Seymour’s Son Arrested on Car Theft, Drunk Driver Counts

U.S. Sen. John Seymour’s 24-year-old son, Shad Edward Seymour, is being held in San Joaquin County Jail on charges of auto theft and drunk driving, authorities said Monday.

California Highway Patrol spokesman Bob Whitmire said Seymour was arrested by Garden Grove police May 3 on a warrant issued after he failed to appear in Lodi Municipal Court for an incident more than a year ago in which he was found unconscious behind the wheel of a car in a traffic lane.

Sen. Seymour said Monday that his son’s troubles with alcohol began in junior high school, and that Shad has been through several alcoholism programs unsuccessfully. He said that the family stands ready to help, but that his son must take the first step.

“Obviously, it has torn us apart over the years. Your heart goes out. You want to reach out and help and hold and do what any other parent would want to do with a child who is hurting like he is.

“But you finally get to a point where you realize no matter how much you want to do that, it isn’t going to work, unless there is some reciprocation,” the elder Seymour said.

Whitmire said the latest incident occurred in April, 1990, when officers “received a call that there was a person passed out in a car in the middle of Highway 12 at Lower Sacramento Road, just outside Lodi. We found him in a vehicle and arrested him for that, and a check of the license plate found out that (the car) was stolen.”

Whitmire said the initial arrest was handled as a felony because Shad Seymour had at least three prior drunk-driving arrests. His blood-alcohol level was 0.20, Whitmire said. Drivers are presumed to be legally drunk when they have a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 or above.

Shad Seymour also was was driving with a suspended license and without insurance, Whitmire said.

Sen. Seymour said his son, who is being held on $20,000 bail pending a May 21 hearing, will be represented by a public defender because the family had made it clear after past incidents that he must take responsibility for himself.