{"id":411828,"date":"2026-09-27T05:44:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-27T05:44:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/411828\/"},"modified":"2026-09-27T05:44:11","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T05:44:11","slug":"florida-man-on-suspended-license-admits-to-rum-and-cocaine-before-dui","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/411828\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida man on suspended license admits to rum and cocaine before DUI"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!\n  <\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"speakable\">A 76-year-old <a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_us_article_main-content_article-body_6_9896397\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/us\/us-regions\/southeast\/florida\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Florida man<\/a> with a suspended license allegedly admitted during a traffic stop that he had been drinking rum \u2014 later telling deputies he had also recently used cocaine \u2014 just four months after a separate DUI arrest, authorities said.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"speakable\">Charles Ducking, 76, of Lake Wales, was pulled over after a sheriff&#8217;s deputy allegedly observed him swerving while driving along U.S. Highway 27 in Waverly, according to the Polk County Sheriff&#8217;s Office.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">The deputy detected the odor of alcohol and noticed that Ducking allegedly had slurred speech and watery eyes.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">When asked for his driver&#8217;s license, Ducking allegedly told the deputy it had been suspended.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\"><a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_us_article_main-content_article-body_6_9896398\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/us\/florida-man-arrested-dui-troopers-allegedly-find-34-open-alcohol-containers-vehicle\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">FLORIDA MAN ARRESTED FOR DUI AFTER TROOPERS ALLEGEDLY FIND 34 OPEN ALCOHOL CONTAINERS IN VEHICLE<\/a><\/p>\n<p> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/charles-ducking-florida-traffic-stop-rum-dui.jpg\" alt=\"Charles Ducking and Polk County background\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\"\/> <\/p>\n<p>Charles Ducking allegedly told a Polk County sheriff&#8217;s deputy that his license was suspended because of a DUI and admitted he had been drinking, authorities said. (Polk County Sheriff&#8217;s Office; TW Farlow\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">&#8220;Well, I can&#8217;t show you my driver&#8217;s license cuz it&#8217;s suspended cuz DUI. And I have been drinking a little bit right now,&#8221; he said, according to the sheriff&#8217;s office.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Officials said Ducking then showed the deputy a silver thermal cup containing a brown liquid.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">&#8220;This here is my rum I&#8217;m drinking,&#8221; he said, according to the sheriff&#8217;s office.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\"><a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_us_article_main-content_article-body_6_9896399\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/outkick-culture\/iowa-woman-prior-conviction-arrested-owi-lawn-mower\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">IOWA WOMAN WITH A PRIOR CONVICTION UNDER HER BELT ARRESTED FOR OWI ON LAWN MOWER<\/a><\/p>\n<p> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/charles-ducking-florida-dui-cocaine-arrest.jpg\" alt=\"Charles Ducking\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\"\/> <\/p>\n<p>Charles Ducking, 76, was arrested in Polk County, Florida, after deputies said he admitted to drinking rum and recently using cocaine during a traffic stop. (Polk County Sheriff&#8217;s Office)<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">A traffic deputy who responded to conduct a DUI investigation immediately recognized Ducking from a <a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_us_article_main-content_article-body_6_9896400\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/health\/mental-health\/drug-and-substance-abuse\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">previous DUI arrest<\/a> in May, the sheriff&#8217;s office said.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Officials said deputies also found a small orange container containing cocaine during a search of Ducking&#8217;s vehicle, which allegedly prompted Ducking to tell law enforcement he had &#8220;done a line&#8221; 10 minutes before he was pulled over.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">During field sobriety tests, Ducking displayed several indicators of impairment, and breath tests registered blood alcohol concentration readings of .094 and .095, above Florida&#8217;s .08 legal limit for drivers.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">&#8220;While we appreciate Charles Ducking&#8217;s cooperation during the traffic stop, the fact of the matter is, he is lucky he hasn&#8217;t yet killed someone or himself while driving drunk and high on drugs,&#8221; <a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_us_article_main-content_article-body_6_9896401\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/us\/grady-judd-puts-parents-notice-tiktok-teen-takeovers-gonna-come-lock\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd<\/a> said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">&#8220;He has tempted fate too many times, and he needs to make some serious changes in his life before it&#8217;s too late,&#8221; Judd continued. &#8220;I am proud of my deputies for their proactive patrolling to find impaired drivers and get them off the road.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\"><a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_us_article_main-content_article-body_6_9896402\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/outkick-sports\/tiger-woods-strikes-plea-deal-florida-rollover-crash-case\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">TIGER WOODS STRIKES PLEA DEAL IN FLORIDA ROLLOVER CRASH CASE, LOSES DRIVER&#8217;S LICENSE FOR 5 YEARS<\/a><\/p>\n<p> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/polk-county-sheriff-with-desantis.png\" alt=\"Sheriff Grady Judd beside Sheriff Wayne Ivey and Gov. Ron DeSantis\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\"\/> <\/p>\n<p>Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd (left) beside Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey (center) and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (right) at the Polk County Sheriff&#8217;s Office, on April 19, 2021. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda\/Orlando Sentinel\/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Ducking was arrested and booked into the Polk County Jail. He was charged with DUI \u2014 fourth or subsequent offense \u2014 possession of cocaine, driving with a suspended license and possession of drug paraphernalia.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">According to the sheriff&#8217;s office, Ducking was previously arrested for DUI in May. He was released from jail days later after posting bond on the condition that he not possess or consume alcohol.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/foxnews.onelink.me\/xLDS?pid=AppArticleLink&amp;af_dp=foxnewsaf%3A%2F%2F&amp;af_web_dp=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fapps-products\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP<\/a><\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Officials said Ducking has been arrested nine other times in Polk County dating back to 2001, including <a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_us_article_main-content_article-body_6_9896404\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/crime\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">multiple DUI arrests<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! A 76-year-old Florida man with a suspended license allegedly admitted&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":411829,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[53482,7106,148755,28,30,29,7107,628],"class_list":["post-411828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-cops","tag-crime-world","tag-drug-and-substance-abuse","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-police-and-law-enforcement","tag-us"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=411828"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411828\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/411829"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=411828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=411828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=411828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}