Longtime NBA referee Ron Garretson was arrested Wednesday for driving under the influence in his native Arizona after local officials claim he crashed into a tree near the Lake Havasu City Police Dept. Station, according to TMZ Sports.
Police responded to a civilian call about a man who had slammed an orange Jeep Wrangler into a nearby tree around 6:30 p.m., later finding the 60-year-old Garretson covered in blood.
Garretson initially claimed someone had hit his car, according to the official police report, but the officials at the scene didn't make sense of his claim, given the circumstances. Police said he reeked of alcohol.
The longtime NBA official admitted to having a beer and a shot at a nearby cigar bar before driving home en route to his native Gilbert.
Police also noted Garretson insisted that he's an NBA referee and one that is in great shape, despite his age.
Nevertheless, he failed field sobriety tests, blowing a .19 on the breathalyzer, more than twice the legal limit. Garretson was consequently arrested at the scene of the crash and brought to a nearby police station where he was booked for extreme DUI.
Garretson has officiated games in the league for 32 seasons, working more than 1,900 regular season games. The veteran did not make the final cut for the rotation of 12 officials to referee the NBA Finals, nor the first cut of 36 to officiate in the NBA playoffs.