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Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Local Surgeon Faces Third DWI Charge
By T.J. Wilham
Journal Staff Writer
An Albuquerque orthopedic surgeon facing a third DWI charge is scheduled to go on trial next week.
Claude Gelinas, 45, was arrested in May after police pulled over his Porsche because it was swerving on Interstate 25 in north Albuquerque near San Mateo, according to police reports.
His blood alcohol concentration was .18 percent, more than twice the state's presumed level of intoxication, according to police reports, which means the charge is aggravated DWI.
The case is scheduled to go to trial in Metropolitan Court on Nov. 2.
Gelinas' attorney, Billy Blackburn, could not be reached for comment Monday.
This isn't Gelinas' first DWI charge. Records show he had convictions in 1985 and 2002.
Lynn Hart, executive director of the New Mexico Medical Board, told the Journal the board investigates any arrest. She also said physicians are required to report their arrests to the board within 45 days.
She would not say whether Gelinas reported his May arrest or if the board had opened an investigation.
"We will start an investigation if we find out about an arrest, no matter what the source is," she said.
She did say there would be a record if there was action taken on an investigation.
Gelinas, who received his medical license in 1997, had a clean record, she said.
Hart said for DWI cases the board tries to get the physician to go through therapy.
"You want that practitioner to seek help and safely practice," she said. "The goal is for them to get help, remain sober and serve the public safely. Physicians are extremely important."
In 2002, police arrested Gelinas after they saw his Porsche pull into a handicap parking spot at a high rate of speed. According to police reports, when officers approached Gelinas he showed signs of intoxication and no signs he was disabled.
Gelinas failed a series of field sobriety tests and refused to give a breath sample to police, reports state.
While he was being arrested he told the officers, "You better hope you never need my services," police reports state.
Gelinas was found guilty and received a 90-day suspended jail sentence, 48 hours of community service and a $248 fine.
Gelinas was 21 years old when he was arrested on his first DWI charge in 1985. According to records at the DWI Resource Center, his blood alcohol concentration was .15 percent.
He was found guilty and was ordered to pay a $100 fine, according to court records.
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