Off-duty Kingston police sergeant allegedly found asleep behind the wheel, arrested for DWI

Eric VanAllen, 46, was arrested Friday by state police shortly before 1 a.m., after they say a motorist called 911.

Blaise Gomez

Dec 18, 2024, 11:56 PM

Updated 3 days ago

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An off-duty City of Kingston police sergeant has been arrested by state police for drunk driving after he was allegedly found asleep behind the wheel at an intersection in Gardiner.
Eric VanAllen, 46, was arrested Friday by state police shortly before 1 a.m., after they say a motorist called 911.
VanAllen was allegedly found "seemingly asleep" in the driver’s seat of his Dodge pickup truck at the intersection of Route 208 and Routes 44 and 55 in Gardiner.
He was charged with DWI and released on an appearance ticket. State police say VanAllen’s passenger was also found "seemingly asleep" in the front passenger’s seat.
The arrest is sparking renewed interest in a highly publicized off-duty rollover crash involving VanAllen in 2013 that prompted an anonymous letter alleging a police coverup and calls for a probe into law enforcement’s actions during the investigation.
News 12 reached out to the City of Kingston Police Department and other officials about both incidents but has not yet received a response.
News 12's calls to phone numbers we found for VanAllen were not immediately returned.