Singer Randy Travis Arrested for DWI and Threatening Authorities
By: Russ Poteet
Updated: August 8, 2012
It was the second arrest this year for Travis, who was cited in February for public intoxication.
A photo released by the Grayson County Sheriff's Office shows a battered-looking Travis in a T-shirt, with a black eye and dried blood on his face. He later walked out of jail on $21,500 bond wearing scrubs, a University of Texas ball cap and no shoes.
The sheriff's office received an emergency call just before midnight Tuesday about a man seen lying in a road west of Tioga, where the singer lives.
A car registered to Travis, 53, drove off the road, said Tom Vinger, spokesman for the Texas Department of Public Safety. The vehicle had struck several barricades in a construction zone, according to the DPS.
Vinger said Travis made threats against Texas Highway Patrol troopers and was not wearing clothes at the time of his arrest. He refused sobriety tests, Vinger said, so a blood specimen was taken.
Sheriff's Sgt. Rickey Wheeler said Travis faces charges of retaliation or obstruction in addition to driving under the influence.
"Travis had a strong odor of alcoholic beverage on his breath and several signs of intoxication," according to a statement from the sheriff's office. "While Travis was being transported, Travis made threats to shoot and kill the troopers working the case."
A representative for Travis said there would be no immediate comment on the arrest.
In February, Travis was charged with public intoxication after being spotted in a vehicle parked in front of a church near his home.
He also has been involved in messy court proceedings with his ex-wife. Travis was divorced from Elizabeth Travis in 2010 after 19 years of marriage.
Earlier this year, Elizabeth Travis, who had been his manager for more than three decades, filed a lawsuit claiming that Randy Travis made it impossible for her to do her job and terminated her management contract without proper notice. She said her ex-husband sent several men, including an armed guard, to clean out her offices.
Randy Travis countersued in May, accusing his ex-wife of divulging confidential information about him in order to damage his reputation and career. The court documents don't say what information Elizabeth Travis is alleged to have betrayed.
