“We’ve placed him on administrative leave and an internal review of the incident is being conducted,” Springfield City Manager Bryan Heck told this news outlet.
Robinson previously was charged with OVI in 2019 and 2022. Both cases resulted in him pleading guilty to lesser charges.
In 2019, a Clark County Sheriff’s deputy pulled over a vehicle after it failed to stop at a traffic light at the intersection of North Street and North Fountain Avenue, according to a report in Clark County Municipal Court.
The deputy wrote that he recognized the driver as Robinson, an off-duty Springfield police officer. The deputy asked Robinson why he ran the red light, to which Robinson replied that “he thought the light was green when he drove through it,” the deputy wrote.
“I then asked Mr. Robinson if he had been drinking and he didn’t respond to my question,” the report said. “At this point, I could smell the faint odor of an intoxicating beverage about his person and I observed that his eyes were very glassy and he was unsteady on his feet swaying back and forth.”
The deputy said Robinson repeatedly ignored his requests to take a field sobriety or breathalyzer test and wouldn’t answer his questions.
“I took his no reply as a refusal,” the report says. “I then placed Mr. Robinson under arrest for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and or controlled substance.”
Robinson pleaded guilty to having physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, which is a lesser charge than an OVI.
In 2022, a Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper pulled Robinson over around 1:45 a.m. in the area of McCreight Avenue and East Limestone Street, according to court records.
The OSHP incident report said he had two passengers in the vehicle with him, “His speech was slurred, his eyes were glassy and bloodshot, and he had a strong odor of alcohol.” Robinson was asked by troopers if he was willing to perform a field sobriety test and he refused, the report says.
He was arrested without incident and charged with operating a vehicle while under the influence (OVI) and driving left of center. He pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of operating a vehicle in willful or wanton disregard of the safety of persons or property, court records show.
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