Ditka Has Driver’s License Suspended for Six Months

Chicago Bears Coach Mike Ditka’s driver’s license was suspended for six months Friday because of his arrest and conviction on a drunken-driving charge that came just hours after one of the biggest victories in the team’s Super Bowl championship season.

Ditka was convicted of the charge Nov. 8 and fined $300.

The hearing Friday before Associate Cook County Circuit Judge Earl Hoffenberg was requested by Ditka’s attorney to address the coach’s refusal to take a breath test to determine blood-alcohol level. The hearing also was requested to determine whether the arresting officer had probable cause to stop Ditka on a tollway on Oct. 14.

The coach’s arrest came just a few hours after the Bears returned from an important 26-10 win over the 49ers in San Francisco.

Illinois State Trooper Jesse Armstrong said he had followed Ditka’s car for 1 miles and observed him speeding and changing lanes improperly. Armstrong said Friday that he did not suspect Ditka may have been under the influence of alcohol until he asked the coach for his driver’s license and Ditka had some problem producing it.

Attorney Don Reuben said Ditka had been willing initially to take the test but that by placing the coach in handcuffs, Armstrong provoked his refusal.

Ditka testified Friday that being handcuffed made him feel “humiliated and embarrassed more than anything, and maybe anger.”

He added: “Being handcuffed is something that’s never happened to me in my life, and I hope it never happens again.”

Reuben said Ditka was “trussed up like a chicken” and at one point called Armstrong “a disgrace to his uniform.”

Ditka’s arrest prompted indignant Bear fans to criticize state police, and Assistant State’s Attorney William Ward, who prosecuted the case, likened himself Friday to the prosecutor in the movie “Miracle on 34th Street.” That prosecutor has to bring a case against Mr. Kris Kringle, an elderly man who apparently turns out to be Santa Claus.

“Mr. Ditka has been Kris Kringle to Chicago. He has provided us with a lot of happy moments,” Ward said.

But Ward added: “The offense of driving under the influence is, in fact, a very serious offense.”