WILLMAR — A 64-year-old Atwater man has been sent to prison after his second conviction for felony driving while impaired.
In Kandiyohi County District Court this week, Elgene Wayne Mahn received a 42-month sentence with credit for 13 days already served in jail. Under state law, he will serve at least two-thirds of the sentence in prison before he is eligible for supervised release. He was ordered to serve five years of supervised release.
A second felony DWI charge and lesser driving-related charges were dismissed in a plea agreement.
Minnesota court records indicate that Mahn has seven previous alcohol-related convictions and four previous DWI convictions. In 2013, he was convicted of a felony DWI and sentenced to three years in prison. The prison sentence was stayed for seven years of probation.
According to court records, workers at an Atwater gas station reported that Mahn was driving to the station almost every day and often appeared to be very intoxicated.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Kandiyohi County deputy who responded knew Mahn and knew his driver's license was canceled. On March 2, 2018, the deputy activated his emergency lights to pull Mahn over, but Mahn continued driving to his home. Mahn stumbled when he left his car and walked toward his house, ignoring a deputy’s commands, according to court records.
When the deputy intercepted Mahn, he appeared to be heavily intoxicated and slurred his words. A field breath test indicated a 0.206 percent blood alcohol level. Later at the Kandiyohi County Jail, a breath test registered a 0.23 percent blood alcohol level. The threshold for DWI is 0.08 percent.
