Video shows deputy’s arrest in alleged DUI
Off-duty officer accused of waving gun at fast-food restaurant
SANTA CLARA — A video has surfaced that shows the January arrest of an off-duty Santa Clara County Sheriff’s deputy accused of drunkenly waving a gun at a drive-thru lane of a Jack in the Box.
The video of the Jan. 10 encounter shows Santa Clara police officers — who also had a police dog — training their weapons on the vehicle of Benjamin Jae Lee, 33, and ordering him out of the car. A few minutes later, Lee emerges from the Audi sedan, his hands raised, and walks backward toward the officers until he is taken into custody.
Lee remains on paid administrative leave from the Sheriff’s Office. He had a pretrial court hearing scheduled for Wednesday after he was charged with two misdemeanor counts each of brandishing a weapon and DUI. Lee is currently out of custody.
The alleged acts for which Lee was arrested were not on the video, which was recorded by an Uber driver who minutes earlier was in the same drive-thru lane at a Jack in the Box, several cars behind Lee. The driver, who asked not to be named, said that the night of the incident after a long delay, the manager of the restaurant in the 900 block of El Camino Real had walked from car to car to tell customers that the cook was refusing to work anymore.
The Uber driver decided to take his passengers to another Jack in the Box and, when they passed by the El Camino Real location, the police confrontation was underway. The passengers can be heard narrating the events.
Witnesses said Lee, who had been second in line at the drive-thru lane, appeared frustrated at the delay and at some point brandished a gun, prompting restaurant staff to call police. Santa Clara police have said they were not aware Lee was a law enforcement officer until after they arrested him.
Jim McManis, Lee’s attorney, says the video confirms his assertion that his client was not drunk, which he says is also backed by the fact the DMV restored Lee’s driving privileges.
“There’s no confusion on his part. He shows coordination, raising his hands, turning around,” McManis said.
McManis also objects to the assertion that Lee brandished a weapon and said he believes the restaurant employee who called police simply saw Lee’s holstered revolver and got “panicky.” He contends security video from inside corroborates his interpretation.
“His gun is never out of the holster, it’s never waved around,” McManis said. “I have no criticism that they called police. But in fairness to my client, he cooperated. This case should not be prosecuted. My client has an excellent record at the (Sheriff’s Office).”
On the timing of the video’s release last weekend — more than six months after the incident — the Uber driver who recorded it said he simply has been “extremely busy.” He said he did not understand the significance of the video until after news reports of Lee’s arrest surfaced.
“That’s when I realized what I recorded,” the driver said.
He added that the recording was part of a budding project to chronicle his experiences driving for various ride-booking services. His YouTube moniker, “Luber Late Nights,” is a portmanteau of “Lyft” and “Uber.”
“As an Uber driver, I’ve seen quite a bit of stuff,” he said. “I’ve seen fights, car accidents, people throwing up, you name it.”