Habitual Drunk Driver Gets 10 Years for 8th DUI

Published on May 04, 2017

Albaro Bustillos

GREELEY, Colo. (Weld County D.A.) – There are those who learn from their mistakes and become more productive citizens. And then there are others, like 53-year-old Albaro Bustillos, of Hudson, who continue to repeat mistakes of the past.

Bustillos was sentenced today to a decade behind bars after a jury found him guilty in March of his eighth DUI. He picked up his first drunk driving charge in 1994. He has since been convicted of similar charges over the past two decades in Westminster, Commerce City, Brighton and other parts of Weld County.

“It’s clear the defendant can’t stop drinking and driving,” said Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke. “He’s been to treatment, probation, even extended periods in jail. Nothing has worked. Prison is the only option at this point to keep the public safe.”

According to the latest affidavit, an officer found him parked in a traffic lane on Weld County Road 79 in Hudson in the early morning hours of March 12, 2016. He was sitting in the driver’s seat with his head down and later claimed he got lost while trying to find a party.

Bustillos told the officer he only had two beers prior to driving, but tests proved he was well above the legal limit with at .227 BAC. Out of his eight DUI convictions, this marks his fourth conviction with a blood-alcohol level of 0.2 or higher.

“Not only is a .227 BAC past the point of drunk, it’s getting very close to the point of death,” DA Rourke said. “If he’s not willing to put community safety first, then we’ll do it for him. He should never be behind the wheel of a car again.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control, an average drunk driver has driven drunk more than 80 times before their first arrest.

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