Former Clarke County Attorney arrested after driving incident in Warren County

According to a Warren County Sheriff’s report, former Clarke County Attorney Michelle Rivera, 44, of 625 S. View Dr. Osceola, driving a 2015 Mitsubishi was pulled over at 4:21 p.m. Dec. 31, 2020 by a Warren County Deputy after he was dispatched to a possible intoxicated driver traveling south on Interstate 35.

The vehicle was reported to be swerving all over the road and had gone off onto the shoulder. The deputy caught up with Rivera traveling south of the New Virginia exit. She was observed driving very poorly as he was attempting to catch up. The vehicle was weaving it its own lane, almost struck a semi as it was passing it, and crossed the center line. Rivera was stopped due to the poor driving observed and the traffic complaint on it. When the vehicle pulled over, its right-side tires went off the roadway and into the snow. The driver was identified as Michelle Murphy Rivera. Two of her children were seated in the rear of the vehicle.

Rivera had red and watery eyes and struggled locating the information requested from her. Rivera denied that she had been drinking. The odor of an alcoholic beverage was emitting from inside the vehicle. She smelled of the odor of an alcoholic beverage and alcohol could be detected on her breath. Rivera consented to field sobriety testing and performed poorly then refused a preliminary breath test and was detained for further testing.

Rivera placed two phone calls that did not get answered and declined to make anymore. She refused to provide a sample of her breath on the DataMaster. This will be Rivera’s second offense under this chapter, with a previous conviction in Clarke County in 2018.

Rivera’s preliminary hearing for these most recent charges of two counts of child endangerment and OWI second offense is set for Jan. 19 in Indianola. Bond was set at $5,000.