MOORHEAD – A Bayport man convicted in 27 drunken driving-related cases in Minnesota has been released to residential placement in Clay County.
Danny Lee Bettcher, 61, was released Dec. 29 after serving about five years in prison for his latest drunken driving-related conviction, said Minnesota Department of Corrections spokeswoman Sarah Latuseck. Prosecutors said he blew through a stop sign on his motorcycle in Otter Tail County while his blood-alcohol level was twice the legal limit.
Bettcher reportedly holds the state record for the most drunken driving-related convictions at 27. His criminal drunken driving-related record goes back to the 1980s.
Bettcher was released under the Department of Correction’s highest level of supervision, during which he’ll report to a Becker County probation officer.
Bettcher is being supervised under Intensive Supervised Release, which keeps him on GPS and continuous transdermal monitoring.
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Examples of conditions Bettcher may be required to adhere to include following the direction of his probation officer at all times, avoiding drugs and alcohol, not going into places that serve alcohol, not possessing a firearm, and submitting to unannounced visits and searches of his home at any time, Latuseck said.
Clay County Sheriff Bill Bergquist said he does not know where in the county Bettcher has been released. He said the exact terms of Bettcher’s release aren’t public information.
