An intoxicated driver on a Can-Am UTV gets tased while fighting with police

By Travis Uresk

3-28-25

| Vernal, Ut. | March 25th, 2025 |

At 8:45 pm, UHP Trooper Lorensen saw a Can-Am Maverick UTV leaving the 7-11 on 500 East US-40.

This UTV had green lights visible from the sides and interior blue lights visible from all sides. Seeing the violation, the trooper stopped the vehicle.

After coming to a stop at 100 South 500 East, the driver of the Maverick, 41-year-old David Alejandro Moran, was identified.

When the trooper approached the UTV, he could immediately smell the strong, consistent odor of alcohol. An open beer was in the cup holder, and multiple beer cans were scattered in the back seat.

David quickly produced his paper copy of an ID card but struggled to locate any proof of insurance. He would drop papers and grab unrelated papers and appeared to greatly struggle with coordination as he performed the simple task of looking through his own wallet.

Trooper Lorensen performed a records check and found that David didn't have a valid driver's license or insurance associated with the vehicle's registration.

The trooper asked David about his alcohol consumption, pointing to the beer can in the cup holder that was now mysteriously missing. He did admit to drinking two beers and acted and responded to the trooper's questions that indicated he understood and spoke English, but his ability to speak and understand English suspiciously deteriorated as Trooper Lorensen furthered his investigation.

The trooper informed David that tests needed to be performed to determine whether he was safe to drive, and David wanted Trooper Lorensen to follow him as he drove home.

During the one-leg stand test, David's shoe came untied, but he was unable to tie his own shoe, requiring his son to tie it for him. David swayed and couldn't keep his balance. The test ended early after several seconds, and it was obvious that he had defecated and urinated in his pants.

When the trooper went to get his portable breath test from his vehicle, David became agitated and started to walk away. He was stopped, and Sgt. Watt had David sit on the curb. David refused and was getting more agitated.

David was arrested based on what the trooper had seen up to this point. David tensed up and resisted the officers from putting his hands behind his back. The struggle resulted in David being taken to the ground.

While on the ground, David kept fighting with police, resulting in Trooper Lorensen deploying his taser, but it was unsuccessful. Sgt. Watt then deployed his taser, effectively decentralizing David so that the officers could get handcuffs on David.

David Moran was transported to the Uintah Basin Healthcare in Vernal. Once inside, Officer Candelas assisted with translating for David. While receiving a medical clearance, David consented to a blood draw, where two vials of blood were collected.

Once finished at the hospital, David was taken to the Uintah County Jail.

All the articles from 1nationjustice.com are from the affidavits of probable cause reports that the officers write. If you would like, you can get a copy of the report from the website below. It does cost money to get on the site and to open every document you want to read.

https://pubapps.utcourts.gov/XchangeWEB/XchangeWebServlet