A Drunk Driving Arrest turned out to be the fourth DUI charge in less than two weeks for a Texas man.

Shortly before 8:30 a.m., on Sunday, July 13, 2008, a trooper with the Nebraska State Patrol Headquarters Troop-Lincoln stopped a white 1982 Chevy Blazer for speeding on County Road 20 in Unadilla, in Otoe County, Nebraska. The driver of the vehicle, 44-year-old Robert Hood of Caldwell, Texas was found to be intoxicated.

A check of records revealed the Nebraska stop was Hood’s fourth DUI charge since July 4, 2008. Hood was arrested for Driving Under the Influence on Thursday, July 4, 2008, in Mitchell, South Dakota, and again on Monday, July 7 in Deadwood, South Dakota. He was also arrested on Tuesday, July 8, 2008, on Interstate 25 in Platte County, Wyoming. Hood was lodged in the Otoe County Jail on charges of Driving under the Influence (DUI) and Speeding.

Hood was first arrested July 4 in Mitchell, S.D., when Officer Brandon Braun found him passed out in his car with a blood-alcohol content of 0.26 percent. According to a court affidavit, Hood smelled strongly of alcohol. Hood was released on $500 bail, 10 percent of the $5,000 bail. It was Hood's first DUI offense in South Dakota, a Davison County Circuit Court clerk said. He is scheduled to appear before a judge on July 24.

Hood's second DUI arrest occurred on July 7 in Deadwood, S.D., where police Chief Kelly Fuller said Hood's blood-alcohol content at the time of arrest was 0.18 percent. Hood has not yet been sentenced.

On July 8, Hood was again arrested on suspicion of drunken driving in Platte County, Wyo. He was charged with DUI with a blood-alcohol content of 0.16 percent, a Platte County circuit court official said. He was sentenced and received six months unsupervised probation, credit for two days he spent in jail and paid a $580 fine.

The fourth arrest comes on the heels of a weekend in which four people lost their lives in traffic crashes on Nebraska roads. Two of the individuals killed died in single vehicle rollover crashes in which seat belts were not used. Alcohol use is being investigated as a possibility in both crashes. Alcohol use is also suspected in a motorcycle crash on Saturday, July 12, 2008 in Dodge County in which a 52-year-old Snyder man was killed.

“The summer months are traditionally a time when we see an increase in fatalities,” said Colonel Bryan Tuma, Superintendent of the Nebraska State Patrol. “We need the help of all motorists in preventing the needless loss of life on our roadways. Never drive impaired and always wear your seat belt.”

Fred Zwonechek, Nebraska Office of Highway Safety Administrator said, “We are reaching Nebraska’s peak periods for traffic fatalities and it is critically important motorists not become complacent. Buckling your seat belt provides you with the best opportunity to save your life in a crash.”

Statistics from the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety show wearing a seat belt increases your odds of surviving a crash by up to 50%.