Hammond police officer faces drunken driving charges

LOWELL, Ind. (AP) - A northwest Indiana police officer faces drunken driving charges after an Indiana state trooper spotted him driving erratically and pulled him over.

In a news release, the Indiana State Police say the stop happened at about 2 a.m. Saturday in Lake County.

The agency says the trooper was conducting a traffic stop when he spotted a vehicle veer to an exit ramp of State Route 2 and travel completely onto the right shoulder.

The trooper left the traffic stop and drove off to pull over the other vehicle driven by 30-year-old Hammond Police Officer Mathew L. Anderson.

The trooper detected a strong odor of alcohol on Anderson's breath and when Anderson refused to take field sobriety tests including a breath test, he was taken into custody and charged.