Wrong-way driver arrested on 4th suspected DUI in under a year

A wrong-way driver was nabbed Friday night on his fourth DUI arrest in less than a year, records show.

Dwight Smith, 28, was booked into the Clark County Detention Center after a Metropolitan Police Department lieutenant saw him briefly enter Interstate 15 going in the wrong direction near Russell Road, according to his arrest report.

Last year, Smith was also arrested on DUI charges on July 20 and Nov. 2, Las Vegas Justice Court logs show.

North Las Vegas Municipal Court records show he also was arrested Jan. 28 on counts of DUI, open alcohol container, unsafe turn and driving without registration or a valid driver’s license.

Two days later, Smith was released on his own recognizance and ordered to appear in court March 1. It was not immediately clear what the outcome of that hearing was, or why he was out from jail despite having multiple DUI cases pending.

Smith faced a DUI charge following a Sept. 10, 2020, arrest, Las Vegas Municipal Court records show. But the case was dismissed when the charge was “denied” and the case was closed in February 2021.

The four recent DUI cases are pending in court, as are two other cases, including a felony domestic violence conviction, Clark County District Court records show.

Smith is being held without bail for a probation violation in the domestic violence case, with a revocation hearing scheduled for March 29, jail and court records show.

About 9:20 p.m. Friday, the Metro lieutenant was heading south on I-15 when he spotted Smith’s BMW SUV enter the freeway in the wrong direction and then exit soon after, according to the arrest report.

Smith then drove on Russell at 20 mph below the limit, the report said, as “the vehicle was failing to maintain left lane and right.”

The officer smelled alcohol emanating from the SUV. Smith had “droopy,” bloodshot eyes and slurred speech, police said.

Officers had to assist Smith, who presented a California driver’s license, out of the SUV, and he failed field-sobriety tests, police said.

The rest of the arrest report was redacted, but the officer who wrote the report noted that Smith was on probation for “prior crimes.”

Smith is next due in court for his latest DUI case on May 17, records show. He did not have a listed attorney.

Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @rickytwrites.