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<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Thomas Kehler bragged to police that he was a Harveys Lake council member when he was arrested for DUI in early April.</p><p>On Tuesday, the council vice president pleaded guilty.</p><p>Luzerne County Judge Hugh F. Mundy accepted Kehler&#8217;s plea, setting his sentencing for Nov. 16.</p><p>Kehler, 64, is facing an 18-month suspension of his driver&#8217;s license.</p><p>He was arrested after a report of a white Cadillac striking garbage cans and decorations outside a Spring Street home and then speeding away.</p><p>Officers went to Kehler&#8217;s girlfriend&#8217;s house on Old Lake Road and saw a Cadillac matching the description of the hit-and-run vehicle with damage to its front end.</p><p>A check on the vehicle&#8217;s registration confirmed Kehler was the owner.</p><p>When officers knocked on the door to the home, the say Kehler emerged, smelling of alcohol and slurring his speech.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m a Harveys Lake council member,&#8221; Kehler reportedly told police. &#8220;That&#8217;s kinda cool, huh?&#8221;</p><p>After he was arrested on DUI charges, a blood test showed he had been driving with a blood-alcohol content of .186 percent, more than twice the .08 driving limit, court papers say.</p><p>Kehler was initially charged with counts of DUI, accidental damage to unattended vehicles or property, careless driving and leaving the scene of an accident. But all charges besides the DUI count were withdrawn by the prosecution.</p><p>Kehler has been accused of drunken driving several times before.</p><p>He was charged in November 2014 when officers said they saw him swerving on Memorial Highway. He also faced DUI charges in Dallas in 1993 and Wilkes-Barre in 1990, records show.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Kehler </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/web1_web1_KEHLER-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Kehler </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Patrick Kernan</p><p>pkernan@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Patrick Kernan at 570-991-6386 or on Twitter @PatKernan</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Harveys Lake councilman pleads guilty to DUI