Danbury Police: DUI in a Smoking Car

It took two Danbury police officers to get a man out of a burning car Friday at 1:43 a.m. in the McDonald's parking lot on Padanaram Road. Police said they were called to the fast food restaurant because smoke was coming from a Jeep Grand Cherokee. The first officer to arrive banged on the windows to wake up the driver who was alseep behind the wheel with the doors locked. After a few seconds, the interior of the car started to fill with smoke. The officer called the Fire Department and he got his night stick to try to break a window. He again tried to wake up the driver but couldn't. He broke the driver's window and the driver woke up. The driver and officer could not open the driver's door, and by then a second officer arrived. The two officers pulled the man from the car. He was Robert Slodowski, 58, of Sunset Trail, New Fairfield. Police said he smelled of alcohol, slurred his words and had bloodshot eyes. He refused to take a sobriety test. Officers charged him with driving under the influence and driving without license. He was released on a $5,000 bond and given a court date of Feb. 6. One of the officers was treated and released from Danbury Hospital for smoke inhalation.

This information was provided by the Danbury Police Department. A person charged with a crime is innocent until having been convicted in court.