Sixth-time drunk driver sentenced to 3-8 years in prison

A 61-year-old man was sentenced to 3-8 years in state prison after being convicted of his sixth instance of driving under the influence.

Gardnerville resident Jarl Gene Klockars was taken into custody after the sentence was pronounced on Tuesday.

Attorney Maria Pence sought the minimum sentence of 2-5 years for Klockars, who did a diversion program after his fifth DUI arrest in 2016. Prison is mandatory for a subsequent instance of DUI, which is punishable by a maximum 2-15 years in prison.

Pence argued that Klockars has a heart condition and would require “significant medical attention” while in custody.

Klockars was on his way to work when he was spotted taking a swig of Fireball by a passing deputy on May 3, 2023.

Pence said Klockars had been drinking the night before, which is why he had a .118 blood alcohol content when the deputy caught up to him.

She said that in the year since he graduated from the diversion program at some point he thought he could manage his drinking.

Klockar said he was ready to give up drinking.

“I want to get this behind me and prove to the world I can do without (alcohol),” he said.

District Judge Tod Young said he hoped Klockars could change his life.

“With all of your illness none of that kept you from drinking,” Young said.

• A Lake Tahoe man was sentenced to 12-30 months in prison on Tuesday.

Robert Frederick Heller has been in custody since Oct. 23, 2023, after he was pulled over for a traffic warrant and was found with methamphetamine.

Judges are typically required by law to give probation in simple drug possession charges.

Heller reportedly told probation officer that he was using methamphetamine every day before he was arrested, though he said the drugs weren’t an issue for him, District Judge Tod Young said on Tuesday.

Heller bristled at an accusation that he tested positive for opiates while he was free on bail, which is why he was in custody for the sentencing.

While Heller had several felonies in California, they were all changed to misdemeanors.

• A former Lake Tahoe resident was ordered to spend 10 days in jail before he would be dishonorably discharged from probation.

Paul Joseph O’Brien, 67, said he started using hard drugs in retirement. He received mandatory probation in June 2023.

California refused to supervise his probation, so he moved his RV to Minden. After he does his jail time, O’Brien’s probation will be ended.

• A man faces revocation of his probation after he was arrested on another charge of possession of a controlled substance on Jan. 8.

Jesse Lee Rumminger is facing a case in East Fork Justice Court, according to his attorney.

Rumminger, 38, was arrested at the Topsy Walmart for possession of a controlled substance and a warrant for failing to appear in court in January 2022.

Rumminger was terminated from Western Nevada Regional Drug Court after he was allowed to participate in August 2021 after an earlier arrest for possession of heroin.

He was ordered to return to court on Jan. 30 after the East Fork case is completed.