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WARREN -- A Warren man pleaded not guilty in Warren Municipal Court on Monday after police say he admitted to drinking and driving in a vehicle that contained a small child.
Justin Pugh, 34, was released on bond after a hearing before Judge Patty Leopardi Knepp. He is due back in court April 25.
Pugh was arrested by Warren police Sunday on charges of endangering children, liquor consumption in a motor vehicle and OVI after a traffic stop on Niles Road.
A Warren police report states officers were alerted to Pugh after a caller reported a suspected intoxicated driver whom they described as "all over the road and almost crashed" as they were entering city limits.
The caller stayed behind the driver relaying to dispatch the vehicle location and license plate information.
When police caught up to Pugh, who they said had "bloodshot and glossy eyes" at the intersection of Niles Road and South Street, officers saw the child asleep in a car seat in the back.
Police said Pugh's eyelids were drooping and his speech was slurred. He admitted to police he had been drinking, the police report states.
A plastic bag containing several unopened cans of beer was found on the passenger seat.
When officers had Pugh step out of the vehicle, they saw a nearly empty bottle of Pink Whitney vodka between the driver's seat and center console of the SUV, the report states.
Pugh initially agreed to take a field sobriety test but police said Pugh was "very unbalanced" and he was tripping over his feet as they escorted him to a nearby sidewalk. The officer said Pugh refused further tasks until a relative came to pick up his child.