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The city said Freels’ conduct was not appropriate for a public employee or violated the law, and he also had his license suspended, missed one of his shifts and called into dispatch to make a false claim of sick leave, according to disciplinary records in his personnel file obtained using Ohio’s public records laws.
The city discharged Freels on March 19. The records indicate Freels pleaded not guilty to the administrative charges on March 13.
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On Feb. 24, police spotted Freels standing next to a white pickup truck he had reportedly crashed into a utility pole in the 1900 block of Bartley Road near the Northridge Estates, according to a report.
Freels, who was unsteady on his feet and had slurred speech, according to the incident report, refused to take a field sobriety test or breath test for alcohol.
Police released Freels to his wife at the scene. But about 90 minutes later, Butler Township police were called to the Steak N Shake on Miller Lane about a stolen vehicle.
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Freels’ sister told police she left her brother in her car as she picked up food, but he drove off with her vehicle, a report states.
Freels was charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, failure to control and OVI.
Late last month, Freels pleaded guilty to a second OVI offense within 10 years, court records show, and he was sentenced to two years probation and a five-year license suspension.
The failure to control and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle charges were dismissed at the request of the prosecutor, court records show.
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Freels, who was hired in 2007, previously was terminated in April 2015 but rehired in August 2015 after a civil service appeal.
In 2014, Freels pleaded guilty to operating a vehicle while intoxicated in Vandalia Municipal Court, court records show.
The arrest took place in late November 2013. Freels’ driver’s license was suspended from November 2013 to May 2014, with special conditions, the records show.
In July 2015, he pleaded guilty to an amended charge of operating a vehicle while intoxicated in Montgomery County municipal court, records show.
His license was suspended for six months, with work privileges. He served 26 days in jail, the records show.
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