- The Washington Times - Friday, April 21, 2023

A Texas man has been sentenced to life in prison by a jury after his ninth conviction for driving while intoxicated.

Christopher Stanford, 50, elected to have a jury decide his fate after he pleaded guilty Monday to driving while intoxicated. The jury in Parker County, Texas, decided on life in prison. 

Stanford’s Aug. 15, 2022 arrest was his first in the county. His previous eight DWI charges were in four other Texas counties, all part of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area. He has four previous prison sentences for driving while intoxicated.

Stanford was treated as a habitual offender, said Parker County District Attorney Jeff Swain.

“His record showed that he was going to continue endangering communities throughout the metroplex unless he was locked up,” he said. 

In his latest drunken-driving incident, Stanford ran his Lincoln MKC through a red light, rear-ending a Kia Sorento. After the crash, Stanford ran, saying that he had to go or otherwise he would be in trouble.

The occupants of the Sorento — a married couple and their daughter — suffered minor injuries.

Stanford proceeded to run, scaling a barbed wire fence, ripping his clothing and suffering cuts in the process. About 30 minutes after the crash, officers found Stanford hiding in vegetation.

Stanford had trouble standing up and was belligerent with officers, including headbutting an emergency response worker that tried to help him, prosecutors said. 

Stanford refused a roadside sobriety test but agreed to give a blood sample for testing after he was arrested. The blood test showed an alcohol concentration of 0.267, more than three times the legal limit for driving in Texas of 0.08.

Stanford testified at trial that he was “very unlucky.”

“I thought his testimony showed a lack of personal insight that was manifested in his lack of concern for others on our roads. In our case, he was not just intoxicated, he was flat-out drunk,” Assistant District Attorney Skyler Schoolfield said. 

The jury took only 90 minutes to decide Stanford needed to be locked up for life on Tuesday.

Stanford will be eligible for parole once his time served plus good time credit equals to 15 years. Releasing Stanford from prison will be at the discretion of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.

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