UPDATED: Alpharetta Councilman Charged with DUI, Child Endangerment

UPDATED 12:45 p.m.: Alpharetta City Councilman Michael Cross was arrested and charged with DUI and child endangerment on Saturday, Feb. 23, according to an arrest report from the Alpharetta Department of Public Safety.

A police report stated Cross was driving downtown erratically, according to a phone call made by a witness to the Alpharetta 911 Center, reported WSB-TV's Mike Petchenik. A child in the car was not properly restrained in the back seat.

The witness reported at 9:52 p.m. to dispatchers that a dark colored Ford Explorer was driving erratically and all over the road, having trouble maintaining his lane and even ran off the roadway. The witness followed the SUV from GA 400 in Forsyth County to Old Milton Parkway in Alpharetta.

When an officer caught up with the SUV and the witness at Haynes Bridge Road and GA 120, the officer report he saw a small child in the right rear passenger seat of the SUV who was turned around and looking at the officer.

"I saw the driver put the blinker on and abruptly change lanes. The maneuver was not smooth and the vehicle jerked upon changing lanes," the officer said in his incident report.

The officer turned on his blue lights at Old Milton Parkway and Wills Road, and the driver pulled into the American Legion Post lot on Wills Road. The officer said in the incident report that he saw the child was not in a proper safety seat, but in a booster seat and appeared to small for it.

"As I got closer to the driver's door, I could smell the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from the vehicle," the officer reported. He said he could smell the odor of alcoholic beverage from the SUV, and from the driver.

The driver, later identified as Cross, refused to do voluntary field sobriety evaluations and said he didn't think the officer had probable cause to pull him over. Cross also refused to blow into the Alco Sensor and refused to take the state test at the North Fulton County Jail Annex.

Michael D. Cross, 38, of Alpharetta, was cited for DUI less safe, DUI endangering life of a child, child safety seat violation and failure to maintain lane.

The child and SUV were turned over to Cross’s wife, the report said.