Laidlaw Bus Driver Arrives Drunk for His Sentencing : Court: The incident may cost Harold Keith Lone a plea-bargain and nearly double his possible sentence.

A Los Angeles man who pleaded guilty to driving a school bus while drunk showed up for his sentencing Tuesday intoxicated, shouted obscenities in the hallway and interrupted court proceedings by muttering, “No way, Jose” as his lawyer sought to silence him.

The incident could cost him a plea-bargain and almost double his possible sentence, a prosecutor said.

Van Nuys Superior Court Judge James A. Coleman stopped the sentencing proceedings and ordered Harold Keith Lone handcuffed and taken to a jail cell for a blood-alcohol test.

A short time later, Lone’s blood-alcohol level was measured at 0.35%--more than four times the 0.08% level at which a person is legally presumed to be intoxicated, Deputy Dist. Atty. Steven Plafker said.

Coleman ordered Lone back to court today.

“I’ve never seen someone show up drunk on the day of sentencing,” said a stunned prosecutor, Deputy Dist. Atty. Gloria Mas. “It’s a spit in the face of the system.”

Spokesmen for the district attorney’s office said a drunk defendant could be considered incapable of understanding court proceedings.

Mas said the incident threw into question a plea-bargain reached in March when Lone pleaded guilty to one count of driving under the influence of alcohol for being drunk when he arrived to pick up a busload of children at an Encino elementary school in January.

Lone, 40, of Los Angeles, also pleaded guilty to one count of perjury for using an alias to obtain a driver’s license to secure a job as a school bus driver with Laidlaw Transit Co.

Prosecutors said Lone used the name Harold Keith Holmes to hide five drunk-driving convictions and a lengthy arrest record for crimes, including robbery, burglary and auto theft.

In exchange for Lone’s guilty plea, prosecutors had agreed to drop an additional count of driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license and agreed to ask for a sentence of no more than two years and eight months in prison.

Mas said the judge had earlier agreed to the plea-bargain and sentence but now might order Lone to stand trial on all four charges, which carry a possible sentence of four years and eight months in prison.

The rationale for the plea-bargain was that Lone pleaded guilty before trial and acknowledged responsibility for driving drunk, Mas said.

But on Tuesday, Lone showed up for court an hour late, dressed in shorts, a soiled white T-shirt and a blue jacket emblazoned with the word, “Laidlaw.” He shouted profanities and made obscene gestures at newspaper photographers.

Inside the courtroom, Lone interrupted Coleman as he discussed sentencing options. “No. No way. No way, Jose,” Lone muttered, ignoring pleas to be quiet from his attorney, Deputy Public Defender Thom Tibor.

After warning Lone several times to be quiet, Coleman said: “This man sounds as though he’s under the influence” and ordered Lone jailed for tests, held overnight and returned to court today, prosecutors said.

Mas said she does not believe that additional charges will be filed unless it is determined that Lone drove himself to court. A bailiff, who helped search Lone in the courthouse jail, said he found no car keys. Tibor said Lone was driven to court by a cousin.

On Jan. 16, a motorist with a car phone called police after he saw Lone’s otherwise empty school bus weaving across three lanes of the Hollywood Freeway at speeds of up to 70 m.p.h. The motorist followed the bus to Lanai Street Elementary School where Lone was to pick up 57 children.

Police said Lone was staggering, his speech was slurred and he appeared confused. A breath test showed that he had a blood-alcohol level of 0.27%--more than three times the new legal limit of 0.08%, police said.

Department of Motor Vehicle records show that Lone has five drunk-driving convictions dating back to 1982. His driver’s license has been suspended since 1983, but he continued to drive despite repeated warnings not to do so, the records show.

Lone was hired as a $7.75-per-hour school bus driver in September after he presented himself to Laidlaw as a self-employed handyman named Holmes with valid credentials and a clean driving record, Laidlaw officials said.

Laidlaw, a U.S. subsidiary of a Canadian corporation, is the largest school bus company in the world, operating about 20,000 school bus routes in 16 states.

Another Laidlaw bus driver, Joseph Bolden, was arrested in San Diego on suspicion of driving drunk after his bus crashed into a pickup truck Feb. 2. Three people were injured, including a high school passenger who suffered a broken collarbone.

Four days later, Laidlaw bus driver Wesley Reed Jr. was arrested in South-Central Los Angeles and charged with misdemeanor counts of carrying a loaded, concealed pistol. He had one previous drunk-driving conviction and two accidents, the city attorney’s office said.

In May, another Laidlaw driver pleaded no contest in Glendale to having sex with a 15-year-old hearing-impaired passenger.