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MIDVALE — Former sports radio show host Spencer David Checketts has been sentenced to five days in jail, a year of probation and treatment following a drunken driving conviction.
Checketts, 40, began serving the jail time on Monday, court records indicate.
As part of a plea deal with prosecutors, he pleaded guilty to DUI, a class B misdemeanor, on Wednesday. In exchange, a charge of driving on the highway with an open container of alcohol was dropped. A speeding infraction — 120 mph in a 70 mph zone — also was dismissed.
Checketts resigned from 1280 The Zone following his arrest Feb. 26. A Utah Highway Patrol trooper stopped him on northbound I-15 at 7300 South about 1:30 a.m., spotted a beer can on the floor board and smelled alcohol as the driver rolled down the window, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Midvale Justice Judge George Vo-Duc sentenced Checketts to 180 days in jail, but suspended 145 days. He allowed 30 days of credit for a period of time that Checketts spent in treatment and daily random drug and alcohol testing, said his attorney Scott Williams.
Williams said the sentence reflects “an incredibly appropriate response by Mr. Checketts and the maximum amount of therapy a person can engage in.” He declined to give specifics but court records indicate Checketts has been in rehab in recent weeks.
The judge ordered him to complete counseling and treatment, and to stay out of bars. Checketts was also ordered to pay a $1,610 fine because he had a previous attempted DUI conviction, Williams said.
