San Diego Chief pleads guilty to San Diego drunken driving / San Diego DUI. He was represented by a San Diego DUI Attorney.

The chief of the criminal division of the U.S. Attorney's Office pleaded guilty to misdemeanor San Diego DUI or drunken driving yesterday, admitting that on St. Patrick's Day he drove while his blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit.

Shane Harrigan, 47, of San Diego did not appear in San Diego Superior Court, where his San Diego DUI lawyer entered the plea on his behalf.

Harrigan occupies the fourth-highest position in the office, and he makes many key decisions about federal prosecutions.

Commissioner Robert C. Rice sentenced Harrigan to five years probation and a $1,750 fine. Rice ordered him to attend a San Diego DUI drunken-driving awareness class and undergo substance abuse evaluation.

Those conditions were included as part of San Diego DUI plea for this first-time San Diego DUI conviction.

Harrigan was arrested March 17 after running a red light in downtown San Diego and failing a San Diego DUI field sobriety test, said San Diego Police Executive Assistant Chief William Maheu.

Harrigan admitted his blood-alcohol level was .17 of a percent, more than double the .08 of a percent at which San Diego California DUI drivers are presumed drunk.