DWI driver's license suspended 24 times

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Police say a drunk driver reached speeds close to 100 MPH - but that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Thirty-four-year-old Anthony Watson of Buffalo already had bench warrants out for his arrest, two prior DWI convictions and 24 active suspensions on his license. Yet at 11 a.m. on New Year's Day, troopers say they pulled him over as he sped down the Kensington Expressway going 93 MPH in a 55 MPH zone.

Watson refused to take a breath test and police say he told troopers he drank a lot of vodka and champagne before getting behind the wheel. Watson reportedly said he was on the way to his friend's house, even though he hadn't had a driver's license in four years. He failed field sobriety tests.

So how is it possible for Anthony Watson to still be driving?

Trooper Jack Moretti said, "Poor judgment and apparently not deterred from operating a motor vehicle."

According to the Department of Motor Vehicles, Watson first had his license revoked in 1997 when he refused a chemical test. The next year it was revoked again when he was in an uninsured accident. He was convicted of drunk driving in 2000 and 2006, which resulted in his license being revoked again.

But apparently, according the DMV, he never lost his license in that time. And he kept racking up license suspensions - 10 times for failing to pay a fine, nine times for failing to answer summons, and five more that were also for failing to pay fees. Finally in 2008 he was forced to surrender his license.

Troopers say it's not unusual for someone to keep driving and keep getting in trouble.

"Not unusual. It does occur. Repeat offenders - it does happen. And sometimes the penalties and fines don't deter operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated," Trooper Moretti said.

Watson is currently behind bars at the Erie County Holding Center on $3,500 cash bail. He'll be back in court January 8.