William R. Knipp, 25, of 121 Napoleon Lane, Franklin Furnace, was charged with possession of drugs, I or II substance, possession of drugs, III, IV, or V substance, driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, and tampering with evidence.
Portsmouth police officers had been advised by dispatch to be on the lookout for a gray car that had been reported to be weaving in and out of traffic, nearly striking several vehicles.
Portsmouth police officer Shane Hatfield said he spotted the vehicle, westbound on 12th Street and Offnere Street, and followed the car.
Hatfield said the driver made an improper right turn onto Chillicothe Street. Officers signaled for Knipp to pull off the road, and he pulled off the road onto a parking lot at 1605 Chillicothe St.
Police say Knipp appeared very sleepy and kept going through the same four documents to try to find his operators license, which he did not have.
When Knipp exited the vehicle, he told officers he only had a knife in his pocket, and he had no drugs. He was put through several sobriety tests, and Hatfield said he appeared uneasy on his feet.
Upon receiving permission to search Knipp, police found a pill bottle with the label torn off. In the bottle, police found six pills later identified by Southern Ohio Medical Center as Xanax pills.
Knipp was placed under arrest for operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.
Officers found a pill bottle with an oxycodone 30-milligram tablet in the back seat of the cruiser used to transport him.
Knipp was asked to submit a urine sample to detect drugs, which he said he would do, but officers said he later refused.
Police say Knipp continued to be lethargic and kept falling asleep through such procedures as fingerprinting.
Officers thought his hands felt cold and clammy and called an EMT to determine if he needed to be transported to a hospital.
Officers said Knipp told EMTs he had taken two Percocet five milligram tablets, and he had taken three Percocet five-milligram tablets, and had taken two Xanax bars, before his encounter with police. Knipp also didn't know the date.
Although EMTs advised him to do so, he refused to go to the hospital, according to reports.
He was transported to Scioto County Jail.
FRANK LEWIS can be reached at (740) 353-3101, ext. 232.
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