An Oxford Oaks man will lose his driver’s license as a result of a drunk driving arrest earlier this year at the Waterfront Inn at Lake Sumter Landing.
Edward Charles Tomlinson, 73, pleaded no contest last week in Sumter County Court to a charge of driving under the influence. He will lose his license for six months, has been placed on probation for one year and has been ordered to perform 50 hours of community service.
A woman had backed out of a parking spot at about 10 p.m. June 28 and was preparing to leave the parking lot when her vehicle was struck in the side by a white 2019 Ford Explorer driven by Tomlinson, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. The woman detected “a strong odor of alcohol” coming from Tomlinson’s breath and suspected he may have been drinking.
When deputies arrived on the scene, they found that the Amsterdam, N.Y. native had “glassy and bloodshot eyes” and was “having difficulty maintaining his balance,” the report said. He said he was “not sure” what had happened.
Tomlinson struggled through field sobriety exercises. He initially refused to provide a breath sample and when he indicated he would provide the sample, he “did not comply with the instructions” and an adequate sample was not collected.
