Murray • KUTV-Channel 2 anchor Shauna Lake pleaded guilty Tuesday to a misdemeanor count of impaired driving.
Murray Justice Court Judge Paul Thompson ordered Lake, 46, to pay a fine of $1,460 and complete eight hours of community service.
Thompson suspended 90 days of jail time for Lake and ordered her to serve a year of probation. He also ordered her to attend a Victim Impact Panel, which is a two-hour class put on by Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
Attorneys at the hearing said Lake, who is listed in court records under her legal last name of Marshall, had a blood alcohol content of 0.10 in the May 10 episode, above Utah's 0.08 limit.
Defense attorney Jim Bradshaw told the judge that this is the first time Lake has been in trouble like this, and she's "paid a huge price" for the incident, receiving criticism "because of her position in the public."
Lake has been with the news station since 1994, when she joined the team as a morning anchor.
The incident has also been a "wake-up call for" Lake, Bradshaw said. In the months since Lake was arrested, she's completed treatment as recommended.
As part of a plea agreement, Lake's original charge of driving under the influence was reduced to the class B misdemeanor impaired driving. Misdemeanor counts of using license plates registered to another vehicle and having an open alcohol container in her vehicle, as well as an infraction for having an expired license plate, were dropped.
A Utah Highway Patrol trooper arrested Lake at 12:18 a.m. May 10. According to a booking statement the trooper filed with the Salt Lake County jail, the trooper noticed Lake driving slower than the speed limit in the far left lane of southbound Interstate 215 near 1200 East.
The trooper stopped the 2011 Land Rover she was driving after running the registration plate, which came up as canceled, according to the statement.
Lake had a clear cup with a straw in the center console that the trooper wrote "smelled like an alcoholic beverage."
Lake reportedly told the trooper she had "two sips" of alcohol before driving. The trooper wrote that Lake failed the field sobriety test and refused a preliminary breath test. She requested a chemical blood test, he wrote.
The jail released Lake about an hour after her arrival.
The court scheduled a review hearing for Lake on Oct. 26.
Editor's note • The Salt Lake Tribune is a content partner with KUTV.
mnoble@sltrib.com
Twitter: @mnoblenews
| Courtesy Shauna Lake
