Former MLB Pitcher Chasen Bradford Celebrates Police Academy Graduation By Getting Arrested For DUI By His Own Department

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Chasen Bradford, a former Major League Baseball pitcher who was drafted by the New York Mets in 2011, got arrested for a DUI by the very department that hired him just a day after graduating from the police academy.

Bradford, 34 years old, graduated from the Henderson Police Department academy with 13 other graduates on March 21 before being arrested for driving under the influence on March 22.

Following the arrest, Henderson was immediately fired and is no longer a member of the Henderson Police Department.

According to an arrest report, officers were dispatched to the area around 10:23 p.m. following reports of a possible intoxicated driver, who was “hitting medians” and “driving up on a curb.”

“The vehicle, described as a gray Ford pickup truck with an American flag sticker on the left side window, was stopped and Bradford was asked to exit the truck so a series of Standardized Field Sobriety Tests could be performed.” [via KSNV]

The police report says when asked how much he’d drunk, he told the arresting officers that he consumed two Coors Lights. About 30 minutes later, however, when the officers asked again, he said he had “five or six” beers throughout the course of the day.

When given a breathalyzer test at the Henderson Detention Center, Bradford’s first sample showed a .094 BAC and .098 BAC on his second.

“On Thursday, March 21, 2024, The Henderson Police Department welcomed 14 new officers who graduated our Police Academy,” a statement from HPD chief Hollie Chadwick read. “On the evening of March 22, 2024, one of those (graduating) officers chose to drink and drive resulting in their arrest by the Henderson Police Department.”

Bradford made his MLB debut with the Mets in 2017 before spending two seasons with the Mariners in 2018 and 2019, which is when he suffered what amounted to a career-ending elbow injury that led to Tommy John surgery. His career statistics are a win-loss record of 7-0 with an ERA of 3.89 and 76 strikeouts.