Rodriguez pleads guilty to DUI charge

Kentucky running back Chris Rodriguez pleaded guilty and agreed to pay a fine and court costs from his arrest on May 8.

Rodriguez agreed to pay a $200 fine and $700 or more in court costs, both of which have to be paid in full by December 13. His driver’s license will be suspended for four to six months. Rodriguez was arrested at 3 a.m. on May 8 and was charged with driving under the influence and careless driving.

According to the arrest citation, the vehicle wasn’t “maintaining its designed operating lane” and it took a “delayed amount of time” for the vehicle to pull over. Rodriguez was observed with “red and watery (eyes and) his speech was slurred” and smelled of alcohol. He was arrested and admitted to consuming “one or two shots” of alcohol.

At a pre-trial hearing on Tuesday, he pled guilty to operating a motor vehicle under the influence, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.

A warrant was issued for Rodriguez’s arrest after he failed to appear at a scheduled court date in May, but UK officials said the mistake was made by his attorneys.

Kentucky spokesperson Susan Lax said at the time that school officials “have confirmed with Chris’ attorneys that this was a scheduling mistake in their office. Chris was specifically advised by his attorneys not to attend (the hearing) because they (the attorneys) would (attend on his behalf). They are working diligently to get it corrected.”

Rodriguez is one of the top returning rushers in the Southeastern Conference. He rushed for 1,379 yards and scored 12 touchdowns. He is sixth on the school’s all-time rushing list with 2,740 yards and is poised to surpass the record set in 2018 by Benny Snell.