Breath tests administered the night Tacoma City Councilman Ryan Mello was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving recorded blood-alcohol levels of 0.088 and 0.09, according to a Washington State Patrol report.
The report was released by state Department of Licensing on Tuesday in response to a request from The News Tribune.
A patrol spokesman previously said Mello’s blood-alcohol level exceeded the legal limit for drivers of 0.08 when he was pulled over early Jan. 20, but did not release the exact reading.
According to the report, the silver-colored 2012 Hyundai Sonata driven by Mello caught a state trooper’s attention when it made a series of lane changes on northbound Interstate 5 near the exit to Interstate 705.
The driver — after changing lanes to the right, left and right again — activated the car’s left blinker a fourth time without changing lanes. The trooper said he later saw the car cross the right-hand fog line twice on the curves of the exit ramp.
Mello acknowledged drinking, telling the trooper that he’d had a rum and Coke and a glass of wine, according to the report.
Kitsap County prosecutors have yet to make a charging decision; they are handling the case at the request of Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist because Lindquist and Mello are friends.
The day after his arrest, Mello told The News Tribune in a short email, “I made a mistake and I’m sorry.”
Mello said Tuesday that he had “no further comment at this time.”
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