Cops: ACLU director faces DWI charge

The executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union is due in court Thursday to answer charges that he drove drunk in the Hamptons earlier this summer, according to East Hampton village police.

Charges against Anthony D. Romero, 46, include a misdemeanor charge of driving while intoxicated in connection with the June 26 incident.

An arrest report says that at about 1 a.m. Romero was swerving on Pantigo Road near Egypt Lane and impeding traffic by traveling only 10 miles per hour on a roadway where the speed limit is 30 miles per hour.

When Officer Sean Christian stopped Romero, he was unsteady on his feet, his breath smelled of alcohol, his eyes were bloodshot, his speech slurred and he had to use his blue Mini Cooper to keep his balance, the report said.

Romero refused to take any sobriety tests. He was charged with violations that include refusal to take a breath test, driving too slowly, driving on the shoulder and failure to use the designated lane, according to the report.

In a statement issued through the ACLU, Romero's personal attorney Edward Burke Jr. said his client pleaded not guilty at arraignment in East Hampton Town Court.

In his own statement, Romero said: "I very much regret that this incident occurred, and look forward to resolving the matter with the authorities."

Romero has been the executive director of the ACLU since 2001. This is his first arrest on a drunken driving charge, according to police and court records.