Man Says He Was Drunk When He Drove Car Into Courthouse

Authorities have arrested a man they say drove a car into the Burke County Courthouse, parked it and then walked away smoking a cigarette.

Authorities said that at about 3 a.m. Friday, 53-year-old Herbert Bristol plowed a blue 1992 Pontiac sedan through the main entranceway on the south side of the building and drove it down the hall to the lobby area, right in front of the clerk of court’s office.

“When I first came up, I didn’t know what was going on. I looked at it and I said, ‘It looks like somebody used (the courthouse) as a drive-through,’” a visitor to the courthouse said.

• RAW VIDEO: Man Drives Car Into Burke Co. Courthouse, Leaves It Behind

Surveillance video shows a driver dressed in camouflage getting out of the car, walking around smoking a cigarette and then leaving the car behind.

Bristol told Eyewitness News he didn’t remember the crash until someone told him it was on TV, along with his picture. He said the incident could have been much worse.

"I'm an alcoholic, that's what I do,” he said. “You raised me to not only be an alcoholic, but (to) blow (stuff) up. And if I had seen a gas station between here and the courthouse, I'd probably (have) stopped and got some gas.”

Public safety officers said the incident is no laughing matter. They’ve charged Bristol with a number of charges, including damage to real property and leaving the scene of an accident.

Bristol turned himself in after hearing about the TV report. He said he wasn’t trying to hurt anyone.

“I could have came midday and killed everybody right? No, no,” he said.

Bristol, who was convicted of driving while impaired in 2003, was scheduled to be in court at the end of the month on charges of drunken driving, driving with a revoked license, reckless driving and wanton disregard.

He also faces charges of felony possession of cocaine and having a controlled substance in a prison or jail. That case is to be tried in Superior Court.

The part of the courthouse that was damaged will be closed while it’s repaired.