A guilty plea and conviction of a DUI charge Wednesday in Weld County District Court marked the first felony DUI in the county under a new state law.
Juan Hernandez, 61, pleaded guilty to one count of driving while ability impaired with three or more prior convictions, a class four felony, according to a Weld County District Attorney’s Office media release.
It marked Hernandez’s 10th DUI conviction, according to the release.
Hernandez was pulled over on Aug. 24 in Fort Lupton and charged with driving while ability impaired.
A making a fourth DUI conviction a felony went into effect Aug. 5.
Prior to Wednesday’s conviction, Hernandez cumulatively has been sentenced to 12 years of DUI probation, most of which was supervised, and over 1,000 days in county jails.
“The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior,” said Deputy District Attorney Tamara Love in the release. ” His actions speak to two things: He is a risk to the community and a higher level of containment is necessary at this time.”
District Court Judge Timothy G. Kerns sentenced Hernandez to six years in community corrections, the maximum sentence under the stipulated guilty plea.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822, knicholson@denverpost.com or @kierannicholson
