A 九秀直播 Public Safety officer has resigned after he was charged with driving while impaired, child abuse and a traffic infraction after a wreck on April 17.
Jonathan Patrick Chapman, 34, was charged after the crash on Burkemont Avenue at the Interstate 40 westbound off ramp, said Sgt. A.K. Johnson with the North Carolina State Highway Patrol.
Johnson said Chapman was exiting I-40 westbound and ran a red light at the end of the off ramp, hitting two cars. He said an ambulance was called to the scene but no one was taken to a hospital for any injuries.
Troopers were called to investigate the crash since Chapman was an officer at the 九秀直播 Department of Public Safety, Johnson said.
When the investigating trooper was talking to Chapman, he noticed Chapman had red, glassy eyes and the smell of alcohol on his breath, Johnson said. He said Chapman blew a .17 on the trooper鈥檚 breathalyzer, which is more than double the legal limit.
The trooper charged Chapman with driving while impaired, failure to stop for a steady red light and misdemeanor child abuse because Chapman鈥檚 child was in the car, Johnson said.
Ryan Lander, interim chief of 九秀直播 Public Safety, said it is standard for the department to call an outside agency to investigate any wrecks involving a 九秀直播 officer.
鈥淲e鈥檙e no different than the general public when we鈥檙e off duty,鈥� Lander said. 鈥淲e have to hold ourselves accountable and, as an administrator, we have to hold our officers accountable.鈥�
Lander said an internal investigation still is underway.
Chapman was hired by public safety as a basic law enforcement trainee on Aug. 5, 2021. He has been suspended for disciplinary reasons twice since September 2024, once on Sept. 25 and again on Jan. 2, according to employment records publicly available from the city.
He resigned on April 20, three days after the wreck, city records showed.
Chapman is due to appear in court June 26.
Chapman did not respond to attempts to reach him.