WESTLAKE — Former Cleveland Browns player Hanford Dixon was arrested Saturday on his second drunken driving charge in eight months, according to Westlake police.

Dixon, 49, of Westlake, was charged with operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated and improper lane use after a traffic stop at 1:19 a.m.

A Westlake officer stopped Dixon’s white 2000 Mercedes Benz on Clague Road near Horseshoe Boulevard after seeing Dixon drive left of the double yellow line, according to Westlake police Capt. Guy Turner.

Dixon, a Realtor who played for the Browns from 1981 to 1989, smelled of alcohol, was unable to recite the alphabet and gave other indications of impairment, Turner said.

He was charged and taken to the station, where he refused to submit a breath sample. His driver’s license was suspended as a result.

He was released on a personal bond and is due in Rocky River Municipal Court at 9 a.m. today. 

  Dixon was unavailable for comment Monday.

If convicted of the offense, he could receive a license suspension of one to five years for refusing to give a breath sample because he has a prior conviction, Turner said.

In the earlier case, Dixon was charged after he was stopped in October 2007 on Interstate 90. He pleaded no contest in Rocky River Municipal Court to operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated.

 Prosecutors dropped a charge of driving within marked lanes and having a blood alcohol content higher than 0.17. The legal limit for driving in Ohio is 0.08.

He paid $715 in fines and costs, was ordered to take a driver’s intervention program and was placed on six months of probation. He received a 180-day suspended sentence after being found guilty Nov. 26.

Dixon, who hosts “Browns Tailgate 19” on WOIO-Channel 19, is credited with coining the phrase Dawg Pound for the area in the Browns stadium containing the team’s most ardent fans.

Contact Cindy Leise at 329-7245 or cleise@chroniclet.com.

 

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