Coles Co. (ECWd) –
Edgar County Judge Matthew Sullivan was arrested on August 16, 2025, for “Driving Under the Influence, Improper Lane Usage, and Illegal Transportation of Alcoholic liquor by a Driver in a Motor Vehicle.” We note that the video footage indicates he was unable to produce proof of insurance but there was no charge for that in the reports.
Yes, this incident happened almost 10 days ago, and we have not reported on it until today, for good reason. In order to properly report on the matter, we must first obtain the public records, which include the police reports and body cam footage, as well as dash cam footage. That process was delayed by the City of Charleston. Normally, a Freedom of Information Act request is to be provided in 5 days or less, with some exceptions. When it comes to police reports and mug shots, they have three days from the date of arrest, which did not happen in this case.
The production of the videos has created additional delays because they were put on a Blu-ray disk rather than a flash drive. Because of that, this article only contains the written police reports and our points of interest from the video we could watch on a TV. We hope to have the video up in another article as soon as we can get it transferred from the Blu-ray disk to a usable format for upload to YouTube.
We redacted the witness’s name on the police report as the city failed to redact that information.
While the video speaks volumes, there are numerous notable issues found in the report. When we get the videos posted, you will be able to confirm the report is spot on.
- I observed that Sullivan was slow to respond and appeared confused
- I also immediately detected an extremely strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from the vehicle
- I observed an open can of beer in a koozie in a cup holder in the center console of the suspect vehicle
- When asked how much he had to drink, He said four Busch Lights
- Tells another officer he had 3 beers
- Vehicle inventory finds: 14 empty beer cans. Twelve of the fourteen cans were Busch Light Farm Rescue cans, which had been crushed and placed in a plastic bag, which was in a grey and black lunchbox/cooler. The other two empty cans were a Michelob Ultra and a Rolling Rock beer can.
- The Michelob Ultra beer can was located in a blue cooler, which had ice and four more unopened Bush Lights.
Sullivan refused to complete the field sobriety tests, alleging pain from a hip replacement. He also refused the breath analyzer. Such a refusal normally results in a mandatory suspension of their license.
As many suspected, he attempted to use his position as a judge to influence the outcome of the matter, according to the reports.
- “I’m a judge with the circuit. I’m just hoping to get off.” Matthew then proceeded to say, I’m okay with whatever you have to do, but- “
During the booking at the station, Sullivan appears to signal his future defense.
“Sullivan inquired what I would be saying during the Statutory Summary Suspension hearing, since we never saw him driving. I advised him that he was observed driving on a public roadway, and a witness had called in the violations. Sullivan said the call could be “total BS.” I advised him that the individual who called stopped to provide her information and a statement of violations she observed. Sullivan said he would be looking forward to the hearing.”
Considering there appears to be probable cause for the stop, his hearing may not go the way he wants, unless, of course, key officers do not show up and provide the information that is contained in the reports.
According to the court docket at this link, numerous motions have already been filed in the case, including a Petition To Rescind Summary Suspension. A request for an out-of-circuit judge has been made and the next hearing date set for September 30 at 9 am.
We will provide additional updates in future articles, to include the videos we have obtained.
A copy of the police reports can be downloaded at this link or viewed below.
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