Beer Baron Pete Coors Cited Faces Drunk Driving Charges

In an ironic twist of fate, Pete Coors, the beer company executive, chief commercial pitcher and former Senate candidate, confirmed to the media that, back in May, he was cited for driving under the influence of alcohol. Coors was driving home from a friend's wedding celebration when he was cited.

In a prepared statement quote by The Associated Press, and republished by ABC News, Pete Coors said ""I made a mistake. I should have planned ahead for a ride. For years, I've advocated the responsible use of our company's products. That's still my message, and our company's message, and it's the right message. I am sorry that I didn't follow it myself."

The incident happened near the town of Golden, Colorado, just West of Denver late on the night of May 28th. Golden, Colorado has been the longtime hometown of Adolph Coors Co. The company now goes by the name Molson Coors Brewing Company, after the 2005 merger with the Canadian company, Molson Breweries. Pete Coors was the man responsible for that merger.

As CNN reports, "Coors was driving a 2004 Jaguar when he was pulled over by a Colorado State Patrol trooper just before midnight May 29, according to officials in the Jefferson County District Court clerk's office." After being pulled over, Coors was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, and was given a citation for failing to obey a traffic control device.

The Washington Post reports that "Coors rolled through a stop sign a block from his home and was stopped by the officer in his driveway, company spokeswoman Kabira Hatland said. She said his blood-alcohol content following a breath test was 0.088 percent, above the legal limit of 0.08 percent."

As a result of the infraction, Coors is now driving with a 60-day provisional license. Today, Coors will face a hearing in front of the motor vehicles department. As well, Coors will be facing an arraignment on July 20th.

The Mercury News reports that "Coors took over as president of the family company in 1987 and in 2000 was named chief executive of the brewer. The company has 8,500 employees and rang up $4 billion in sales in 2003. Adolph Coors merged with Molson to form the Molson Coors Brewing Co. in 2005." Coors attempted to gain a seat in the US Senate in the 2004 election. Coors won the GOP primaries to gain the nomination spot on the ballot, but was ultimately defeated by Democrat Ken Salazar.

To be clear that what he did was wrong, and that his actions were improper, Pete Coors said in his statement, which was republished by Reuters, "For years I've advocated the responsible use of our company's products. That's still my message and our company's message."

[Additional Sources: Associated Press, ABC News, CNN, Washington Post, Mercury News, Reuters]