs, but Garner said it was cigarette ashes on his lap.

Garner was asked to perform a field sobriety test. The officer noted he stepped off the line during the instructions, was swaying throughout the test, and had trouble counting. During a second test, one of BGSU’s food delivery robots approached Garner and stopped right in front of him, so Garner had to start over.

Garner gave another officer permission to move his vehicle out of the roadway and park it in a BGSU lot, so it wasn’t blocking traffic.

While an officer was attempting to lock Garner’s vehicle and roll up the windows, he observed a small cap to a beverage bottle, reportedly containing a cotton ball and white residue, resting on the center console of the vehicle in plain sight.

At the police station, Garner performed a breath test, which recorded no alcohol. A urine sample was taken, then mailed for testing. Based on a drug recognition evaluation, Garner was charged with OVI, crossing marked lanes, and driving at a slow speed impeding traffic.

While being booked at Wood County Jail, a corrections deputy reportedly discovered inside Garner’s wallet a small plastic baggie, with what was believed to be heroin, weighing .99 grams.

A charge for illegal conveyance of drugs into a detention facility was added to Garner’s charges.