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Bozeman woman arrested for alleged 6th DUI

Posted at 12:19 PM, Apr 30, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-30 16:38:44-04

BOZEMAN, Mont. – A Bozeman woman with a reported 20-year criminal history of drunk driving who allegedly almost drove head-on into another car on Monday was charged with 4th-or-subsequent DUI in Gallatin County Justice Court.

A check of 54-year-old Emma Jean Whiteman’s driving history showed she had five prior convictions for DUI in 1999, 2001, twice in 2006 and one in 2011.

Whiteman was arrested following a report of a drunk driver at approximately 7:54 p.m. on Monday headed eastbound on Frontage Road from Springhill Road.

The reporting party told dispatchers that the driver had been swerving and almost crashed head-on with another vehicle. A Bozeman Police officer saw Whiteman’s vehicle almost hit the median at the I-90 and N. 7th Ave. interchange and observed it drastically swerving.

When the officer stopped Whiteman, she had watery and bloodshot eyes and a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage came from the vehicle. Whiteman’s speech was reportedly slow and extremely slurred. She was unable to safely perform field sobriety tests and was unable to keep her balance due to her intoxication level. Whiteman refused to provide a voluntary blood sample, but after a search warrant was obtained, a sample was taken from her.

Whiteman’s bail was set at $7,500 and she is required to be monitored 24/7. Per court order, she cannot leave the state, consume alcohol, or go anywhere where alcohol is the primary product for sale. Whiteman’s next court appearance is set for May 17.