Charlotte County Deputy Fire Chief arrested for DUI on Christmas

NORTH FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Lee County Sheriff's Office arrested a Charlotte County Deputy Fire Chief for DUI on Christmas around midnight.

According to a police report obtained by Fox 4, Michael Davis was spotted driving a Polaris Ranger UTV near Bayshore Road and Bayshore Ranch Drive.

The deputy said Davis was driving west on Bayshore Road. Deputies say there was no registration attached to the vehicle, so the deputy pulled Davis over.

When he did, Davis told the deputy the UTV was not registered to drive on a public road and that he was driving home from Babcock Ranch, which is about 20 minutes from where Davis was pulled over.

As they were talking, the deputy said he could smell alcohol on Davis. The deputy reported Davis had a "thick tongued speech" and had trouble forming some words and pairing sentences.

Davis agreed to a field sobriety test and admitted to consuming alcohol that night.

During the test, the deputy said Davis's eyes could not track or follow the deputy's finger smoothly. The deputy said Davis swayed during this exercise.

At the time of the "walk and turn" exercise, the deputy reported Davis struggled to stay in the starting position and did not touch heel to toe on any step. At one point, the report says Davis stepped off the line, looked at the deputy and said "we're done."

As the deputy asked Davis to perform the "one leg stand" exercise, the deputy said Davis lost his balance.

Based on the tests, the deputy arrested Davis for DUI. Davis agreed to a breath test, but at the jail, he recanted.

Fox 4 dug into Davis's background. He was arrested for a DUI back in 2009.

In that police report... A cape coral officer said Davis was driving in the middle of Veterans Boulevard going about 20 MPH over the speed limit. The officer asked for his license, but says Davis handed over his credit card instead.

Davis entered no contest to that charge and plead down to reckless driving.

Fox 4 reached out to Charlotte County asking if there would be disciplinary action for his latest arrest.

A spokesperson for the county said quote: "We don’t comment on personnel matters."

So, we requested his personnel files.

He was written up while working as the Charlotte County Deputy Fire Chief in 2023. His supervisor described the incident in a document Fox 4 obtained. It says he contacted multiple employees after hours to discuss a disciplinary incident he was investigating and was allegedly slurring his words.

Fox 4 discovered he was arrested for DUI back in 2009 in Cape Coral. According to Charlotte County's website, he started with the fire department in 2008.

In the 2009 case, he entered no contest to the charge and plead down to reckless driving.

Davis is expected to appear in court on Jan. 13, 2025.