DUI suspect with vodka bottle in child’s car seat allegedly flips off deputy

Jul 01, 2023

A drunk driving suspect with a bottle of vodka tucked in a child's car seat allegedly flipped off a Marion County sheriff's deputy.

Ronny Joe Swearingen, 28, of Summerfield, at about 1:30 a.m. Friday was honking the horn of his black GMC in the parking lot of a Wawa convenience store in Ocala when he attracted the attention of the deputy.

Swearingen got out of his pickup and began "stumbling around the parking lot" and propped himself up by using a vehicle parked at one of the gas pumps. When Swearingen spotted the deputy's patrol car, he started "yelling in his direction while raising both his hands in the air with his middle finger out," according to the arrest report.

Swearingen got into his vehicle and drove a short distance before he was stopped by the deputy. An empty container of Bud Light beer was spotted on the floor of the vehicle and there was "a cold bottle of vodka sitting in a child car seat in the backseat." A bottle of peach schnapps and two bottles of fruit juice were also found in the car seat.

Swearingen performed poorly in field sobriety exercises. He refused to provide a breath sample.

He was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence. He was booked at the Marion County Jail and released after posting $1,000 bond.