On Saturday, March 11th, 2023, at 2:03 am, an off-duty Turlock Police canine handler near the intersection of W Canal Dr and N First St, Turlock, was driving home with his canine in his marked patrol vehicle when he came across a driver passed out behind the wheel just feet away from railroad tracks.

The officer got out with the driver, noticed he was holding an open alcohol container, and requested that on-duty officers respond.

On-duty officers arrived and blocked the man’s vehicle with their patrol vehicles to prevent him from driving onto the railroad tracks if his foot were to slip off the brake. They then woke the man up and identified him as Oliver Thompson, 25, of Turlock.

Thompson was asked to participate in standardized field sobriety tests and to blow into a preliminary alcohol screening device, however, he refused.

Based on the totality of the circumstances, officers determined that Thompson was under the influence of alcohol.

Thompson was arrested and refused to provide a chemical sample as required by California’s implied consent law, so he was transported to a local hospital where a blood sample was forcefully drawn after a search warrant was obtained.

Afterward, Thompson was booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center on the charge of driving under the influence of alcohol. Additionally, he was issued an administrative driver’s license suspension order by the California Department of Motor Vehicles and his vehicle was impounded.