Mystery ends; Woods' councilman is charged with driving drunk

   By Pete Waldmeir 
    
     The identity of the mystery motorist who crunched that street lamp in the 1000 block of Lake Shore Drive in the early morning dark of July 6 and ended up in the hoosegow finally has been revealed.
   Grosse  Pointe Woods rookie Council Member Michael Koester was arraigned before Judge Matthew Rumora in Grosse Pointe Shores Municipal Court on Wednesday (July24) on a charge of OWI, operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, which is longhand for drunk driving. He entered a plea of not guilty.
     Koester, 30, is to appear for a pre-trial hearing in the same courtroom on Aug. 21. OWI carries a stiff fine, other penalties and a lengthy license suspension. A plea bargain from OWI down to "reckless with alcohol," often referred to as "wet reckless," could see the charge and penalties reduced.
     The incident has been a carefully-guarded, but ill-kept secret since Koester's arrest and brief detention. When the youthful councilman appeared in Rumora's court on Wednesday, however, the cat was out of the bag.
     GP Shores police chief John Schulte courteously but carefully ducked comment on Friday, insisting that details surrounding Koester's arrest and incarceration would not be available until the Shores' city attorney responds next Monday (or later) to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests from various individuals and media outlets.
     However, both Judge Rumora and GP Shores' prosecuting attorney Donald P. DeNault Jr. acknowledged that Koester appeared in person at the Wednesday arraignment. Council Member Koester was represented at the hearing by Grosse Pointe Woods' appointed city attorney Donald Berschback, who also is a partner in a private legal practice.
      The OWI charge stemmed from a non-injury accident at 2:44 a.m. on July 6 in which Koester's passenger vehicle allegedly struck and knocked over a street light pole on Lake Shore Road. His vehicle ended up on a homeowner's front lawn, a source explained.
      Chief Schulte refused to confirm either the date or the time of the incident although those details apparently were made public recently - without naming any names - in the Grosse Pointe Times. Defendant Koester was alone and the only witness to the accident.
      Information from a police source indicate that a test administered at the scene showed that Koester had a blood alcohol level nearly twice the limit of .08 allowed under Michigan law.
       Koester is in the second year of a four-year term as an elected and paid part-time Woods council member.

         Pete Waldmeir is a retired former award-winning columnist for The Detroit News. A 30-year resident of Grosse Pointe Woods, he is a former Woods' council member.