RICHFIELD, Ohio — A Richfield police officer’s future with the department could be at risk following his arrest for a second OVI-related incident on Wednesday night.
According to Richfield Chief of Police Michael Swanson, the officer—31-year-old John Hetzel—was suspended after he was found asleep in a running vehicle and refused to take a sobriety test.
Richfield police responded to a local business Wednesday evening after receiving a report of a person sleeping in a vehicle. Officers found Hetzel, who was off-duty at the time, asleep behind the wheel of his vehicle. Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers were also requested and responded to the scene, Swanson said.
According to authorities, Hetzel refused to take a blood alcohol concentration test. Additionally, a loaded gun was found inside the vehicle.
Akron Municipal Court records state that Hetzel is charged with having firearms in a motor vehicle and carrying a concealed weapon, both fourth-degree felonies.
This is the second OVI-related incident that Hetzel has been involved in, the chief said.
In 2018, Hetzel pleaded not guilty to an impaired driving incident and was found guilty. As a result of that incident, Hetzel signed a “last chance agreement” with the department in addition to facing departmental discipline. A drug and alcohol-certified medical expert later approved him as “fit for duty,” Swanson said.
In addition to Hetzel’s court case, his employment with the department will be determined through an administrative process, according to the chief.
“Given that this is a legal and personnel matter, we will have no further comment,” Swanson said.
Hetzel has an arraignment scheduled for Sept. 1.
Download the News 5 Cleveland app now for more stories from us, plus alerts on major news, the latest weather forecast, traffic information and much more. Download now on your Apple device here, and your Android device here.
You can also catch News 5 Cleveland on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV NOW, Hulu Live and more. We're also on Amazon Alexa devices. Learn more about our streaming options here.
