A North Dakota GOP state lawmaker who insulted police officers during an arrest last month for drunk driving was sentenced to nearly a year of unsupervised probation and ordered to pay $1,000 fine earlier this month.
Rep. Nico Rios (R) was arrested on Dec. 15 for a DUI after leaving a Christmas party.
Police body-camera footage shows Rios lashing out at the arresting officer, repeatedly questioning his English accent, and using homophobic slurs and xenophobic language, according to the Associated Press.
He also threatened to call the North Dakota attorney general about the situation and said the officers would “regret picking on me because you don’t know who the fuck I am.”
Rios was sentenced on Jan. 8, when he pleaded guilty to drunk driving. His punishment also includes a 10-day suspended jail sentence, a mandatory evaluation and a victim impact panel. Rios’ driving privileges were also automatically suspended for 91 days.
A misdemeanor charge of refusing a chemical test was dismissed.
Rios was stripped of his committee assignment after the incident and faced calls to resign.
He has since apologized for his behavior and said he plans to seek help for alcoholism.
