ATTLEBORO — A Norton man arrested for drunken driving for the seventh time last month was sentenced to concurrent 2½-year jail sentences Friday.
Angel Rodrigues, 50, of 1 Kelly Lane, pleaded guilty in Attleboro District Court to driving a landscaping truck while intoxicated on Sept. 11.
A witness who followed the defendant said Rodrigues hit a sign in Attleboro and drove erratically into Norton along Route 123, according to police.
Police said they found Rodrigues near Norton High School asleep in his pickup truck, which had a flat tire.
He pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of alcohol (fifth or subsequent offense) and other related motor vehicle offenses.
The 2½-year jail term is the maximum a district court judge can impose.
The prosecution agreed to not seek an indictment in superior court in return for the defendant’s guilty plea, a prosecutor told the court.
Defendants in superior court typically receive harsher sentences.
Rodrigues has been held without bail since his arrest.
A judge deemed him a danger to the public because of his prior convictions for drunken driving.
His most recent conviction was for a fifth offense in 2014. He received a 2½-year jail sentence in that case, too, Assistant District Attorney Natasha Azevedo told the court.
David Linton may be reached at 508-236-0338.
