A Durango trolley driver who drove drunk with passengers on board and caused a minor crash on Main Avenue has pleaded guilty to driving while ability impaired.
Michael Corlies, 64, of Bayfield, must complete 24 hours of public service, attend a victim-impact panel, pay $107 restitution, and submit to an alcohol evaluation and comply with recommended treatment.
He faces 15 days in jail if he fails to complete any of the terms and conditions outlined in his plea agreement, which he signed Tuesday in La Plata County Court.
Corlies was driving a city trolley about 8:30 a.m. Dec. 5 when he struck a Cisco truck parked in the 1100 block of Main Avenue with his side mirror.
Corlies continued driving north on Main Avenue to the Iron Horse Inn, a distance of about three miles, where the mirror fell off, according to police.
Corlies notified transit dispatchers of the problem, and the transit department provided Corlies with a different vehicle to continue his route.
Transit officials then reviewed the on-board video footage from the damaged trolley, which showed Corlies hit another vehicle without stopping – a violation of the law and transit department protocol, Amber Blake, former director of transportation, said in a previous interview with the Herald.
It gave city officials reasonable suspicion to perform a drug and alcohol test, she said.
City officials called him in about 11:20 a.m. Police were notified about noon, and a blood-alcohol test was performed about 1 p.m., said District Attorney Christian Champagne.
He was shown to have a 0.14 blood-alcohol level – almost twice the 0.08 driving limit – more than four hours after the crash.
“The reason for the delay is the city of Durango appears to have been conducting its own internal investigation prior to contacting the police,” Champagne said. “Once the police were contacted about noon, the blood-alcohol content was given about one hour later.”
Corlies was charged with drunken driving and failing to report an accident.
“Obviously, it’s deeply concerning to us that he was driving a public conveyance,” Champagne said. “It’s definitely something that’s not acceptable behavior.”
Corlies was hired as a part-time driver Nov. 16, 2011, and became full time April 28, 2013. He was fired the same day as the incident, in accordance with the transportation department’s drug and alcohol policy, Blake said.
Corlies declined to comment when reached Thursday by phone.
“I have nothing to say at this time,” he said.
shane@ durangoherald.com
