Johnston County driver's ed teacher charged with drunken driving

JOHNSTON COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- A driver's education instructor at a Johnston County high school has been charged with driving while impaired.

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A state trooper was on patrol around 2:30 a.m. on June 15 and saw a blue Jeep weaving while going 62 mph in a 55-mph zone on Cleveland Road near Short Journey Road.

The trooper pulled the car over, and, after noticing the driver smelled of alcohol and had "red glassy eyes," gave the man a sobriety test.

After failing the test, the man -- 33-year-old Kenneth Watkins -- was taken to the Johnston County Courthouse to take a Breathalyzer test. The breath samples were 0.11 and 0.10, which were above the legal limit of 0.08 in North Carolina.

Watkins was charged with driving while impaired and failure to maintain lane control. He was released on an unsecured bond and is set to appear in court Aug. 8.

Officials said Watkins has been employed with the district since September 2014. He is a Health/PE Teacher at Cleveland High and also serves as a coach and driver's ed instructor.