Sheriff’s Office Deputy Joseph Rafferty in Doylestown during a 2014 warrant sweep.
Credit: Tom Sofield/NewtownPANow.com
A former Bucks County sheriff’s deputy with a drinking problem was sentenced before a judge Thursday.
Joseph F. Rafferty III, 45, of Warwick, admitted to driving a county-owned sheriff’s office vehicle while intoxicated off-duty. He was sentenced by President Judge Jeffrey Finley to 40 days to six months in county lockup. Rafferty, who has years as a deputy and was well-liked in the law enforcement community, was ordered to perform community service, pay nearly $200 for repair work to the county patrol car that was damaged during an August 2016 incident in Newtown Township and pay a fine.
The Doylestown Intelligencer reported Finley gave the former lawman prison credit for 34 days he lived at a treatment facility in Florida. At a minimum, Rafferty could spend six days behind bars.
“He acted like a responsible man today and admitted to his conduct and saved his children the tragedy and trauma of coming into court. He has taken tremendous steps to rehabilitate himself and move forward,” Louis Busico, Rafferty’s attorney, told the newspaper.
According to court papers, Rafferty was driving intoxicated while in a county-owned 2007 Chevrolet Impala while off-duty on August 13. He was discovered pulled over standing outside the vehicle by Newtown Township police in the area of Stoopville Road and Hemlock Drive.
Police noted in court papers that the off-duty deputy walked over toward a police officer in an uneven manner. The officer said Rafferty’s words were slurred and delayed and that his eyes were glassy and glazed over.
“Investigation revealed that Mr. Rafferty had been driving erratically with his three minor children in the vehicle just prior to his contact with Newtown Township police,” the affidavit of probable cause stated.
A bottle of pineapple vodka was found on the front floorboard of the county car, police said.
“A 911 call received minutes earlier had reported that the 2007 Chevrolet Impala driven by Rafferty had been seen ‘swerving all over the roadway’ on Stoopville Road,” a statement from the district attorney’s office said.
Authorities said Rafferty told police that he was taking prescription medications for a back problem but his condition at the time was due to “the drinking.”
Officers at first drove Rafferty from the scene and the Impala was towed to a local shop, authorities said. No charges were filed at the time.
Several Newtown Township police officers were reprimand. NewtownPANow.com confirmed that Sgt. Stephen J. Meyers, Cpl. Shawn Pirog and officers Patrick Hardy and Shane VanDerMark were reprimanded for “procedural and policy deficiencies” in relation to their handling of the incident. None of the officer’s were relieved of their jobs, an official said last year.
Attorney Blake Jackman, who works with Busico, said in November that dashcam video of officers interactions with Rafferty is believed to existed but has not been released publicly.
Once news of the incident leaked publicly, Rafferty resigned from the sheriff’s office. His separation from the county became official in early October, a county spokesman said.
