Mandeville Mayor Eddie Price was ticketed on Tuesday for an incident that occurred two weeks ago.
According to Causeway Police Chief Felix Loicano, the Mayor drove through a lowered gate of the north toll plaza of the causeway around midnight on April 22, breaking through the wooden arm.
Price then drove onto the bridge, and was stopped by Causeway police at a turnaround about three miles onto the bridge.
The Mayor admitted to investigating officers that he had consumed "a couple of drinks." After officers noticed that the SUV was registered to the city of Mandeville, Price told the officers that he was the city's mayor.
Despite his admission of driving after drinking, officers did not attempt a field sobriety test upon Price.
Officers allowed Price to call for a ride home, which Chief Loicano says is standard operating procedure.
"Anytime a motorist says 'I've had a drink' or 'I've been drinking,' you always require that person to have someone come get them to drive off," said Loicano.
However, Loicano says that the officers should have issued a field sobriety test to Price.
Listen to WWL's Jay Vice's interview of Causeway Chief Loicano:
The incident is now under internal administrative review, after a tip to the Metropolitan Crime Commission about the incident.
"The allegations have been, 'was there some special treatment given to the mayor,'" said Loicano. "I can tell you so far, we have no indication that was the case."
