Officer says Ferguson stress caused him to drive drunk
ST.
ANN, Mo. — A police officer, arrested for allegedly driving drunk, says stress from recent work duty during protests and unrest in nearby Ferguson drove him to drink.
Police say over the weekend St. Ann reserve officer Jacob Klaus was off duty when he ran off the road in north St. Louis County, drove through a fence and hit a house.
No one was hurt, but Tuesday Klaus turned in his badge.
"He put his head down and was very apologetic," St. Ann Police Chief Aaron Jimenez says of Klaus when he resigned. And then, the chief says, Klaus admitted to a drinking problem that started soon after he volunteered for duty in Ferguson — patrolling protests for hundreds of hours for free as a reserve officer hoping to earn a full time position.
"It's a wakeup call for us as a police chief and a command staff," said Jimenez. "I think that it is a serious problem and I don't think that he's the only officer that's still dealing with that tension or the effects that came out of Ferguson.
While Klaus's DWI case will go to county prosecutors, the Chief says if Klaus wants help dealing with the stress of his service the department will pay for it — for him and any of its officers who have worked protests.
"It's taken a toll on a lot of people. And it's not over with," says Jimenez. "…at the same time everybody's going to be held accountable."