Christopher F. Stanford seen in mugshots from (L-R): 2003, 2018, 2019, 2022 (via Parker County (Tex.) Sheriff's Office).
A Texas man who has been charged nine times with driving while intoxicated has been sentenced to life behind bars.
Christopher Faran Stanford, 50, was sentenced Tuesday by a jury in Parker County, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported. He had pleaded guilty to felony driving while intoxicated on Monday and chose to have a jury decide his fate, according to the newspaper.
Parker County District Attorney Jeff Swain said that Stanford was treated as a "habitual offender" because he had previously served four prison sentences for felony DWI offenses, the Star-Telegram story said.
"This was his first DWI in Parker County, but he had other convictions in Tarrant, Dallas, Rockwall, and Johnson Counties, so he has been a menace on the roadways throughout the DFW area," Swain said in a statement to the newspaper.
The incident that earned Stanford his life sentence apparently began in August, when law enforcement responded to an accident south of Weatherford, around 30 miles west of Fort Worth. Stanford had run a red light and rear-ended another car, whose driver told police that Stanford appeared to have at least some awareness of potential consequences.
"I have to go," Stanford reportedly told the driver. "I'm going to get in trouble."
Stanford then reportedly took off, jumping over a barbed-wire fence. Police found him around 30 minutes later, hiding in a bush, his jeans ripped and cuts on his body.
Prosecutors said Stanford was clearly drunk, describing him as "belligerent" and unable to stand without help.
"At one point, he even tried to headbutt the Lifecare EMT that was trying to treat him," said Assistant District Attorney Abby Placke, who tried the case, according to the Star-Telegram. "He was so drunk and obnoxious that the officers were unable to administer the field sobriety tests they normally perform. But it was clear that he was drunk, so he was arrested."
Stanford's blood alcohol concentration was 0.267, according to the report — more than three times the state's legal limit of 0.08 for drivers.
Swain, the district attorney, reportedly said that Stanford told jurors that he was just "very unlucky" when it came to DWI arrests, but that he didn't believe he had an alcohol problem.
"I thought his testimony showed a lack of personal insight that was manifested in his lack of concern for others on our roads," said Assistant District Attorney Skyler Schoolfield, who tried the case with Placke. "In our case, he was not just intoxicated, he was flat-out drunk. With that level of intoxication and his high speed at the time of the accident, we really are lucky that the husband, wife, and teenage daughter in the other car only suffered minor injuries. This could have been much worse."
Jurors took around 90 minutes to decide Stanford's fate, the Star-Telegram reported.
He may be eligible for parole earlier than the term of his sentence, however.
"Under Texas law, Mr. Stanford will be eligible for parole when his actual time served plus his good time credit totals 15 years," Swain said. "However, the actual determination to release or retain him will be made by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles."
