Cherokee Schools Spokesman Has Been Arrested Twice Before for DUI
The arrests came in 1998 and 2003, the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office says.
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The Dec. 17 DUI arrest of Cherokee County School District spokesman Mike McGowan wasn't his first.
Or his second.
It was his third, Cherokee County Sheriff's Office spokesman Lt. Jay Baker said Friday.
"He was arrested in 1998 and in 2003," Baker said. "He came to our jail charged with driving under the influence."
Baker didn't have details of the 1998 DUI arrest, just the latter two.
On Nov. 22, 2003, Jeffrey White was assisting another deputy on an early morning traffic stop along Interstate 575 just north of Little River Bridge. A white Jeep Cherokee driven by McGowan passed the sheriff's cruisers at a high rate of speed. White caught up with McGowan just south of Sixes Road and smelled "an odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person," according to an incident report. McGowan told White that he had three drinks and consented to field sobriety tests, which he failed. He was arrested and booked into the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center.
In the latest case, McGowan was arrested Dec. 17 on Little Refuge Road. Deputy Brad Gibbs found six Michelob Ultra bottle caps in his front right pocket. McGowan told the deputy that he had just come from Sheriff Roger Garrison's house and was wearing his pants.
"That was completely inaccurate," Baker said of McGowan's claim that he was at the sherrif's home Dec. 17.
McGowan did spend the night at Garrison's home Dec. 15, the night icy conditions paralyzed much of the county and forced people to abandon their cars on the sides of roads. Garrison lent McGowan a pair of pants the next morning, Baker said.
The sheriff was unavailable for comment Friday, but Baker said he knows that Garrison "is disappointed."
McGowan met with Cherokee School Superintendent Frank Petruzielo on Friday to discuss the status of his job. He requested an extended leave without pay, according to a statement the district released Friday afternoon.
"Any questions of a personnel nature which School Board Members may have in this regard can be addressed during an Executive Session following the January 20, 2011 School Board meeting," Petruzielo wrote in the letter.
McGowan pulled into the driveway of his Thorntree Lane home just after 4 p.m. Friday.
"The one thing that I wanted to make clear is that I was not at the sheriff's residence that evening," he said. "There's some confusion about that apparently."
He acknowledged that he has been charged with three DUIs but declined to comment about the most recent infraction on the advice of his attorney.
Asked what he would say to Cherokee students, McGowan said, "I'll send you a statement."
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Cherokee County School District Central Office Complex
111 Academy St, Canton, GA -
Cherokee County Public Safety Building
150 Chattin Dr, Canton, GA
David
10:12 pm on Friday, January 7, 2011
This man should be terminated immediately. He should be held to the same standard that the students are held to. Guilty until proven innocent. Not a student in the school system would be given 3 chances at anything. Heck, if a student is arrested, guilty or not, they are suspended from all extra-curricular activities. Arrested a second time, again, guilty or not, they get expelled from school. Take this opportunity to teach these young people that nobody is above the law and get rid of this trash.
Gary Parkes
1:08 am on Saturday, January 8, 2011
While a DUI is a serious matter, I believe this is a personal matter for Mr. McGowan to deal with and does not impact his ability to do his job. He has done an excellent job for the CCSD and our students and this incident does not have anything to do with his job.
No one has claimed he is above the law and I am sure there will be consequences as a result of this incident. Not that Mr. McGowan's personal life needs to be a lesson to students but if you think it should be, the students can learn just as well from the consequences he receives and would not benefit or learn more as a result if he was to be terminated.
Joshua Brackett
4:26 pm on Sunday, January 9, 2011
Um, having no better judgement than to get 3 DUIs while working in this capacity TOTALLY has a MAJOR impact on his job!!! Are you out of you mind???? The inability to recognize this by he and yourself warrants both of you to be examined!!!
Scott Johnson
10:23 am on Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Mr. Parkes, think about what you just wrote. One DUI is a mistake. Two is a pattern; three is indicative of a serious character flaw. Alcohol problems of that severity impact everything, work included. I don't think most folks want to worry about their school spokesman being either drunk or hung over while conducting business; I received a phone call from Mr. McGowan one evening a year or two ago, concerning school board business, during which I got the distinct impression that he was impaired.
Even if we accepted your argument that it doesn't affect his job, he's subject to the same rules and regulations that all teachers, administrators, and staff members abide by. No teacher would still be working with students after three DUIs, and McGowan should be terminated for precisely the same reasons. I would suggest he seek more appropriate employment, perhaps as manager of a laundromat.
R. Stroz
1:46 am on Saturday, January 8, 2011
I would strongly suggest that everyone read the Cherokee County School Board Code of Conduct. The code of conduct is not limited to "on the job" behavior.
Mr. McGowan's employment should be terminated. Dr. P's failure to file prior reports of Mr. McGowan's indiscretions may be cause for his termination as well. The Code of Conduct is clear.
Here's a final thought to consider, if someone is caught three times for DUI, do you think he has driven in that condition more than three times? Drunk driving shows a persons complete and total disregard for lives of others.
Alesa Sisson
2:54 pm on Saturday, January 8, 2011
If Mr. McGown cared about my son't education as much as he cared about his extra marital affairs and his drinking, maybe my son would would still be in public school- along with hundreds of families who have also chosen to withdraw. Mr. McGown, or Dr. P for that matter, do not return parent calls or care to discuss poor educational choices within the school system. It's a great thing that his wife divorced him and has moved on, so should this county. Mr. McGown obviously has some issues to work through on his OWN time, not ours !