State Sen. Mike Bohacek accepted a plea agreement Wednesday for his drunken driving charge, which includes avoiding one year in jail and a $5,000 fine.
Bohacek agreed to one year of informal probation, which includes substance abuse evaluation and LADS therapy with a fee, according to the plea agreement.
With court costs and a small fee, Bohacek had to pay $500, but the agreement suspended a $5,000 fee the misdemeanor charge carries. Bohacek’s license was also suspended for 20 days, according to the plea agreement.
The case was closed Thursday with the guilty plea.
Bohacek, R-Michiana Shores, allegedly stumbled out of his car after drinking alcohol inside the car at a Michigan City Panda Express in January. The charges were released in June because of legislative immunity.
The Indiana Constitution states that legislators are “privileged from arrest” during the legislative session except for treason, felony or breach of the peace. The 2025 legislative session started Jan. 8 and ended April 24, and Bohacek was arrested Jan. 24.
Bohacek was charged with misdemeanor charges of operating while intoxicated and two additional misdemeanor OWI charges for a blood alcohol content above 0.15 and endangerment, according to the probable cause affidavit.
In the plea agreement, Bohacek faced the misdemeanor charge of operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol content above 0.15, and the remaining charges were dropped.
Porter County Prosecutor Gary Germann was appointed as the special prosecutor in the case. He declined to comment on the plea. Bohacek also declined to comment on the agreement or the case.
A witness told police officers that Bohacek drank from “an open container” and stumbled out of his vehicle at Panda Express in Michigan City around 3:30 p.m. Jan. 24, according to the affidavit.
When officers arrived, they observed Bohacek with food on his clothes, poor balance and quiet, slow speech. Officers also reported that Bohacek had red, watery and bloodshot eyes and that he staggered from his black Dodge Charger, according to the affidavit.
A blood test performed at about 4:30 p.m. Jan. 24 found that Bohacek’s blood alcohol content was 0.283, according to the affidavit, which is more than three times the state limit of .08.
Bohacek told police officers he took his prescription Tramadol before driving, according to the affidavit. Tramadol is a synthetic opioid used to treat moderate to moderately severe pain, including pain after surgery, according to the Mayo Clinic.
State Rep. Jim Lucas, R-Seymour, pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated and leaving the scene of an accident in June 2023.
Former State Rep. Daniel Forestal, D-Indianapolis, faced charges before his resignation in 2020 for drunken driving. He had also faced charges for battery of a public safety official, resisting law enforcement and disorderly conduct, and accusations of using his political campaign’s bank account for personal use, like online gambling, in separate events beginning in 2019.
Forestal, who was open about his mental health struggles, died in 2021. Responding to a wellness check at an Indianapolis hotel, police found Forestal, 38, deceased.
akukulka@post-trib.com
